Thomas Jefferson, the first secretary of state, the second vice president, our third president, the author of the Declaration of Independence, and the father of the University of Virginia, also shaped America’s culinary heritage.
Imagine if you could go back in time to Monticello. In the kitchen, there is a new 8-burner French stove, dumbwaiters, a waffle iron, pasta maker, French wines in the cellar, house made cider and beer.
In the pantry, you would find Parmesan cheese, Marseilles figs, anchovies, Dijon mustard, tarragon vinegar, vanilla, olive oil, Spanish almonds, pomegranates, Italian peaches, and Italian rice.
His slave, James Hemings, was trained in French cooking, so he could make Jefferson’s favorite dishes.
When Jefferson traveled to Europe, (definitely before USDA inspections) he brought back seeds, plants, and grapevines to add to his garden in Monticello. The garden had over 250 varieties of vegetables and herbs and 170 varieties of fruits as well as orchards , berries, and vineyards.
Seeds such as wild honeysuckle, cantaloupe, sweet potatoes and watermelon were brought back.
He ate mostly vegetables and only ate meat as a condiment. Jefferson lived till the ripe old age of 83 years old, which in those days was very old. His healthy vegetable and fruit diet probably contributed to his long life. Jefferson also exercised regularly and limited his consumption of wine to three glasses a day, which also were great habits for a long life.
Jefferson was named by George Washington to be a minister to the court of France’s King Louis XVI. This job brought him to Europe and introduced him to the great delicacies. Having that position, he dined at the homes of French nobility and ate the best food and French wine. Jefferson also visited Parisian cafes and bistros.
When in Provence, the olive trees enchanted him and he said, “Of all the gifts of heaven to man, it is next to the most precious, if it be not be the most precious.” Jefferson used olive oil in his salads.
When Jefferson traveled to Holland, he bought a waffle iron, when in Italy, discovered macaroni and Chianti wine, and in the Mediterranean, found figs, capers, almonds, walnuts, oranges and pomegranates.
So can you imagine the day he returned to America? There were crates stuffed with silver, porcelain, copper cookware, 680 bottles of wine, and loads of food items. I wonder what his shipping bill was?
When Jefferson became president, instead of open houses for the public as George Washington and John Adams had, he had dinner parties. Dinner guests were limited to a dozen and Federalists came one night, Republicans another night. Jefferson forbade talking politics until the lawmakers cleaned their plates. Like the French did, he had hoped his American guests would talk about art, religion or agriculture during dinner. Tables were round to encourage more interaction among the guests. The guests never saw the servants as the food was sent to the dining room by dumbwaiters.
Jefferson had his staff trained by Frenchmen Etienne Lemaire, the White House maitre d’, who shopped daily at Washington’s two farmers markets for the French chef Honore’ Julien.
A guest in 1802 recalled rice soup, round of beer, turkey, mutton, ham, loin of veal, cutlets of mutton or veal, fried eggs, fried beef, a piece of pasta, and French-style ice cream. After the tablecloth was removed, the “jimcracks” of dried fruits and nuts came out with wine.
Gardening provided Jefferson with stress relief during stressful periods. Plants were a way of relating to friends, family, neighbors and political allies.
When Jefferson retired in 1809, he still had dinners, sometimes for several dozen folks.
Even with his arthritis, he still loved to go into his garden to see what was growing. He was thrilled when he read a newspaper article about a 4-foot long cucumber that was grown in Ohio. He wrote a letter to ask if he could get the seeds to plant. Seven months later, on July 4, 1826, Jefferson died. Three days earlier, he ate a cucumber.
So remember, when you are eating these foods, that you can thank Thomas Jefferson for making these dishes so popular in America:
Ice cream, although he did not invent it, his obsession with serving ice cream at dinner parties made it so popular. Guests were presented with a pie ala mode, or as described, a crust or pastry with ice cream.
Tomatoes were not very popular as many believed they were poisonous because it belongs to the nightshade family. Jefferson created a bit of controversy when he publicly ate a tomato.
Macaroni and cheese, again, he did not invent it, but he made it popular. Senator Manasseh Cutler described eating “a pie called macaroni” at a dinner at the President’s house in 1802, and the population hasn’t stopped raving about it since.
French fries were eaten by Jefferson in France, “deep-fried potatoes in small cuttings,” and was often served at dinner.
My granddaughter Artemis appreciates Thomas Jefferson for the Mac and cheese and French fries as those are her favorite foods.