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This Week: 

Exclusive Q&A with Julia directors Julie Cohen and Betsy West.

Plus, Julia Child's famous Sole Meunière recipe and a new CNN Original Series about the Watergate scandal. 

Hear exclusively from the directors of Julia 

Tonight at 8 p.m. ET Julia premieres on CNN. The film delves into the life and career of famed chef Julia Child, the first American celebrity chef to introduce Americans to French food with her cookbooks and television shows. 

 

The film's directors, Betsy West and Julie Cohen, teamed up to bring the Emmy award-winning film RBG to audiences in 2018. Take a look at why they decided to tackle Child's legacy next. 

 

Q: As the directors of RBG, Julia, and Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down, do you make a point of finding strong women to highlight in your work?

A: In a word: Yes. Historically, women’s stories have been underreported, trivialized or at times ignored altogether. Correcting those deficiencies has been our mission, and our great pleasure.  

 

Q: What inspired you to tell Julia Child’s story?

A: Following the success of RBG, our 2018 documentary about Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, we started looking for another iconic woman’s story to tell, preferably in a very different walk of life. There was a vast array of options. In the end, we chose Julia because of the extraordinary archive, the hugeness of her impact on our culture, and the joy, exuberance and deliciousness of the story.

 

Q: While researching for this film, did anything you learned about Child surprise you?

A: We did not know the important role that Julia played as a supporter of reproductive rights. Not just donating to Planned Parenthood, but lending her name and reputation to events for the organization.

 

This was in the 80s, a time when celebrities did not regularly speak out for causes that might be considered controversial by some of their fans. No matter what the opposition — and there was some — Julia believed that a woman should have the fundamental right to make the decision about what happens to her body, and whether or not to have a child.

 

Q: Nearly 60 years after the premiere of The French Chef, what kind of influence does Child still have today?

A: From Padma Lakshmi to Jose Andres to young and upcoming chefs all over the country, chefs revere Julia. Even those who do not cook traditional French food recognize her impact in celebrating the importance of food and cooking in our lives.

 

Q: What’s your favorite Julia Child recipe?

Julie: How can I not go for the sole meuniere? After all, this is the dish that started it all, by making Julia fall in love with French cuisine. So simple, so delicate, so unapologetically buttery.

 

Betsy: Salad Nicoise has become my go-to, relatively easy-to-make, elegant, delicious meal.

Make sure to tune in tonight at 8 p.m. ET to watch the premiere of Julia only on CNN. You won't want to miss it. 

WATCH: See the dish that inspired Julia Child to start cooking

Try the dish that inspired Julia Child to start a career in French cooking: Sole Meunière

A single meal forever changed Julia Child's life and American kitchens with it. It featured a mild, white-fleshed fish served in a butter sauce.

 

In 1948, Child and her husband, Paul, stopped for lunch at Restaurant La Couronne in Rouen, the capital of the northern region of Normandy. For their first meal in France, Paul ordered oysters, sole meunière and a green salad. Child devoured the meal, calling it "perfection."

 

This unforgettable lunch inspired Child to dedicate her life to learning and teaching the world the wonders of French cuisine. 

 

Want to try it out for yourself? Take a look at her recipe below:

Ingredients:

Special equipment

• 1 very large (more than 12 inches top diameter) nonstick, heavy frying pan or 2 large pans
• 2 spatulas for turning the fish
• 1 medium pan for the beurre noisette

Directions: 

1. Prepare the fish, removing the scales, black skin, head, roe and fins.

2. Set the frying pan or pans over medium-high heat. Season both sides of the fish with salt and pepper. Just before cooking, holding the fish by the tail, dredge first one side, then the other, in the flour. Press lightly to coat, then shake off the excess. Swirl the oil and butter in the pan and, when the butter foam subsides, lay in the fish, white skin side down. Repeat with the second fish.

3. Sauté until nicely browned on the first side, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn the fish over carefully with the spatulas and sauté until crispy and golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes or more. To check for doneness, stick a sharp knife into the top fillet, along the centerline, and push gently to one side; the flesh should separate easily from the center bone and no pinkness should be visible.

 

4. As soon as the fish are done, remove to a warm platter, skin side up, or to individual warm plates.

 

5. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon chopped parsley on each fish. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons butter in a clean medium-size pan over high heat. Watch the butter carefully as it melts, bubbles and starts to brown. Remove the pan from the heat, and, as the butter darkens to a hazelnut color, toss in the capers and the lemon juice and swirl together.

6. Pour the sizzling butter over the 2 fish, crisping the parsley, and serve immediately. Bon appetit! 

A new CNN Original Series and a special event opportunity for people in the DC area!

The new CNN Original Series Watergate: Blueprint for a Scandal looks back at the Watergate trial and the infamous break-in that started it all – this time told firsthand by John Dean, former White House Counsel to President Richard Nixon. The series premieres with back-to-back episodes at 9 and 10 p.m. on Sunday, June 5. 

 

For a refresher on the crisis that forever changed US politics, click here. 

 

If you're in the Washington, DC area this week, join us  at the National Archive’s McGowan Theater for an in person screening of the premiere episode on Wednesday, June 1 at 7 p.m. ET. Followed by a discussion with John Dean.

Exciting premieres on HLN this week

HLN has a packed week of premieres that you don't want to miss out on. 

First, Lori Vallow: End of Days premieres tonight at 9 p.m. ET/PT examining the story of Lori Vallow, who is charged with the murder of her two children. Vallow and her husband, Chad Daybell, both face charges related to the deaths of their former spouses.  

 

The investigation dives into the series of mysterious deaths wrapped around this couple and their religious beliefs. Watch a sneak peek here. 

Then, Donnie Wahlberg is back with an all-new season of Very Scary People premiering Sunday, June 5, at 10 p.m. ET/PT. The series chronicles the twisted lives of some of the most frightening, diabolical characters in recent history. Each two-hour episode traces the heinous, criminal acts of these elusive miscreants and the eventual road to justice.

 

You can click here to watch a clip and catch up on past seasons on CNNgo.