When I was 14 years old on my first trip to France,  I visited Pérouges, a medieval walled city not far from Lyon and Jacques Pépin’s  home town. There, I ate the famed Galette de Pérouges, a sweet yeast dough coated with a crunchy sugar, butter and lemon topping.  Much later I learned to make it to serve with custard for dessert at our restaurant.

You can watch me make it and get the recipe if you become a member of the Jacques Pépin Foundation where you can join a unique virtual platform, Cook with Jacques and Friends: Volume 1.

The Jacques Pépin Foundation supports free culinary and life skills training to individuals in desperate need. I’ve taught and worked with some of its beneficiaries including the KROC Center at the Salvation Army in Dorchester, Massachusetts and the Rhode Island Food Bank Community Kitchen in Providence, RI. You have never seen more interested and dedicated students than in these important programs.

With the pandemic, the Foundation faces many challenges.  (Of course, it is not alone.) Its major fundraisers were cancelled. In a smart pivot, Rollie Wesen, the Foundation’s director and its board members conceived of creating a membership site. In support of this work, we created a Video Recipe Book featuring over 40 top chefs across the country, available to all who join the JPF. Membership starts at $40/year.

As a chef, a dear friend and inspired student, I am proud to support the  Jacques Pépin Foundation membership launch. For many chefs, Jacques is a mentor who is generous beyond compare. He and his books taught me a great deal about cooking and living a flavorful life, for which I am forever grateful.

Cooking along with us supports a great cause. Join here: https://members.jp.foundation. Thank you and happycooking!