Julia Child's Last Meal Was A French Classic

Julia Child had a culinary career that bridged lavish and rich French dishes with kitchen hacks and shortcuts. From elevating tuna salad sandwiches to hassle-free steak sauce, Child had a cooking trick for everything. To this day, home cooks flock to her for knowledge long after her passing.

Child passed away in 2004 at 91 years old, but she went out with a last meal perfectly fit for her French cooking legacy. The last thing she ate before she passed away in her sleep was French onion soup — simple yet elegant, and above all, tasty, matching the legacy she would leave behind.

At the time, she was living in an assisted living facility in California so she did not prepare her last meal herself. Instead, her personal assistant cooked the final meal in her stead. The recipe for the soup was actually Child's own version, which has since gone on to be recreated and loved by many cooks.

While Julia Child had a tip for making store-bought French onion soup taste homemade (a poached egg, by the way), her recipe for French onion soup has its own unique twists and tips, much like her beloved personality. In typical fashion, the recipe does include a helping of butter and oil, lending to its richness. Although the recipe has no pieces of beef in it, the flavor of beef still makes an appearance with the use of 2 quarts of beef stock, of which Child noted at least 2 cups should be hot.

The recipe also calls for the addition of alcohol, but the types and amounts are not hard and fast. Child calls for 4 to 5 tablespoons of either Cognac or Armagnac. However, she also notes that any other good brandy will do. Additionally, 1 cup of dry white French vermouth should be added.

One thing that home cooks have noted about Julia Child's French onion soup is the inclusion of sugar. Although the amount is quite small, with the recipe calling for 1 teaspoon of sugar combined with the same amount of salt while cooking the onions, the decision to use sugar has been somewhat divisive. Some praise this unique addition while others say it makes the soup too sweet. Either way, it matches Child's reputation for doing something a little off the beaten path and makes this soup a classic and fitting last meal for the beloved chef.