Julia Child

Before he was an author and partner at Acre Venture Partners, this year’s Julia Child Award recipient, Sam Kass, made his mark at the White House. After cooking for the Obama family in Chicago, Sam joined the White House kitchen staff in 2009 and soon took on several additional roles, including Executive Director of First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign and Senior White House Policy Advisor for Nutrition. He is the first person in the history of the White House to have a position in the Executive Office of the President and the Residence, and as one of the First Lady’s longest-serving advisors, he helped the First Lady create the first major vegetable garden at the White House since Eleanor Roosevelt’s victory garden. Stay tuned as we share more of Sam’s story. (Photos: USDA; Chuck Kennedy; Bob Nichols)

ICYMI There is a YouTube page dedicated to Julia Child on PBS and it features episodes of her beloved TV shows, including The French Chef, Baking with Julia and Cooking with Master Chefs. Find it via the link in the comments!! PBS

Julia’s affection for Goldfish crackers is well known—she especially enjoyed them with an upside-down martini. One writer at TheKitchen decided to taste test which Goldfish flavors pair best with Julia’s beloved cocktail. Read her review using the link in the comments! The Kitchn

As part of Oxford American’s Food Issue, supported by a grant from the Foundation, writer Diba Mohtasham traveled around North Carolina and eastern Tennessee speaking with truffle cultivators and examining a burgeoning industry that has already faced significant hurdles. Read her piece, “Diamonds of the Earth,” on the Oxford American website:
https://oxfordamerican.org/oa-now/diamonds-of-the-earth

Oxford American

Diamonds of the Earth From Blackberry Farm in the Tennessee mountains to the Piedmont region of North Carolina, farmers are turning truffles into a staple of Appalachian cuisine.

Today may be the unofficial kickoff of summer, but it’s also a day to honor those lost fighting for our country, which is something Julia and Paul took seriously. They both served in WWII, as part of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner to the CIA. Julia reported directly to OSS leader General William J. Donovan, and is known for helping develop shark repellent, while Paul ran the OSS’s Visual Presentation group and later worked for the State Department. Here’s a photo Paul took of Julia back in their OSS days in Ceylon (current day Sri Lanka; photo: Schlesinger Library, used with permission).

Julia Child: A Recipe for Life is only at the Minnesota History Center until May 31. This traveling exhibition features video, audio and photography documenting Julia, her distinctive voice and her extraordinary contributions to the culinary world and you don’t want to miss it. Learn more via the link in the comments. Minnesota Historical Society

About last night…For the second year in a row, the Foundation gathered at Godmothers in Summerland, CA, so that last year’s Julia Child Award recipient, Bobby Stuckey, could announce this year’s recipient, Sam Kass. That’s Bobby with the Foundation’s Chairman, Eric Spivey. You’ll learn more about Sam over the coming weeks, but we’re thrilled to have him as our 12th recipient. Check out his bio on the Julia Child Award website via the link in the comments!

Congratulations to Sam Kass, a chef, author, former White House Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition, Executive Director of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign, and Partner at Acre Venture Partners, on being named the 2026 Julia Child Award recipient.

For more than two decades, Sam has been a leading voice in advancing public health and the health of the planet. As Executive Director of Let’s Move! in the Obama White House, he helped drive a national effort to improve childhood nutrition and reshape how Americans eat, while also serving as Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition.

After nearly six years in the White House, Sam shifted his focus to innovation and is now a Partner at Acre Venture Partners, where he invests in and advises early-stage companies focused on the intersection of food, agriculture, health and climate, evaluating their ability to deliver measurable impact on both planetary and human well-being. He is also the author of the recently published book, The Last Supper: How to Overcome the Coming Food Crisis, a sweeping examination of the systemic threats facing the global food supply.

The Foundation is honored to celebrate Sam’s commitment to building a healthier, more sustainable food system.

Julia Child Julia Child Award

Stay tuned! Tomorrow we’re announcing the recipient of the 2026 Julia Child Award!

Get to know 2025 Julia Child Award recipient Bobby Stuckey, who’ll be part of this week’s Santa Barbara Culinary Experience. Read the Santa Barbara Independent article via the link in the comments! (Photo: Iris Kosmicki)

Santa Barbara Independent
Santa Barbara Culinary Experience