‘In the Kitchen’: Harry Hamlin Reveals Julia Child Recipe He Makes Every Christmas Eve
Preview
He’s got the chops, as any Real Housewives of Beverly Hills fan can tell you.
Harry Hamlin made his famous spaghetti Bolognese for the cast, including his wife, Lisa Rinna, in Season 11, and it was a bigger hit than a slap from Brandi Glanville. So it’s no wonder AMC asked the Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches actor to do his own cooking show, in which he’s joined by his niece Renee Guilbault, a Le Cordon Bleu–trained chef.
That five-episode series debuts next May, but Hamlin is whetting our appetites with In the Kitchen with Harry Hamlin: A Holiday Special to spice up the holidays. Dig in!
Let’s talk about that Bolognese, since it’s become famous in its own right. Any chance you’ll reveal the recipe?
Harry Hamlin: It’s got a life of its own! And you just might find it on grocery store shelves in the not-too-distant future.
Since this is a holiday cooking show, we’re curious: What Yuletide meals did your family enjoy growing up?
Are you a fan, by any chance, of James Joyce?
Sure…
In Ulysses, Leopold Bloom is introduced with one line: “Leopold Bloom ate with relish the inner organs of beasts and fowls.” My father was very much like Leopold Bloom. Christmas morning, we always had the same breakfast. He would spend a few days making this dish, which he loved, and it became an acquired taste in our family. It was not bacon and eggs. It was not croissants. It was calves’ brains with burned butter.
Sounds…interesting. Will that be part of this special?
If I had the recipe! [Laughs] But no, that’s not going to make it. Our contemporary family has a different tradition: Julia Child’s boeuf bourguignon for Christmas Eve dinner. This special is really an homage to her. She requested years ago that I deliver an award to her at an award ceremony, and she asked me to help her to the podium. She had a cane in her right hand and my arm in her left arm. As we walked, she reached down and pinched my butt. And when she got to the podium, she said, “Oh, I’ve always wanted to pinch Harry Hamlin’s ass.” [Laughs]
That’s a bit cheeky, as Julia always was. Is holiday cooking stressful for you?
I find cooking meditative and calming. I make sure that after I use a utensil, it gets immediately washed. And the counter is always clean. If you’re constantly cleaning up after yourself, it’s a lot less stressful.
In the Kitchen With Harry Hamlin: A Holiday Special Wednesday, December 13, 11/10c, AMC+
