Spicing Up the Patriarchy

By Trinity Elliott

Staff Reporter

March 2022

I believe women all around the world have been the secret ingredients of cooking. We recognize chefs with Michelin stars such as Gordon Ramsey, Pierre Gagnaire, and Alfredo Russo. However, we don’t really see any women, do we? Yet, whenever we go to the baking aisle at a grocery store, it’s almost guaranteed that you will see a box of Betty Crocker with that signature red spoon. We are sorely lacking in our knowledge of women in history who have been phenomenal in cooking—especially those of color and different ethnicities.

There has only been one woman of color who has been given a Michelin star, and that woman is Mariya Russel, who became a Michelin star owner in 2019. From an article solely based on giving females the cooking spotlight, “her career hit a high in 2018 when she won a James Beard Award for Best Chef: South, a category never before awarded to a black woman despite the strong influence proud traditions of black kitchens have exerted in the area…. Silverton is most known for her Los Angeles Italian restaurants Osteria Mozza, Pizzeria Mozza, and Chi Spacca, as well as the beloved bakery chain she founded, La Brea, though her influence hardly stops there.” Women have been awarded only just recently for their multitude of accomplishments. All of those women are under the radar when it comes to their work to the general public, even though it is their right to show their culture in their food and culinary skills.

Furthering this, even with those accomplished women, there is someone else who we know who that is not just a single woman but multiple—Betty Crocker, as we know today, is not just one person. In fact, it was a name for women to offer their cooking knowledge to the public. This was because many women weren’t able to share this knowledge without it being under Crocker’s name. It got to a point where Crocker went through so much that she was even given a proper title. It states on the Betty Crocker website that “this went on to earn Betty the title of the ‘First Lady of Food’ (which still rings true to this day).” Crocker became a well-known name, but do we ever speak about Betty Crocker more than we do Gordon Ramsey? We unfortunately do not. The majority of people don’t even know that the label Betty Crocker is a page for multiple women to share their recipes and tips about cooking.

Overall, women should take the cake, and should be able to whisk their way up in the cooking industry as they have a right to be one of the cherries on top. Every woman, no matter what they look like or where they come from, should be able to add their own sprinkles to the cooking world. That way, everyone can receive a beautiful and delicious slice of what women have to offer. All puns intended.