Annemarie Huste (1943–2016) was a German-American chef who worked for, amongst others, as

private chef A cook or private chef is a household staff member responsible for food preparation. Description The term can refer to the head of kitchen staff in a great house or to the cook-housekeeper, a far less prestigious position involving more physical ...

Jacqueline Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A po ...

between 1964 and 1968. She subsequently worked as an

executive chef A chef de cuisine (, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that leads and manages the kitchen and chefs of a restaurant or hotel. A chef patron (feminine form ''chef patronne'') (French for ''boss chef'') or executive chef is ...

and a

cookbook A cookbook or cookery book is a kitchen reference containing recipes. Cookbooks may be general, or may specialize in a particular cuisine or category of food. Recipes in cookbooks are organized in various ways: by course (appetizer, first cour ...

author.

Early life

Annemarie Huste was born in

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

, Germany, on May 30, 1943, to Karl and Annemarie (née Bass) Huste. She began working as a shoe salesperson in Germany, but signed up with an agency and moved to the United States to work in the household of Gregory Callimanopulos in New York City. She learned to cook, but after six months sought to move on.

Culinary career

She then worked for

Billy Rose Billy Rose (born William Samuel Rosenberg; September 6, 1899 – February 10, 1966) was an American impresario, theatrical showman and lyricist. For years both before and after World War II, Billy Rose was a major force in entertainment, with sh ...

as a chef, after he asked her to make chocolate mousse Normandy. Huste was not aware of the recipe, but agreed and went to the local library and took out a

Dione Lucas Dione Lucas (born Dione Wilson, 10 October 1909 – 18 December 1971) (pronounced dee-OH-nee) was an English chef, and the first female graduate of Le Cordon Bleu. Her father was the architect, jeweller and designer Henry Wilson, and her sister was ...

. This was Rose's preferred version of the dish. Huste was hired as private chef for

in 1964, after the former

First Lady of the United States The first lady of the United States (FLOTUS) is the title held by the hostess of the White House, usually the wife of the president of the United States, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the first lady's role has never ...

had moved to the city from

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

On her first day, Huste was required to cook a meal for a large number of the

Kennedy family The Kennedy family is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P. J." Kennedy be ...

. Huste would accompany the Kennedy family as they travelled, including spending summers in

Hyannis Port, Massachusetts Hyannis Port (or Hyannisport) is a small residential village located in Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States. It is an affluent summer community on Hyannis Harbor, 1.4 miles (2.3 km) to the south-southwest of Hyannis. Community It has ...

. After Huste worked with Weight Watchers in 1968 on the article ''Jackie Kennedy’s Gourmet Chef Presents Her Weight Watchers Recipes'', Kennedy's representatives tried to prevent publication as it gave away some of Kennedy's private information. Huste spoke to

reporter A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

Maxine Cheshire Maxine Cheshire ( née Hall; April 5, 1930December 31, 2020) was an American newspaper reporter. She worked at ''The Washington Post'' between 1965 and 1981. Early life Cheshire was born in Harlan, Kentucky, on April 5, 1930. Her father worke ...

for ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' a few weeks later without permission from Kennedy. As well as providing further private information, Cheshire's article also compared Huste to

Julia Child Julia Carolyn Child (née McWilliams; August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American cooking teacher, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, '' ...

and claimed that a television series and cookbook were in progress. Huste was immediately fired as a result of the further disclosure of information. Although neither a cookbook or television show were in production at the time of the article, as a result ''Annemaries Personal Cookbook'' was published during the following October, and began appearing on television. After leaving the Kennedy household, Huste became

for both ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...

'' and the

Condé Nast Condé Nast () is a global mass media company founded in 1909 by Condé Montrose Nast, and owned by Advance Publications. Its headquarters are located at One World Trade Center in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan. The company's media ...

magazine ''

Gourmet Gourmet (, ) is a cultural idea associated with the culinary arts of fine food and drink, or haute cuisine, which is characterized by refined, even elaborate preparations and presentations of aesthetically balanced meals of several contrasting, of ...

''. In 1972, she opened a cookery school at her home in

Murray Hill, Manhattan Murray Hill is a neighborhood on the east side of Manhattan in New York City. Murray Hill is generally bordered to the east by the East River or Kips Bay and to the west by Midtown Manhattan, though the exact boundaries are disputed. Murray Hil ...

. Huste opened a catering shop called the Great Take-Out with businessman

Joseph Baumer Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

, which she ran for four years. Huste then turned the dining room of her home into a private party space called Annemarie's Dining Room, which she ran until 2009. A times, various dignitaries were honored at dinners held at her home, including

Secretary-General of the United Nations The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-g ...

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (; 8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder ...

and former

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

Personal life and death

Huste returned to visit her brother Lothar's family in Ulm, usually around twice a year. Her nephew Michael joined her in New York for several years during the early 2000s, where he also became a chef. In later life, she was diagnosed with

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

and died from complications on October 19, 2016. Huste was 73 years old.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Huste, Annemarie 1943 births 2016 deaths People from Ulm People from East Islip, New York German chefs Women chefs Women cookbook writers German emigrants to the United States Deaths from dementia in New York (state) Deaths from Alzheimer's disease People from Murray Hill, Manhattan