The Untold Truth Of Claudine Pépin

The wife of culinary guru Jacques Pépin passed away peacefully in her home on Sunday. A statement on Pépin's Facebook page notes the 83-year-old Gloria Pépin is survived by her husband, her daughter Claudine, and her granddaughter Shorey. If Claudine Pépin's name sounds familiar to you, that's because the apple didn't fall far from the tree — you may have seen Claudine cheffing it up alongside her dad on TV over the last few decades.

Claudine appeared with Jacques in three James Beard award-winning shows on public television, including Jacques Pépin's Kitchen: Cooking With Claudine, Jacques Pépin's Kitchen: Encore With Claudine, and 2015's Jacques Pépin Heart & Soul in The Kitchen (via The Jacques Pépin Foundation). She also appeared on PBS classics like Mario Batali's Molto Mario and Cooking Live with Sarah Moulton, in addition to guest spots on Good Morning America. Claudine Pépine's stardom isn't limited to TV, though. She also has a background in wine, she is on the board of her father's foundation, and she authored a cookbook. Read on to learn more about Jacques and Gloria Pépin's only child, Claudine.

At 52, Claudine Pépin has accomplished a lot. According to IMDb, she was only 27 when she first began cooking on PBS with her father. By that time, she'd already earned a degree in International Relations from Boston University (via Facebook), and went on to work as the brand ambassador for Moet & Chandon and Dom Perignon Champagne. She also taught food and wine pairing for the French Culinary Institute and the Sommelier Society in New York. In 2003, Claudine married her husband, Rollie Wesen, a chef and assistant professor at Johnson & Wales University. Wesen is also Executive Director of The Jacques Pépin Foundation where Claudine serves as President.

Pépine and Wesen have a daughter, Shorey, who seems to have been a sort of muse for the children's cookbook Claudine wrote in 2015, titled Kids Cook French (Les Enfants Cuisinent à la Française), according to The Washington Post. The book promotes a relaxed approach to getting kids to enjoy food, even though Jacques and Gloria Pépin evidently didn't use quite those same tactics in raising Claudine. She told The Washington Post, "My mother's line was, 'If you don't eat it, I'll put it on your head.'" Since her mother's passing, Claudine has yet to post much on social media, other than sharing a photo of Gloria on Facebook with the quiet caption, "Thank you all for your kindness."