A Taste of History Cookbook: The Flavors, Places, and People That Shaped American Cuisine

In this excellent, accessible companion to PBS’s A Taste of History, Staib, chef of Philadelphia’s City Tavern, offers up over 150 recipes of 18th-century recipes prepared with 21st-century tools and techniques. Appetizers may not have existed in George Washington’s day, but Staib puts together a satisfying chapter of entrees that can pass as small plates, including pickled beef tongue salad and fried asparagus with herbed remoulade. Cooked vegetables were more a mainstay than fresh salads, so among the 20 side dishes there is fried celery and creamed kohlrabi. Chicken noodle soup has been a staple throughout the centuries, notes Staib, as has “pease” soup, prepared here with split peas, bacon, and chicken stock. Among the main dishes, lamb, chicken, rabbit, and even elk find their way as roasts and into hearty one-dish casseroles. Tofu, surprisingly, was known to Ben Franklin as early as 1770, and is employed in curried shrimp and tofu. A chapter dedicated to bread features Thomas Jefferson’s sweet potato-pecan biscuits, a nod to the pecan trees that can still be found at Monticello. Desserts are surprisingly sophisticated, with options including apricot charlotte russe and chocolate sabayon with cognac. The flavors of America’s earliest kitchens come alive in this charming and well-researched collection. (May)