New York Times Cookbook
by Craig Claiborne

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Book Reviews of New York Times Cookbook

Book Review: Men sometimes like to cook, too
Summary: 5 Stars

I'm one of those men who like to cook sometimes, for the fun of it. Cooking can be as creative as any other art, and recipes are often adaptable. Substitutions of ingredients and addition or subtraction of other ingredients or changed amounts are up to the cook, according to their own taste requirements or simply to see what new taste results.

This is a good cookbook. I have used it over the years, and some of the recipes are old standbys that I return to frequently. For example, on page 299 is an excellent recipe for chili con carne. I substitute sirloin or stew meat cut into approximately 1" cubes for the chopped beef. I also like to throw in an extra red pepper just for color, and sometimes lighten up on the chili powder, depending on the taste of those I'm cooking for. My 96-year-old mother-in-law loves my chili, but likes it a little milder. For those who like it hot, adding a few jalapenos will wake up the taste buds and make the eyeballs sweat. Chili was originally made without beans, until the Great Depression era, when beans were added to add bulk cheaply. Hamburger as a substitute for top grade beef was also an economy measure that has become synonymous with chili. I retain the beans for the flavor, but revert to the original use of prime beef as the meat ingredient.

Another recipe from the book that has proven popular with my friends and family is the one for Nova Scotia Black Fruitcake, on page 699. It has become a family tradition for me to make it every Christmas. I make it with brandy usually, adding the booze over a period of a month or so unsparingly, keeping it moist while it ages, wrapped in cheesecloth in a cool room. It is delicious. Everyone has heard that the original Christmas fruitcake is still with us, having been passed from person to person over the centuries--the implication being that it is undesirable. This one is delicious, and very popular! The liberal use of brandy helps to encourage its disappearnce, of course.

Those are only a couple of recipes out of 800 pages of them. The book is full of them, categorized and indexed for easy use, with no wasted space for lecturing or philosophizing. It is my next to favorite cook book, after The Good Housekeeping Cook Book, 7th Edition, (1944), which is no longer available except at auction.

If you like to cook, and like to try new things, this is a fine basic cookbook. Nothing frivolous, but everything you need, with plenty of room for expressing your originality through experimenting and innovation.

Joseph H. Pierre

Summary of New York Times Cookbook

Since it was first published in 1961, The New York Times Cook Book, a standard work for gourmet home cooks, has sold nearly three million copies in all editions and continues to sell strongly each year. All the nearly fifteen hundred recipes in the book have been reviewed, revised, and updated, and approximately 40 percent have been replaced.

Emphasizing the timeless nature of this collection, Craig Claiborne has included new recipes using fresh herbs and food processor techniques. He has also added more Chinese, Indian, and foreign recipes and more recipes for pasta, rice, and grains. Additional fish recipes, new salads and bread recipes, and an exceptional chili dish enhance this edition, which contains traditional American recipes and selected recipes from twenty countries. All the recipes are clearly presented and suitable for many different occasions, ranging from a wide variety of family meals to the most formal dinner party. The author also covers sauces and salad dressings, relishes, and preserves. And there are countless old favorites and those wonderful desserts.

Complete with essential cross-referencing, a table of equivalents and conversions, and an index, the revised edition of The New York Times Cook Book is a superb new cookbook to give, to own, and to use for years to come.

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