OP: The New York Times Menu Cook Book

Harper & Row, 1966. Hardcover. Very Good in Very Good Minus jacket. First printing.

Deriving material mainly from Craig Claiborne’s articles between 1960 and 1966, the second of the major Times cookbooks (known as The New York Times “green”) provides some twelve hundred recipes but is oriented to thinking about them as elements of menus. Many dozens of menus—for breakfast, lunch, brunch, and dinner, as well as outdoor and special occasion meals—are offered in a special 40-page section at the beginning of the book. 

Claiborne remains true to his championing of international and adventurous dishes for such delightful menu compositions as a picnic of caviar and egg sandwiches, cold roast chicken, potato salad with anchovies, and a watercress salad dressed with a bean and tuna vinaigrette. For a September dinner he suggests a chicken consomme served with matzoh balls, stuffed squab, Israeli rice—steamed with curry powder and pine nuts—asparagus, and a carrot torte for dessert. Or for a Costa Rican Christmas feast you might enjoy a roast suckling pig with frijoles fritos, tamales, heart of palm and avocado salad, and flan. Lots of delectable treats for palate expansion.