Clarkson Janet. Menus from History: Historic Meals and Recipes for Every Day of the Year

Greenwood Press 2009. — 1002 p.The book offers a fascinating exploration of dining history through historic menus from more than 35 countries. Ranging from discussion of a Roman banquet in A.D. 70 to a meal for former South African President Nelson Mandela in the 1990s, the menus offer students and general readers a thoroughly delightful way to learn more about events and the cultures in which they occurred. feasts, soldier grub, shipboard and spaceship meals, and state dinners are just some of the occasions discussed.Arranged chronologically, each entry covers a day of the year and pres a menu from a significant meal that took place. An entry begins with the name, location, and date of the event, plus a brief explanation of its significance. Next comes the menu, followed by an analysis and, where possible, several recipes from the menu.There are 365 menus in this book — one for each day of the year, for an event that happened on that day. They appear in the book in calendar order, and they are also listed chronologically, by country, and by type of occasion in the front matter. Each menu is accompanied by a commentary on some aspect of the event or the food, and by one or more appropriate recipes from the era. Some stories are embellished with tempting tidbits of boxed material.