Food Friday: The Art of Food

I know I've said it before, but I think this is my new favorite community cookbook.

From the collection of Gena Philibert-Ortega

It's one of those discoveries that was meant to be but could have easily not happened. For Father's Day I took my parents out to a local Mexican restaurant that has been around for as long as I can remember. What did I have for lunch? A great burrito with spinach, mushrooms, tofu, and feta cheese covered in a relleno sauce.

So after that meal we decided to go across the street to an antique store and while I was browsing at a bunch of scattered books I came across my new favorite.

A Culinary Collection From the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1973). What a great book. The introduction starts with "It is a little-known and indisputable fact that museum people devote a great deal of thought and time to food, and the fare at the tables of colleagues is more often than not of the highest quality." Makes sense, these are people who are interested in art, they travel, they have interesting experiences. The recipes in this cookbook reflect that.

From the collection of Gena Philibert-Ortega

What's to like about this cookbook? Well, and may I suggest this for anyone compiling a community cookbook, each recipe includes a little introduction. Sometimes you learn that the recipe author  has passed, some entries hint at a marital status, travels to faraway places or remembering associates who no longer work at the museum.You feel like you are part of the staff as you read each recipe which is accompanied by the person's name and their position at the museum (in some cases they are supporters and not employees).

Today's recipe is one that I especially like because we are given the birth and death dates of the recipe originator as well as his occupation. How's that for a  genealogical source?

From the collection of Gena Philibert-Ortega

And just to provide another example, here's a dessert to go with it.

From the collection of Gena Philibert-Ortega