Desert Island Cookbook: Kim Beeman

Name: Kim Beeman

Occupation: Librarian (and student) at the French Culinary Institute in New York.

Desert Island Cookbook: Bull Cook and Authentic Historical Recipes and Practices by George Leonard Herter.



Why Bull Cook? Kim explains:

I bought a copy of Bull Cook and authentic historical recipes four years ago, after seeing it described as a "bombastic comic-culinary masterpiece." With recipes for "Spinach Mother of Christ," "Olives Forum of the Twelve Ceasers," Hors d'Oeuvres Turkistan," and the ever-popular "How to Make Shallots from Onions," it did not disappoint.

George Leonard Herter, sportsman and amateur historian, self-published Bull Cook in 1960. Proprietor of Herter's, a sporting goods store in Waseca, Minnesota, ("Tenacious for Quality since 1893"), his cooking credentials remain obscure. In the first paragraphs of the book, he set out his intentions.

For your convenience, I will start with meat, fish, eggs, soups and sauces, sandwiches, vegetables, the art of French frying, desserts, how to dress game, how to properly sharpen a knife, how to make wines and beer, how to make French soap, what to do in case of hydrogen or cobalt bomb attack. Keeping as much in alphabetical order as possible.

Of all the cookbooks, I have ever come across, I think that this is the only one that deals with cobalt bomb attacks.

Herter, confident and enthusiastic, filled his book with dubious historical and culinary claims. The Italians don't know how to make a tomato sauce! The Virgin Mary loved both spinach and bagpipes! Genghis Khan liked his ducks cooked in rhubarb and honey! Escoffier had a fondness for canned kidney beans! The recipes that accompany these stories are mostly unremarkable, if suspiciously American-sounding (onion powder and cream of mushroom soup make frequent appearances).

I love this cookbook, not because I trust Herter or his recipes, but because I love the way he forges ahead, unfettered by footnotes or references, and tells the story of food as he sees it. Lucky for me, this book was such a success that he followed it up with two more volumes, each more exciting than the last. A singular contribution to the world of cookbooks, to say the least!

Hors D'Oeuvres Turkistan
(taken from Bull Cook and authentic historical recipes and practices)

The prune, although often thought to be of European origin, originated in western Asia in the area south of the Caucasus Mountains to the Caspian Sea. Prunes came to Europe fairly recently by being introduced into Hungary from Turkistan late in the 15th century. They were introduced as a before-the-meal appetizer and were at first so expensive that you could actually buy good quality Turkish harem girls by the pound much cheaper than you could prunes. The rage of Europe became Hors d'Oeuvres Turkistan.

Here is the original recipe and I must say that it is a welcome change from the junk that you see on most hors d'oeuvre trays today.

Buy a package of good quality prunes. Boil them in water until barely done, according to the instructions on the package. Drain the prunes and place them on a plate. Take a sharp, pointed knife and make a slit lengthwise across the top of the prunes and remove the pit. Take a 3 oz. package of soft white cheese. Philadelphia cream cheese is excellent for the purpose. Place the cheese in a bowl. Add two level tablespoons of honey or sugar. Three level tablespoons of chopped walnuts and one-eighth teaspoon of anise liquid flavoring. Now with a fork mix everything together to form a smooth paste. Take the paste and stuff the prunes with it. Place the prunes on a plate and serve. They make fabulous eating.


Herter's other works are also worth reading, including Professional guide's manual (1960) which contains nuggets of philosophical wisdom ("You cannot stay lost in the woods unless you want to)" and provides crucial information about the outdoor life such as "Using beer cans to help attract ducks and geese into picked corn fields," and "How to make a moose call from bark or tar paper."




Another Herter classic is the Truth about hunting in today's Africa and how to go on safari for $690.00. Beyond its striking cover (see below), one can also learn how best to shoot a lion.





His other titles include Herter's professional course in science of modern taxidermy, European and American professional sourdough cooking and recipes, and perhaps his pièce de résistance: How to make the finest wines at home in old glass or plastic bottles and jugs for for as little as 10 [cents] a gallon!

So I'm going to raise a glass of (homemade) wine to Kim for bringing George Herter into my life!

The Joseph Baum Archives

(Newarker Menu. Rare Book Division)

Last week, the Joseph Baum papers were made available to researchers at the New York Public Library's Manuscript and Archives Reading Room.

Joe Baum was the executive and president of Restaurant Associates, and the man behind such iconic New York restaurants as the Four Seasons, La Fonda del Sol, Forum of the Twelve Caesars, and Windows on the World, bringing an over-the-top theatricality to a quality dining experience. As William Grimes wrote in Baum's obituary in 1999, "More than any other restaurateur, [Baum] operated in the conceptual territory where food and theater overlapped."

Born in 1920 in Saratoga Springs, NY, Baum graduated from high school in New Jersey and worked at various hotels in New York and Florida before attending Cornell University's Hotel Administration School.

In 1949, after working in accounting firms for hotels and restaurants, he was hired by Restaurants Associates to help open the Newarker, a restaurant located in the Newark Airport. Despite its rough start and less than appealing location, the Newarker was a great success. Baum invested money in what he knew could make or break the restaurant, including a well-designed menu (indeed, it's one of my favorites in the collection) and delicious food prepared by Swiss chef Albert Stockli.

(La Fonda del Sol. Rare Book Division)

More restaurants followed, including La Fonda del Sol (1960). Baum's papers include later menus from La Fonda (the gorgeous sun example above is from the Rare Book collection), and wonderful black and white photographs of the interior.

(Photographs of La Fonda del Sol. Manuscript and Archives Division)

But according to Grimes, the Four Seasons was the Baum restaurant that really represented his lasting legacy. The restaurant cost $4.5 million to open, featuring art work by Picasso and Miro and was one of the first restaurants to place seasonality at center stage, changing its menu and color scheme with each season.

(Four Seasons Menu. Rare Book Division)

Valerie Wingfield, the archivist who had the enviable job of processing the Baum papers told me she was struck by the how much she was both moved by the Window on the World menus (which Baum opened in the 1976) and how much she enjoyed the fun and whimsy of the Rainbow & Stars files. Rainbow & Stars was a caberet club which opened in 1989, and was part of the Rainbow Room complex. Included in those files are wonderful photographs of the many celebrities (and some song lists) of those who performed at Rainbow & Stars, such as Cybill Shephard, Tony Danza, Rosemary Clooney, and Leslie Uggams. Who can deny that this is material worth saving and consulting? I'm thrilled to have these papers at the Library, and I can't wait to look through all 158 (!) boxes.

To make an appointment to see the Joe Baum papers, please email the Manuscripts Division directly.

Culinary Research at NYPL

I'll be teaching a culinary research class on Friday, April 23rd at 2:15 pm at NYPL's Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on 42nd Street and Fifth. The class is free and open to the public, and will take place in the South Court classrooms.

If you're interested in learning more about the New York Public Library's culinary collections and how to access them, I hope to see you there!

Desert Island Cookbook: Irini Mia Arakas

Name: Irini Mia Arakas

Occupation: Accessories Designer. Label: PROVA

Desert Island Cookbook: The Spence Collection: A Book of Recipes (1987)

Why The Spence Collection? Irini explains:

Perhaps I am taking this question a pinch too literally, but if I were on a desert island, I wouldn't take Suzanne Goin's Sunday Suppers at Lucques or Patricia Wells' Bistro Cooking, or any of the many Nigel Slater cookbooks in my home that I refer to often. I would take The Spence Collection: A Book of Recipes.

I went to the Spence School, an all-girl school on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, and this cookbook was published by my mother and my classmates' mothers in 1987.

The one thing I love most about cookbooks -- and this one has in spades -- is the ability to transport you to another time. For example, I found three salmon mousse recipes (this was the late 80's, people), but I also found recipes for bubble and squeak, guava cake, borscht, avgolemono, and hot and sour soup. Recipes that reminded me of the culturally rich and diverse families that helped make up the student body.

I recently found my mother's copy of the Spence Cookbook (moving twice in one year, you'd be surprised at what you uncover), and as I was flipping through it, a steady swirl of high school memories filled my head; some memories linked to food, most that did not. I found my Aunt Toula's long-lost chocolate chip-cream cheese cupcake recipe. I found my mother's cheesecake recipe, and countless others written by my classmates' grandmothers, fathers, and one recipe written by our head mistress Edes P. Gilbert, who writes in the foreword, "This cookbook is a collection of good ideas about good food which we hope will lead to fine meals and lively conversation in your household. Both are essential to civilized living and pleasurable for all who participate and enjoy!"

Most nights, I am happy to say, my dinner table experiences are filled with friends, great food, and wonderful conversation. But I don't know how civilized we turned out....

Chocolate Chip - Cream Cheese Cupcakes
(contributed by Toula Pappas)

These cupcakes are moist and incredibly delicious.

1 cup flour
1/4 cup Droste cocoa
3/4 cup sugar
1 t. baking powder
1 T. vinegar
1 t. vanilla
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup lukewarm water
1 8-ounce package of cream cheese
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
1 6-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, vinegar, vanilla, oil, and 1 cup water.

Blend well for two minutes with a whisk and pour into cupcake trays.

Combine cream cheese, egg, and 1/3 cup sugar and beat in blender. Stir in chocolate chips and spoon chip mixture over cake batter.

Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees.




The Library has two Spence School cookbooks in the collection. Recipes from Spence and the Spence Cookbook 1965: Father and Daughter Recipes.






Community cookbooks often reflect recipes that the contributors would like people to think that they cook — rather than the dishes they actually cook. This makes for a social phenomenon that has fascinated some food researchers. The subject heading "Community Cookbook" will provide a large variety of examples to peruse. For a history of community cookbooks, consult Recipes for Reading: Community Cookbooks, Stories and Histories, edited by Anne Bower.