Amanda Hesser brings her voice & expertise to this compendium of recipes from chefs home cooks & food writers. Cooks will find many treasured recipes as well as favourites from Craig Claiborne's earlier The New York Times Cookbook & a host of other classics-from 1940s' Caesar salad & 1960s' flourless chocolate cake to today's no-knead bread. Hesser has cooked & updated all of the 1 000-plus recipes gathered here from 150 years of distinguished food journalism. Her chapter introductions showcase the history of American cooking & her witty & fascinating headnotes share what makes each recipe special. The Essential New York Times Cookbook is for people who grew up in the kitchen for curious cooks who want to produce a nineteenth-century raspberry granita & for the new cook who needs a book that explains everything & will serve as a lifelong companion.