Medieval Tastes (Columbia University Press)

In his new history of food, acclaimed historian Massimo Montanari traces the development of medieval tastes - both culinary and cultural - from raw materials to market and captures their reflections in today's food trends. Tying the ingredients of our diet evolution to the growth of human civilization, he immerses readers in the passionate debates and bold inventions that transformed food from a simple staple to a potent factor in health and a symbol of social and ideological standing.