Who knew Thomas Keller was influenced by Vincent Price?

Most people identify chef Thomas Keller (the French Laundry, Per Se, Bouchon) with his classic technique and Michelin stars. But you might be surprised to learn that he was influenced not only by French chefs such as Roland Henin and Paul Bocuse, but by an actor best known for starring in campy horror flicks.

Because you might also be surprised to learn that Vincent Price, star of “House of Wax� and “The Abominable Dr. Phibes,� was also the author of “A Treasury of Great Recipes� — a cookbook that was decidedly not a vanity project.

Written by Vincent Price and his wife Mary, “A Treasury of Great Recipes� was first published in 1965 and is nearly 500 pages long, filled with recipes from what were considered the best restaurants in the world of the time and anecdotes about eating and traveling.

Now celebrating its 50th anniversary, the book was reissued in October in a new edition, with a preface by the Prices’ daughter, Victoria, and a foreword by Wolfgang Puck, another chef who admired the actor’s book.

Keller first came across the cookbook as a young chef, when his mother gave him a copy.

“When this book was released,� says Keller, “it was different from other cookbooks that were specific to regional cuisine, like Southern cooking, or a classic or cultural cuisine like French or German. This book gave us a broad view of restaurants from around the world. As a result, our minds were opened to better understand how we could interpret different ingredients, flavor profiles and techniques into our own style of cooking.�

“A Treasury of Great Recipes� collected recipes from some of the most notable restaurants in the world — in 1965. Those included Lasserre in Paris, where the center section of the ceiling could slide back and doves would, on special occasions, flutter into the dining room. And from Locke-Ober’s in Boston, home of the Ward Eight cocktail and, according to Price, “a schizophrenic mishmash of continental specialties and homespun Yankee goodies.�

But there were also recipes for hamburgers and baked beans — and a recipe for ball park hot dogs from Chavez Ravine (aka Dodger Stadium). Most people sent postcards from their travels. The Prices collected recipes.

The first dish Keller cooked from the book was a recipe from Harry’s Bar in Venice, “a tiny place, enormously chic, where the customers, crowded at little round tables, are fed some of the best food in Italy,� wrote Price in his book.

The dish was tagliatelle verdi gratinate al prosciutto — also called green noodle casserole — which Keller describes as “a simple spinach fettucine you can do every day, but it was also very elegant at the time because you didn’t see a lot of green pasta back then.�

After spending much of the 1960s and ‘70s as a staple gift at weddings and housewarmings, the book went out of print. Among food obsessives although, such as Zanne Early Stewart, a former editor at Gourmet, it remained a classic.

“Every time I’ve picked it up in the intervening 50 years, I’ve been delighted anew because it’s the rare cookbook that is still relevant,� said Stewart recently.

Keller agrees. “I think the recipes in this cookbook are classic and still resonate with Americans today.�

TAGLIATELLE VERDE GRATINATE AL PROSCIUTTO

45 minutes. Serves 2.

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, divided

1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

2 cups hot milk

1/2 cup cream

6 ounces green tagliatelle or fettucine

2 to 4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto

Grated Parmesan cheese

1. In a heavy saucepan, heat 1/4 cup butter over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour, salt and pepper to form a roux. Whisk in the hot milk and cook, stirring until the sauce is smooth and thickened. Reduce the heat to low and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Stir in the cream, remove from heat and set aside.

2. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta until it is al dente. Drain the pasta and toss it with 2 tablespoons butter and the cream sauce.

3. Place the pasta in a shallow baking dish. Top the pasta with slightly overlapping slices of prosciutto. Sprinkle over 2 to 4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, then drizzle over 2 tablespoons melted butter.

4. Bake the pasta until the sauce begins to bubble around the edges and the prosciutto is lightly colored, about 10 minutes. Serve with additional grated Parmesan.

Note: Adapted from “A Treasury of Great Recipes� by Mary and Vincent Price.

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