Call it a recipe for laughter

"Wolf in Chef's Clothing"

By Robert H. Loeb Jr. (Surrey books, $16.95, 124 pages)

"Wolf in Chef's Clothing" is less a cookbook and more a comic book for bachelors who have never even learned how to set a dinner table.

When originally published in 1950, author Robert H. Loeb Jr., promised "to emancipate the male from the role of refrigerator vulture, icebox scavenger, and parasitic gourmet forced to feed on leftovers of female cookery."

Loeb rightly concluded that the male animal, while desiring to produce pleasing dishes, has no desire to unscramble endless lines of cryptic recipes. Out of this conclusion was born a cave-man picture book.

The cave-man for whom this book was created is portrayed as the Wolf; a cartoon canine chef with a frying pan in one hand and a cocktail shaker in the other.

The Wolf is the true charm of this picture cookbook for men, providing a glimpse into the male mindset of 50 years past when gender roles were clearly defined. Here, the Wolf is a man's man: lover of meat and potatoes, mixer of many fine drinks.

And mixing fine drinks is easily the most practical element of this nostalgic cookbook. Loeb's inventive picture recipes are the perfect format for transforming the uneducated cocktail host into a master mixer and shaker. The cartoon style (illustrated by Jim Newhall) connotes a lighthearted festivity in the art and pleasure of throwing a cocktail party. Today's beer-swilling male animal could stand to learn a few more party alternatives.

The Wolf knows that men must comprehend more than just recipes, though. They also must learn etiquette, and the Wolf shines brightest when he delivers his often out-dated romantic advice, as in the breakfast chapter entitled "How to make a queen eat out of your hand next time, and save dishes."

Thanks to the chapterly counsel on manners and propriety, "Wolf" is excellent as a comic book rite of passage for young men.

With exception of the cocktail recipes, however, "Wolf in Chef's Clothing" is weak as a cookbook. The illustrations may demystify what 1950s kitchen cutlery looks like to the modern male, but they fail on a practical level. The promise of simple, easy-to-follow instructions is often dismissed among the panels crowded with numerous ingredients, utensils and directions for retro recipes.

But to enjoy it solely for its culinary enlightenment would be a grievous oversight, for "Wolf in Chef's Clothing" is a genuine kick in the tail to read.

Copyright 2000 Cowles Publishing Company
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.