The title suggests hundreds of years of old-world cooking. However, in actuality this cookbook touches upon thousands of years of ancient recipes and ingredients still used today by chefs in restaurants and those creating every-day family cooking at home. In the opening chapter "Appetizers" connect with the fact that we are still smashing and blending guacamole just about the same way the Aztecs and Mayans did hundreds of years ago. Also, the recipe for hummus has been traced to ancient Egyptian records that show the humble chickpea as crushed, pulverized and eaten for thousands of years.