Have the French always enjoyed their renowned cuisine? When did Russians begin to eat pirogi? What was the first Indonesian spice to be cultivated elsewhere in the world? Questions such as these make for good Jeopardy material, but they're far from trivial — just ask anyone with a passion for good food and a curiosity for where that food originated. That person will know instinctively that the best way to approach a culture — and, indeed, the human animal — is through the stomach. For this individual, The Cambridge World History of Food will be something of a bible, and the best of gifts.