Vinegar and sugar, dried fruit, rose water, spices from India and China, sweet wine made from raisins and dates—these are the flavors of the golden age of Arab cuisine. This book, a delightful culinary adventure that is part history and part cookbook, surveys the gastronomical art that developed at the Caliph's sumptuous palaces in ninth-and tenth-century Baghdad, drew inspiration from Persian, Greco-Roman, and Turkish cooking, and rapidly spread across the Mediterranean. In a charming narrative, Lilia Zaouali brings to life Islam's vibrant culinary heritage.The second half of the book gathers an extensive selection of original recipes drawn from medieval culinary sources along with thirty-one contemporary recipes that evoke the flavors of the Middle Ages. Featuring dishes such as Chicken with Walnuts and Pomegranate, Beef with Pistachios, Bazergan Couscous, Lamb Stew with Fresh Apricots, Tuna and Eggplant Purée with Vinegar and Caraway, and Stuffed Dates, the book also discusses topics such as cookware, utensils, aromatic substances, and condiments, making it both an entertaining read and an informative resource for anyone who enjoys the fine art of cooking.

The James Beard Award-winning chef of Oleana, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, sheds new light on the use of herbs and spices in flavorful, Mediterranean-inspired cuisine, offering a collection of recipes that are organized according to spice and herb groupings. Reprint.

Product Description: The landscapes, cultures, and cuisines of deserts in the Middle East and North America have commonalities that have seldom been explored by scientists—and have hardly been celebrated by society at large. Sonoran Desert ecologist Gary Nabhan grew up around Arab grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins in a family that has been emigrating to the United States and Mexico from Lebanon for more than a century, and he himself frequently travels to the deserts of the Middle East...read more

An authority on Middle Eastern and North African cuisine explores the culinary heritage of Morocco, Turkey, and Lebanon in a colorful cookbook that features more than 150 tempting recipes that transform the unique flavors, foods, cooking techniques, and traditions for the modern home cook. 25,000 first printing.

Product Description: Linking a culture's food to its history and politics, this collection of recipes offers rare insight into real Middle Eastern cuisine and family life. This distinctly different guide to Arab cooking provides authentic recipes for salads, meats, and desserts accompanied by thoughtful tales of Arab culture, etiquette, and history...read more

A compendium of traditional information, cultural lore, and 175 easy-to-follow recipes offers insight into the flavors of the Arab and Islamic world and includes instructions on how to prepare such dishes as Shorabat Adas, Musaka Betinjan, and Fatet Lamice. 20,000 first printing.

Product Description: From the Lands of Figs and Olives is one of the most complete books on the cuisine ever published, providing a wealth of exciting new recipes as well as some of the best traditional ones, carefully tested and adapted for the Western kitchen...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: From the Lands of Figs and Olives is one of the most complete books on the cuisine ever published, providing a wealth of exciting new recipes as well as some of the best traditional ones, carefully tested and adapted for the Western kitchen...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

(view table of contents)

Tales of life along the Arabian Gulf and the southern Mediterranean are mixed with a variety of recipes for regional specialties

Describes the history of Sicily's cuisine and provides a selection of recipes for appetizers, salads, soups, pasta, meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, desserts, and drinks