Arabesque: A Taste of Morocco, Turkey, and Lebanon: A Cookbook - Hardcover

Roden, Claudia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 030726498X ISBN 13: 9780307264985

Publisher: Knopf, 2006

Synopsis

Morocco, Turkey, and Lebanon offer some of the world's most exciting cuisines. In this delectable cookbook, the award-winning, bestselling author of The Book of Jewish Cooking and Claudia Roden's Mediterranean translates the subtle play of flavors and cooking techniques to our own home kitchens.

Interweaving history, stories, and her own observations, she gives us 150 of the most delicious recipes: some of them new discoveries, some reworkings of classic dishes—all of them made even more accessible and delicious for today’s home cook.

From Morocco, the most exquisite and refined cuisine of North Africa: couscous dishes; multilayered pies; delicately flavored tagines; ways of marrying meat, poultry, or fish with fruit to create extraordinary combinations of spicy, savory, and sweet.

From Turkey, a highly sophisticated cuisine that dates back to the Ottoman Empire yet reflects many new influences today: a delicious array of kebabs, fillo pies, eggplant dishes in many guises, bulgur and chickpea salads, stuffed grape leaves and peppers, and sweet puddings.

From Lebanon, a cuisine of great diversity: a wide variety of mezze (those tempting appetizers that can make a meal all on their own); dishes featuring sun-drenched Middle Eastern vegetables and dried legumes; and national specialties such as kibbeh, meatballs with pine nuts, and lamb shanks with yogurt.

About this title

About the Author

Claudia Roden was born and raised in Cairo. She completed her formal education in Paris and then moved to London to study art. She travels extensively as a food writer. Her previous books include the James Beard Award–winning The Book of Jewish Food and the seminal A Book of Middle Eastern Food, as well as The Good Food of Italy—Region by Region, Everything Tastes Better Outdoors, and Mediterranean Cookery. In Britain Arabesque has won the Andre Simon Memorial Fund Award for Best Food Book, the Glenfiddich Best Food Book Award, and the Gourmand World Media Special Award of the Jury. Ms. Roden lives in London.

Reviews

Starred Review. Roden, a leading authority on Middle Eastern and North African food and the James Beard Award–winning author of The Book of Jewish Food, provides a thoroughly enjoyable and fascinating look at the cuisines of Morocco, Turkey and Lebanon. Including bits of history, stories and more that 150 recipes, Roden reworks the classics, making them easier and more flavorful for today's home cook. By organizing the book by country, she makes it easy to plan meals from the same country or combine various recipes from each. In each recipe, flavors are exquisitely balanced, as in Moroccan Chickpea and Lentil Soup; Tagine of Chicken with Preserved Lemons and Olives; Turkish Lamb Stew with Eggplant Sauce and Roasted Quinces; or Squabs Stuffed with Date and Almond Paste. She gives proper homage to the Lebanese tradition of serving mezze—little appetizers served with drinks—such as Eggplant and Tahini Dip (Baba Ghanouj) and Spinach Pies. The simple desserts bring out some of the same ingredients from savory dishes such as nuts (in Pistachio Cake; Milk and Almond Pudding) as well as flowers, like Tiny Open Pancakes with Cream and Rose Petal Jam, or orange blossom water in Kataifi with Cream Filling. 93 color photos. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Roden triumphs again, this time with a closer look at three different traditions within Arab cuisine: Moroccan, Turkish, and Lebanese. Although these cooking styles share many common traits, each is unique, distinctive, and worth exploring in an American kitchen. Moroccan food features fragrant braised stews called tagines that Roden shows how to re-create without elaborate equipment. She also contributes a useful method for making preserved lemons that reduces their preparation from a month to four days. Vegetarians can profit from exploring the many Turkish dishes based on eggplant, beans, and other vegetables. Little Lebanon has much to recommend beyond its fragrantly spiced, savory national dish of lamb and cracked wheat called kibbee. All three cuisines call for special attention to fine pastry in creating appetizers, entrees, and desserts. In addition to her recipes, Roden offers intriguing descriptions of regional specialties and street food that expand readers' understanding of these national traditions while enticing them into the kitchen. Mark Knoblauch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Zucchini FrittersIngredients:1 large onion, coarsely chopped3 tablespoons vegetable or sunflower oil, plus more for frying1 pound zucchini, finely chopped3 eggs3 tablespoons all-purpose flourblack pepper2 to 3 sprigs of mint, chopped2 to 3 sprigs of dill, chopped7 ounces feta cheese, mashed with a forkServes 4Fried onions, feta cheese, and herbs lift what is otherwise a bland vegetable. These little fritters can be served hot or cold. They can be made in advance and reheated. Fry the onion in 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat until it is soft and lightly colored. Add the zucchini and sauté, stirring, until they, too, are soft.In a bowl, beat the eggs with the flour until well blended. Add pepper (there is no need of salt because the feta cheese is very salty) and the chopped herbs, and mix well. Fold the mashed feta into the eggs, together with the cooked onions and zucchini.Film the bottom of a preferably nonstick frying pan with oil and pour in the mixture by the half ladle (or 2 tablespoons) to make a few fritters at a time. Turn each over once, and cook until both sides are browned a little. Drain on paper towels.

Edition details

• Publisher: Knopf
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 030726498X
• ISBN 13: 9780307264985
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 342