Spice: Arabic Flavors Of The Mediterranean

Description

At age 24, Ana Sortun was a chef at Aigo Bistro, a Mediterranean restaurant in Concord, Massachusetts. There she came to understand how the Arabic world influenced French cuisine. Then, on a trip to Turkey, she fell in love with the food and spent months learning the traditions of Turkish cooking from the townswomen. After eating elaborate, multi-course meals there, Sortun found herself dancing rather than wanting to sleep, as was often the case after large French, Italian, or Spanish meals. Inspired beyond measure, Sortun opened her own restaurant in Cambridge, the award-winning Oleana, at which she creates her own interpretations of dishes using the incredible array of delicious spices and herbs used by Arab-Mediterranean chefs. In this gorgeously photographed book, Sortun shows readers how to use this philosophy of spice to create wonderful dishes in their own homes. She reveals how the artful use of spices and herbs rather than fat and cream is key to the full, rich flavors of Mediterranean cuisine-and the way it leaves you feeling afterward. The book is organized by spice, suggesting the ways that spices complement one another and how they flavor other foods and creating in home cooks a kind of sense-memory that allows for a more intuitive use of spice in their own dishes. The delicious recipes include: * Cumin, Coriander, and Cardamom: Galette of Tender Pork with Cumin and Cider * Saffron, Ginger, and Vanilla: Monkfish with Ginger, Creme Fraiche, and Seared Greens * Allspice, Cinnamon, and Nutmeg: Persimmon Pudding Cake with Maple Sugar Creme Brulee * Parsley, Mint, Dill, and Sweet Basil: Grilled Peach and Pepper Salad * Oregano, Summer Savory, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme: Potato Risotto with Green Olives, Walnuts, and Rosemary * Nasturtium, Orange Blossom, Rose, Chamomile, Lavender, and Jasmine: Strawberry Lavender Tart Absolutely alive with spices and herbs, the recipes in Arabic Flavors of the Mediterranean will intrigue, inspire-and leave you fit for a night of dancing.

Ana Sortun was named the "Best Chef: Northeast" at the 2005 James Beard Awards for her restaurant, Oleana, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which she opened in 2001. Known for unique Arabic-Mediterranean food, Oleana has received much local and national praise. Sortun holds a degree from Ecole de Cuisine La Varenne in Paris. She lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts, with her husband and daughter.

"Only a brilliant chef like Ana could have created such a warm and evocative cookbook filled with enticing recipes." -- Clifford A. Wright, author of the James Beard Cookbook of the Year A Mediterranean Feast "This book beautifully codifies the marvelous dishes I've eaten at Oleana, all of which bear her special inventive touch." -- Paula Wolfert, author of The Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean "A thousand and one nights worth of cooking. . . . Sortun's recipes are as seamless as her food." -- Los Angeles Times