Levant: Recipes and memories from the Middle East

Description

Anissa Helou's Levant is a collection of mouth-watering recipes inspired by Anissa's family and childhood in Beirut and Syria, and her travels around the exciting regions of the eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. 'This treasure trove of a book is all you need, really, to cook the food of the Levant. It is as comprehensive and conclusive as it gets, but it also tells charming personal stories and masterfully takes you on a journey to all those enchanted lands.' Yotam Ottolenghi Levant, or rising of the sun, is the crossroads where western Asia, eastern Mediterranean and northwest Africa meet. A land that is culturally diverse but united by common culinary threads. In this personal tour Anissa introduces the stunning food of Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Iran, Palestine and Jordan. She draws them together through the themes of family, farm, souks (markets), restaurants, bakeries and the sweetmakers and attempts to record the food traditions of countries that are changing beyond recognition and at risk of disappearing. Levant includes 150 inspired recipes for soups and sides, salads and mezze, meats, fish and vegetarian, sweets, preserves and breads. Dishes include Lemony Swiss Chard and Lentil Soup, Fried Eggs with Sumac, Kibbe Balls in Yoghurt Sauce, Cabbage and Tomato Salad, Sweet Pistachio Pie, Wild Chicory in Olive Oil with Caramelized Onion, Grilled Aubergines with Tahini Sauce, Turkish Cheese Pie, Lebanese Morning Bread, Halva, and Milk Pudding.

Anissa Helou is a writer, journalist, and broadcaster. Born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon, she knows the Mediterranean as only a well-traveled native can. Lebanese Cuisine, her first book, was nominated for the prestigious Andre Simon Award and was named one of the best cookbooks of 1998 by the Los Angeles Times. Mediterranean Street Food was described by the New York Times as "a marvelous book." It won the Gourmand World Cookbook Award 2002 as the best Mediterranean cuisine book in English. Helou lives in London, where she has her own cooking school, Anissa's School. She appears frequently on British television and radio. She has written many articles for the Weekend Financial Times, and has contributed to several other publications including Gourmet, the Chicago Tribune, and the Washington Post. An accomplished photographer and intrepid traveler, Helou is fluent in French and Arabic as well as English.