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4.5
Good for reference! My mother was Lebanese and a great Lebanese cook! I lost my church recipe book, and not sure how to make some dishes. She made it look easy with hands full of everything. Since she past, my boys like the Lebanese food and want me to make them.I've been going Tanoreen for years and the food is so goo and is literally the best homemade Middle eastern food. If you are ever in NYC, I highly recommend that you dine at Tanoreen at least once. I was super excited when Chef Rawia released this cook book. The photos are stunning and her stories about her family and the foods of the Levant are great introductions to the food and culture of the region.The recipes include some of my favorite dishes from Tanoreen including the Brussels sprouts, chicken getting, and stuffed cabbage. They are easy to follow and Rawia also provides detailed information on the spices and common ingredients that you will need. Most if not all can easily be found at a Middle a Eastern grocery store, Whole Foods, or Amazon.com.So far, I've cooked several recipes from the book and my family and I found them to be delicious. The lentil and butternut squash stew, kale and shallots, fattoush, beef and white bean stews, seasoned garlic sauce, and the lentil soup are delicious. I look forward to diving into the other recipes and you and your family will certainly be satisfied with this cookbook, which is now one of my favorites.Being married to a man from the Middle East, I try to make my hubby's tummy as happy as possible. This can be difficult when you have been raised by a European mother in Chicago! Consequently, I have a library of Middle Eastern cookbooks to help me stumble through recipes that sometimes make no sense to me. But Rawia's book is different. She tells me all I need in my kitchen with step-by-step instructions on how to make the magic happen! My first attempt brought a big smile to my sweetie's face! It's also a good read - hard to put down, especially if you know a bit about the culture and the people. So far, I've bought 11 copies to give away to friends - and one that I've sprinkled with olive oil and lemon juice so that nobody will take it away from me!Great cook book with delicious recipes. An adventure for those that usually are meat and potatoes lovers. A great use of spices that are not only healthy but aromatic.The book is in excellent condition and well wrapped. The book has many interesting recipes.Brilliant, practical recipes that are delicious. For busy people who don't have to the time to cook tedious, elaborate dishes (Otolenghi), these recipes allow you to create much more pragmatic and tasty fare. The book is visually beautiful, offering up intimate stories and authentic pictures of the origins of Rawia BIshara's recipes. It makes those of us from the area want to dive into our ancestral culinary background, and it makes everyone else want to embrace these lovely recipes. I can't help but gravitate to this book, time and time again, when I'm looking for inspiration.Some really great recipes, some really ok ones, but overall I found the directions not so straightforward (and I think I spotted a few errors as well). Most of the spices used are the same so you can keep re-trying recipes without needing to buy additional ingredients. It's a beautiful book, and I do reference it often but I usually end of following my own procedures / double checking with online recipes.I bought this book a few months ago and have been using it on a daily basis. Having grown up in palestine before moving to the states, I can attest to the authenticity of these recipes. The book is well illustrated with the author taking you on a personal guided tour through the culture and history of the beautiful land and people. You will feel like family :). I especially appreciated the author bearing in mind that not all ingredients originally used are readily available in the states as they are in the levant and she offers as good of a substitute in that case. I am so happy that a reliable and easy to follow cookbook focusing on palestinian cooking which I have greatly missed.Some of the ingredient ratios are insane and totally impractical. The Arabic Bread suggests 750g flour combined with 620ml water, 250ml yoghurt and 250ml extra virgin olive oil. Recipe calls for 10mins in a mixer with a dough hook until dough hangs from the hook - after 20 mins you could pour the sloppy mix through a straw. 250ml of oil seems to be a standard (and extremely excessive) item in many of the ingredient lists.A lovely cookery book full of gorgeous recipes and well illustrated.Please take a moment to push the helpful button and make my time typing up and reviewing worthwhile ?As a devotee of Middle Eastern cuisine, this is a very welcome addition to my collection of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cookbooks.There is a good selection of authentic recipes which are easy to follow with accessible ingredients, very useful cookery tips and variations for certain dishes.. The photography is lovely and the dishes are well illustrated. My only complaint which, were it not for the very nice cookery content, almost led me to giving it 4 stars, is with the size of the print fonts and the indistinct print which make the recipes difficult to read, especially when trying to cook at the same time! You almost need 20:20 vision or a magnifying glass to follow the recipes and narrative. Otherwise a delightful book.One of the worst cookbooks that I own. Almost zero pictures of the food so it doesn't give me any inspiration. The few pictures of the food that do exist are semiocre and not looking tasty at all. It's a shame. It is the only book that I haven't tried even one recipe from.This is great book. The recipes are clear and interesting, reflecting the cuisine of the area. The addition of sauces and pickles at the end is helpful. It enables you to vary your flavours to taste. The dishes, particularly the mezze and starters are good and with a good range, though perhaps a few too many involving aubergine!A good detail is the use of weight measures where normally quantity is given. So rather than juice of 4 lemons, you get 100 ml of lemon juice. This helps with precision and reproduction of the recipes. The recipes are adventurous too - i wasn't expecting a recipes for sprouts! (Although, very tasty).Good production values. Well written and clear recipes - easy to follow. Easy to obtain ingredients. Worth a buy.
