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

This is a truly amazing cookbook that I highly recommend to lovers of Middle Eastern food. I haven't made every recipe, but the ones I have are so delicious. I am obsessed with preserved lemons and have tried two of the methods she provides. The grocery store has to stock more eggplant to keep up with how much of it I am roasting for these recipes. The lamb with lemon and egg sauce is to die for and so absurdly simple.There are great options for big meals, fancy or not. There are a million different amazing dips and spreads. There are desserts that range from simple to filo rolling honey drizzling goodness. There are charming directions like "roast the eggplants in the hottest oven." There are beautiful pictures. There's a useful index.I have quite a few cookbooks (and access to 8 million recipes online obviously) and I keep returning to this one for inspiration because it is just such a winner. I also rarely alter her recipes, which, for me, is a rare thing. Good ingredients paired with her straightforward methods just can't go wrong. There is something really satisfying about cooking the dishes in this book because it's almost like the food does the work instead of me- there's not a whole lot of complicated prep, just the right combinations of a few ingredients.

So I do really like the recipes that I have make. The techniques are good, the flavor combos are good, and the book is filled with useful information. HOWEVER-- the formatting makes the cookbook really hard to use. Pictures are not cross-referenced to the recipe to make the food. There are recipes with extra ingredients in the instructions. some of the best recipes I have had are in paragraph format. Paragraph recipes are so hard to make. I just want to eat the delicious thing that I'm looking at in the picture-- Do I really have to scour the book for what LOOKS like the right set of ingredients? I only have so much time

This is not a review about the book as much as it is about the seller... my copy, supposedly new, arrived with multiple signs of wear and tear, including a sticker in the middle of the front cover that left so much glue behind it was almost impossible to clean. Not worth almost $30, should have spent the $20 on a gently used copy...

I am a long- time user of her cookbooks & highly recommend her

I highly recommend this Middle Eastern cookbook. The majority of the recipes use easy to find ingredients and the directions seem very clear. I don't say this about most recipe books, but this is a recipe book that I can see myself trying most of the recipes one by one --- yes, they all look that good, especially the Moroccan section!

This book was more of a history lesson about the various regions. It was quite interesting and informative. The actual recipes, especially the Lebanese ones are magnificent. They took me back to Toledo OH, were I lived for almost nine years until I turned thirteen (13). This is a must have book if you like reading about the history of a region where a specific recipe originated AND if you want to eat authentic dishes.

I'd not tried Mid-Eastern cooking and absolutely love this book. Recipes are simple and delicious. Claudia Roden is a cookbook writer and cultural anthropologist based in the United Kingdom. She was born in 1936 in Cairo, Egypt, so she knows her stuff --and teaches it through the book--and has several other beautiful cookbooks on the market.

Great recipes. Easy to follow. Love to learn about the country as well as the food.

Another masterpiece from Claudia Roden. This is particularly useful because we get the historic context, as usual,a swell as a good guide to the cuisine. Recipes are clear and practical and background info appreciated. Nice presentation; sits elegantly alongside her books on Spanish and Jewish food: I would rely more inherent books than on currently fashionable and more pretentious Ottolenghi.

This is much more than a recipe book. I had to sneak a look through it before wrapping it as a Christmas gift for a friend. If you love cooking with the huge variety of spices and herbs which characterise the food from this part of the world, you should buy the book for that alone. The descriptions of the places and contexts really conjure up vivid pictures of the land, its people and customs.

Lots of lovely recipes for my jaded palate.

An excellent book. I am a long-time fan of Claudia Roden. I originally had this book on Kindle but I wanted to move about between recipes so a paper copy was better. The illustrations are beautifully chosen - some-one has done an excellent job on editing. My only , and minor beef is that as these cultures have much in common there is a degree of repetition.

This is exactly what I was looking for. As usual Claudia's information is fascinating and her recipes aren't beyond anyone's ability. She never fails to please me when I buy her books. Good photographs, clear, concise recipes and affordable ingredients.Recommended to anyone who loves this type of cooking and eating.