Table of Contents
Preliminaries
Introduction - Iraqi Food in Perspective
Part I - Back to the Roots
Part 2 Medieval Baghdadi Cooking
Part 3 The Post-medieval Era
Chapter 1 Bread
Chapter 2 Dairy Products
Chapter 3 Vegetarian Appetizers and Salads
Chapter 4 Soups
Chapter 5 Snacks, Sandwiches and Side Dishes (with Meat)
Chapter 6 Snacks, Sandwiches and Side Dishes (Vegetarian)
Chapter 7 Stews
Chapter 8 Rice
Chapter 9 Other Grains and Beans
Chapter 10 Lamb and Beef and Ground Meat Dishes
Chapter 11 Stuffed Foods
Chapter 12 Poultry
Chapter 13 Fish
Chapter 14 Savory Pastries
Chapter 15 Desserts: Puddings and Ice Creams
Chapter 16 Desserts with Syrup
Chapter 17 Cakes and Confections
Chapter 18 Cookies and Sweet Pastries
Chapter 19 Jams and Pickles
Chapter 20 Beverages
Menus and Manners
Glossary
Works cited
Indexes
Illustration Credits
Reviews
Reviews
a fine introduction to the history and diversity of Iraqi cuisine. Lavishly illustrated, supremely informative, and deeply personal, Nasrallah’s publication is far more than an average cookbook or culinary history; instead, it’s an adventurous exploration of Iraq’s colorful past through food history. This title is unique in not only its breadth – Nasrallah covers everything from exotic ancient desserts to refreshing medieval beverages – but also the way in which recipes are presented in tandem with a sociocultural and historical context.Ancient History Encyclopedia, online review published Oct. 15 2014
The book, its illustrations, photographs and design, is generous and thoughtful and guides your historical journey through Ms. Nasrallah's personal lens. Huffington Post review by Rozanne Gold
interview, National Public Radio: All Things Considered aired on the 24th of January 2014
o Canada. com review by Laura Brehaut including three recipes
...the introduction offers an excellent history of food in the Middle East. ...At the other end, the book's extensive glossary and references make this a useful resource. ...An additional note to please cooks is tht the book sits flat on every page... .A splendid achievement, Delights from the Garden of Eden is obviously a labour of love, and the author has done readers, cooks and noncooks alike, a great service n producing such an impressive book. Each page shows erudition; every recipe a passion for food.
Eamonn Gearon, Times Literary Supplement, Nov 1 2013
Already respected among food historians for her translation of the 10th-century Baghdadi cookbook Annals of the Caliph's Kitchen, Nasrallah is sure to gain more acclaim with this significant contribution to the culinary history of the Middle East.
Tom Verde, Aramco, 2013
If you've ever had even a shred of interest in the cuisine from this part of the world, I recommend taking a look at this book. For curious and adventurous cooks, it has enough to inspire our meals for years to come.
Emma Christensen, TheKitchn.com
Fascinating, thorough and delicious.
Vered Guttman, Haaretz.com
She has brought together scholarship, personal motivation through tragedy, and a love of cooking to produce this unsurpassable volume...
Margaret Obank, Banipal 48 (2013)
This book is a treasure. Its just a matter of parking it somewhere in your kitchen where you can flip it open and go on to cook the next mouthwatering receipe. Miriam Kresch, GreenProphet: Sustainable News for the Middle East
Ms. Nasrallah has done for Iraqi cuisine what Julia Childs did for French cooking, but to the nth degree. There are over 400 recipes to be explored, hundreds of beautiful images, and text so meticulous and thoughtful, it could have only been written by someone with incredible knowledge and passion. Immerse yourself with endless plates full of delicious food and stories of a land and its people so rich with history it will astound you. A delight indeed.
The Kitchen Journals
Interviews with the Author
Read interview with author by James Wiener – click here
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Medieval thirst-quenching drinks
There was a time when sakanjabeel was the drink of choice. It was the thirst quencher [...]
Source: In my Iraqi Kitchen: Recipes, History and Culture, by Nawal Nasrallah
Simmered in Cream of Turnip and Swiss Chard Soup
This is the mother of all kubbas. I am using the expression in the medieval sense, which is ‘the best of.' I imagine that had 10th-century al-Warraq, author of Kitab al-Tabeekh (كتاب [...]
Source: In my Iraqi Kitchen: Recipes, History and Culture, by Nawal Nasrallah
Keep on reading to get to the bottom of it while making this millennium old pinwheel sandwich made for the Abbasid Caliph al-Mutawakkil (d.861), and surprise yourself with how exotic and yet so familiar it is. Enjoy!
We all bought into the theory that the inventor of [...]
Source: In my Iraqi Kitchen: Recipes, History and Culture, by Nawal Nasrallah