From the Land of Nightingales and Roses: Recipes from the Persian Kitchen

From the Land of Nightingales and Roses: Recipes from the Persian Kitchen

by Maryann Sinalee

In From the Land of Nightingales and Roses, Iranian food blogger and home cook, Maryann Sinaiee, takes us through a full year in the Persian kitchen. Each seasonal chapter offers up delicious recipes alongside insights into the festivals, traditions and rituals that color day-to-day life in this region. From spring through to winter, Maryann offers the reader a true taste of real Persian cooking.

Lamb and Eggplant Stew, Baked Fish with Tamarind, and Rosewater Ice Cream with Pistachios. Full of flavor, history and culture, Maryann's recipes are a wonderful introduction to the varied and delectable cuisine of this region. Colorful, stunning photography evoking the vibrancy and romance of the country will bring Iran into your home and make you fall in love with this unique way to cook and enjoy food.

Review [A] delightful cookbook. She begins with an introduction to Persian eating etiquette and the philosophy behind maintaining a balanced Ayurveda-like diet, and shares stories form her youth, such as distilling rosewater while visiting relatives outside the city. Recipes are arranged seasonally: spring offers rhubarb and onion soup, and summer fare includes a refreshing rosewater sorbet with rice noodles crisped in ice water. Fall begins with a month long celebration of Mithra, the ancient Persian warrior god, and includes such dishes as a lamb stew with dried lime, turmeric, and barberries, as well as meatballs stuffed with fried onions, currants, and walnuts. Winter is the season for dumpling soup, as well as a meal of rice, green lentils, and brown butter eggs. A concluding chapter on basics provides culinary building blocks: rice, two flat breads, a variety of pickles and relishes, and a few year-round favorites, such as pan-fried potatoes. Sinaiee wraps up this excellent work with drinks (e.g., a caramel and vinegar cooler) and a helpful glossary of Farsi terms. Persian cuisine is made both approachable and alluring in this stellar first effort.

--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Blogger Sinaiee s first cookbook, a collection of more than 100 recipes, is suffused with the romance and poetry of her homeland as found in everything from tales of her childhood and food memories to her recipes ingredients....

--Booklist