The Jewelled Kitchen

Book excerpt: Kehdy's cookbook is an inspired collection of classics and innovative dishes from a part of the world which, at the moment, is enjoying its overdue place in the sun. Her contribution and original, thoughtful and delicious. Go get it! --Yottam Ottolenghi Bethany Kehdy is renowned for the contemporary Middle Eastern and North African recipes that she publishes on her blog (dirtykitchensecrets.com). A Lebanese-American born in Houston, Texas and brought up in Lebanon, she spent countless hours learning to cook with her perfectionist teta (grandmother), her vivacious dad and her spirited aunts. Her recipes are a harmonious balance of classic and contemporary, as she draws upon her childhood roots while adding her own personal twist to these iconic recipes. The cuisines from the Middle East and North Africa share many diverse influences and gorgeous key ingredients and spices, such as pomegranates, figs, pine nuts, saffron and sumac. Passionate about food and her heritage, this former Miss Lebanon showcases the sheer brilliance of the dishes of the Levant. Try a fragrant Fish Tagine with Preserved Lemons with Moroccan flavours; fiery Lamb Shanks with Butterbeans and Tomatoes from Lebanon; or delicately spiced Chicken, Walnuts and Pomegranate Stew with its Persian influences. Cuisines across the region are covered, including Egyptian, Palestinian, Syrian, Turkish, Iraqi and Jordanian. You'll find yourself drawn into a whole new world and a whole new way of cooking.