Persiana

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY 2 FEB. 2015

Middle Eastern food, redolent with spices, is one of the world's most popular cuisines, yet home cooks are often intimidated by the sheer number of ingredients many dishes call for. Enter Sabrina Ghayour; the talented chef, food writer and instructor offers over 100 delicious and relatively easy to prepare Middle Eastern dishes in this outstanding collection sure to appeal to vegetarians and carnivores in equal measure. It's hard not to like a cookbook that includes instructions such as "heat a good glug of olive oil," and this homey attitude pervades Ghayour's approach to cooking . Over and over, she shows how just a handful of ingredients can result in stellar dishes such as Saffron & Rosemary Chicken Filets, Seared Beef with Pomegranate & Balsamic Dressing, and Chargrilled Eggplant with Saffron Yogurt, Parsley & Pickled Chilis, to name but three. Ingredients are easy to source for the most part once readers have plenty of sumac, pomegranate and saffron they're good to go and none require much in the way of prep or planning. Proteins run the gamut, from Lamb & Sour Cherry Meatballs and Turkish Kebabs to Citrus Spiced Salmon and Lahmacun--a Turkish riff on pizza that calls for spicy ground lamb. Vegetable-based sides and mains like French Lentil & Quinoa Salad with Lemon & Sumac and the simple Harissa-Marinated Asparagus will round out any plate. Though the decidedly 70's font and presentation wears a little thin, this is an outstanding collection that will surely win readers over and inspire many a meal. Color photos.