Delights from the Garden of Eden

Nawal Nasrallah, a native of Iraq, is an award-winning researcher and food writer. Her English translation of Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq’s tenth-century Baghdadi cookbook Kitab al-Tabikh, entitled Annals of the Caliphs’ Kitchens was awarded “Best Translation” in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in 2007. Her recipes have featured in many magazines and newspapers, such as New York Times, Boston Globe, and Food and Wine. Her most recent book is Dates: A Global History (Reaktion, 2011).

SAVEUR magazine chooses it as one of top 10 cookbooks for the year 2013. "It's an extraordinary work of food writing and research, and I confess that it made me realize how little I know about Middle Eastern cuisine." - Kathleen Flinn, Washington Independent Review of Books "Ms. Nasrallah has done for Iraqi cuisine what Julia Childs did for French cooking, but to the nth degree. 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 "The book, its illustrations, photographs and design, is generous and thoughtful and guides your historical journey through Ms. Nasrallah's personal lens - Eden itself as a metaphor of pleasure and poetry." - Rozanne Gold, Huffington Post "Humorous, insightful and a pleasure to read. Highly recommended" - Paula Wolfert "This cookbook is more than an introduction to Iraqi cuisine. It is in fact an introduction to Arab cooking in general, researched with the kind of depth not seen before in a cookbook of the Arab world and Middle East." - Clifford Wright "A splendid achievement. the author has done readers, cooks and noncooks alike, a great service in producing such an impressive book. Each page shows erudition, every recipe a passion for food." - Eamonn Gearon, Times Literary Supplement "A flavor-filled book chock-full of history." - Vered Guttman, Haaretz "It's easy to see that the author has tested and cooked every recipe herself. Tips and hints are attached to the recipes that can only have come from her kitchen experience.... this cookbook will keep the creative cook busy for at least a year, if he or she chooses to cook everything in it." - Miriam Kresh, Green Prophet "A monument to energy, knowledge and enthusiasm. It is an account of origins and development as well as of the complex ethnic make-up of present-day Iraq." - Tom Jaine, Petits Propos Culinaires "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." - James Blake Wiener, Ancient History Encyclopedia "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 World "For curious and adventurous cooks, it has enough to inspire our meals for years to come." - The Kitchen "Beautifully illustrated throughout, and displaying the diversity of Iraqi traditional culinary practices and cuisine, 'Delights from the Garden of Eden' showcases 300 original and authentic Iraqi receipes that are tested, easy to follow, and covers all food categories. [...] 'Delights from the Garden of Eden' is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, family, professional, and community library Ethnic Cookbook collections." - Wisconsin Bookwatch, March 2018

• Preliminaries Preface List of By-ways and Asides Measurements, Equipment and Ingredients Introduction - Iraqi Food in Perspective That Little Street in Baghdad Part One: Back to the Roots Part Two: Medieval Baghdadi Cooking Part Three: The Post-medieval Era Chapter One Bread Chapter Two Dairy Products Chapter Three Vegetarian Appetizers, Side Dishes and Salads Chapter Four Snacks and Street Food Chapter Five Soups Chapter Six Stews Chapter Seven Rice, and other Grains and Beans Chapter Eight Lamb and Beef, and Ground Meat dishes Chapter Nine Stuffed Foods Chapter Ten Poultry Chapter Eleven Fish Chapter Twelve Savory Pastries Chapter Thirteen Desserts Chapter Fourteen Jams, and Syrups for Sherbets Chapter Fifteen Pickles and Sauces Chapter Sixteen Beverages End Matter Glossary Works Cited Indexes Illustration Credits