Collage by Valentina Colo

Five Levantine cookbooks that reflect the region’s eclectic cuisine

We all know about falafel and tabbouleh, but the Levant has far more to offer. Here are some of our favourite cookbook recommendations

Levantine food is not all chickpeas, shawarma and salad. Beyond the mezze, small and shared plates you usually find at restaurants, the cuisine is full of aromas, rich in flavour and high in nutritional value. 

Full of intricate dishes and fresh ingredients, Levantine food, which refers to a diverse range of food from the eastern and southern corners of the Mediterranean, is varied and regional. 

Its geographical location and rich history have given each region a specialty of dishes, and its array of influences from the region’s different ethnicities vary from Kurdish to Assyrian, Jewish and Turkish. Behind each plate is shared history and a crossover of ancient civilisations including Phoenician and Persian.  

If you want to explore food beyond the region’s popular mezze plates, below are a list of cookbooks that offer a comprehensive slice of the Levante’s varied cuisine. From Damascus’s Horaa osbao to Palestinian musakhan and halawet l jibn, each of these cookbooks takes pride in its cuisine and niche dishes and provides an alternative beyond the typical broad Mediterranean cookbooks. 

1. Sumac: Recipes and Stories from Syria by Anas Atassi

Published in 2021, Sumac: Recipes and Stories from Syria blends personal narratives with home cooking recipes. The title refers to the bright red and sore berry that is grounded and used across dishes in Syrian (and other Levantine) cuisines. As Anas Atassi tells us, his goal was not simply to create a cookbook, but to tell stories as well. “Every recipe is connected to a story on how you eat it, where you eat it, what kind of occasion,” he says. Atassi wanted to share his childhood stories of visiting Syria. Sumac touches on Syrian cuisine’s regional influences and explains how each city has distinct dishes that wouldn’t be cooked anywhere else. One of Atassi’s favourite dishes in the book, Mujaddara, a pilaff with lentils and fried onions, and is both accessible and delicious. It encompasses what Sumac is about as Atassi says: “I wanted to shed a light or give more focus to the type of recipes that you don’t see in restaurants menus, very humble dishes, but very easy to become forgotten.”

Anas Atassi and his mum Photo courtesy of Anas Atassi

Falastin: A Cookbook by Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley

Sami Tamimi’s Falastin is another book that explores how integral storytelling is to culinary traditions in the Levant. Falastin – there’s no ‘P’ in Arabic – is a roadmap to exploring the food and traditions of Palestine. The book is full of gorgeous food photography, documenting Tamimi’s travels from Bethlehem to Nablus and highlighting incredible regional variety in its 120 recipes. We recommend trying out Muaskhan, probably one of the most famous and traditional Palestinian dishes. The versatile dish, which is baked chicken and bread flavoured with Sumac and other spices, could be cooked for an informal dinner, or as an appetiser along with other dishes for big gatherings. Beyond the recipes, Falastin tells stories of everyday Palestinians and their cuisine, connecting the reader to the flavours of both food and life in the country. “This is the book I’ve wanted to write for many years,” says Tamimi. “Falastin is our chance to home in and focus on the food, people and stories of Palestine.” 

Want a taste of Falastin before buying the book? Check out this video above of Tamimi and Wigley cooking a few recipes off their book.  

Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley Photo courtesy of Jenny Zarins

3. The Lebanese Cookbook by Salma Hage

If you’re looking for variety, Salma Hage’s Lebanese Cookbook provides plenty, with over 500 recipes including 16 different ways to make Kibbeh, the Levant’s famous bulgur meatballs and Lebanon’s official national dish. If you’re wanting to cook a Lebanese staple beyond tabouleh and falafel, we recommend Turkey Hashweh—which translates to stuffing—with rice, apple and chestnuts. Published in 2012, it gives a thorough picture of Lebanon’s multi-faceted cuisine, including sections on basic recipes, soup, fish, meat and vegetables. Hage has been a professional cook for over 50 years, but she learned Lebanese cooking through women she is closest to – her mother, mother-in-law and sisters-in-law – giving the book a familial feeling. If you’re vegetarian, Hage’s more recent book, The Middle Eastern Vegetarian Cookbookis also worth checking out. Hage draws inspiration from ancient Middle Eastern vegetarian practices and incorporates some of the region’s traditional ingredients, such as figs and dates.

4. Our Syria: Recipes from Home by Dina Mousawi and Itab Azzam  

The unique element of Our Syria is that it’s a cookbook based on the experiences of Syrian women across Europe and the Middle East. Itab Izam and Dina Mousawi are amateur chefs who spoke to Syrian refugee women about their favourite recipes and cooked dishes with the women that reminded them of home. In the introduction, they discuss how they wanted to highlight Syrian food and “honour these brave women who are fighting back against the destruction of their home with the only weapons they have: pots and pans.” Beyond offering delicious and relatively simple recipes such as semolina and coconut cake, hot yogurt soup and lamb and okra stew. Our Syria also documents the Syrian migration experience and serves as an example of the connection between food, memory and identity.

5. SUQAR: Desserts and Sweets from the Modern Middle East by Greg and Lucy Ma’louf

Greg and Lucy Malouf’s SUQAR, which won the James Beard award in 2019 in the sweets and desserts category, has something for everyone with a sweet tooth. From fruit, dairy, pastries to cakes, candied fruit and nuts, SUQAR is the definitive guide to Middle Eastern sweets. One of the first recipes, chilled watermelon with halva, crushed strawberries, and lime syrup is mouth-watering. SUQAR also provides insights into the region’s dessert culture, where sweets are not eaten after dinner; rather, early in the morning, or throughout the day with coffee. Malouf is a renowned Australian chef with Lebanese roots and his book reflects his background and style, which blends the traditional tastes of his childhood with western cooking. The result is a book that provides an innovative approach to exploring the unique flavours of the Middle East.

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