These recipes draw mostly from all over the Mediterranean, with some Asian tossed in (and maybe others too, I think it's mentioned in the intro), and even one or two Mexican-based recipes. One of them was for Quesadillas, and they were absolutely delicious. There are AT LEAST twenty other recipes bookmarked for taste-testing. :-) I had never heard of Ottolenghi before and when I saw this cookbook, the title was the first thing that grabbed my attention, and then the blurb sealed the deal.

Roasted sweet potato with pecan and maple - I used this as one of our Thanksgiving sides and thought it was lovely. A wonderful dish for autumn.So: the philosophy is basically fresh food, not overly cooked but usually dressed with some combination of olive oil, lemon juice, parsley and/or cilantro, mostly served at room temperature. The authors are originally from Israel and Palestine, now in London, and it's basically a Mediterranean diet with a Middle Eastern fondness for spices. What this means for me is: tasty summer food that you can prepare in the morning while the kitchen is bearable and you can leave it to serve for dinner later. What this means for you: invite me to your BBQ, pool or Cape house. Apart the recipes, between the various chapters lots of information regarding cooking styles and techniques and components.

Yotam began his career as a chef in the pastry department of The Capital Restaurant in Knightsbridge, moving on to become head pastry chef at Baker and Spice. It was here that he met Sami Tamimi, a Palestinian chef with whom he created ‘Ottolenghi’. It started as a small stylish deli in Notting Hill, but soon became a phenomenon. Following the publication of his first cookery book ‘Ottolenghi’, which drew on the inspirational and innovative food served at his chain of delis, his success went global.The first thing I want to say about it is that it is the most interesting cookbook I’ve ever read. The recipes are very different than what I’m used to making, and they all sound easy enough to prepare. The photos were amazing, and the stories shared about his family made me feel as if I knew them. They were very close and I liked that. The only vegetables book you'll ever need reveals hundreds of ways to cook nearly every vegetable under the sun.