Mediterranean Hot: Spicy Recipes from Southern Italy, Greece, Turkey & North Africa [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Aglaia Kremezi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 1996

In Mediterranean Hot , award-winning author Aglaia Kremezi has brought together two of the most popular trends in cooking today: Mediterranean and Spicy. Chilies and other pungent spices are an important element of Mediterranean cooking, one of the healthiest and most favored cuisine of the '90s. Although the hot, chili and spice-flavored cuisine of Mexico, Asia, and India are well known, delectable hot and spicy dishes are abundant in North Africa, and Turkey, and there are also many traditional chili-flavored dishes in Sicily, Southern France, and Greece.

The 60 recipes include traditional spicy favorites as well as less spicy dishes that benefit from added piquancy. The recipes are easy to prepare and use widely available ingredients. And because their spiciness makes them so favorable without fat, many dishes are low in fat. This enticing collection of recipes is enhanced throughout by the lively illustrations of Linda Frichtel.

Recipes include:

--Couscous with Beef, Almonds, and Vegetables.

--Green Beans with Garlic, Chili, and Cilantro

--Yogurt Sauce with Hot Paprika and Scallions

--Eggplant Salad with Yogurt and Cilantro

--Tomato, Cucumber, and Parsley Salad

--Lamb Chops with Anchovy Sauce

--Spicy Potato Focaccia

--Moussaka with Egg Plant and Peppers

Illustrations by Linda Frichtel. A Book-of-the-Month Club selection

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Hot in Mediterranean culinary lingo means the use of one or more of the following spices: capers, chilies, cilantro, cumin, garlic, onion, paprika, or hot pepper. Kremezi's book is distinguished by her twist on tradition; here, Greek moussaka boasts spices and a yogurt topping, and pesto excludes basil and garlic to feature arugula, cilantro, mint, and parsley. Lengthy kitchen preparations for many of the dishes preclude the book's use by novices or by home chefs with little discretionary time. Barbara Jacobs

From the Inside Flap

Mediterranean Hot combines two of the "hottest" trends in cooking today: Mediterranean and hot. It features 60 healthy recipes collected by award-winning author Aglaia Kremezi in her travels around the Mediterranean, a region with abundant hot and spicy dishes.

The recipes include traditional spicy favorites--such as Couscous with Beef, Almonds, and Vegetables; Green Beans with Garlic, Chili, and Cilantro Sauce; and Spicy Moussaka with Yogurt Topping.

The recipes in this collection are easy to prepare and use widely available ingredients. Many dishes are low in fat, because their spiciness makes them flavorful without fat. Discover an unexplored aspect of a popular cuisine with the tasty, simple, and healthy recipes in Mediterranean Hot.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Artisan; illustrated edition edition (January 5, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1885183267
• ISBN-13: 978-1885183262
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 7.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,235,539 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hot is in how you measure it..., July 3, 2000

By 

Barbara A Johnson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mediterranean Hot: Spicy Recipes from Southern Italy, Greece, Turkey & North Africa (Hardcover)

I picked up this book on a whim (a cookbook weakness moment...you know what I mean if you love food and cooking). Sometimes single subject cookbooks can be risky--you'll find only one or two recipes that would blow your skirt up, so to speak, but I've enjoyed many of the recipes I've prepared from this book and those that I haven't are on my 'to do' list. The issue of 'hot'is alittle vague here. The author mentions 'chile peppers' in many of the recipes but does not tell you the preferred variety...hence the 3 star rating. As a 'foody', I particularly enjoyed the historic references to the origins of dishes--I made a dish from ancient Byzantinum last night. It discusses the use and history of spicy foods in the Mediterranean. This is not a food essay book--and, depending on your view of those types of books could be good or bad (for me their great if that's what I am expecting but if I want recipes--eeek!)This book gives you a brief history of the dish followed by an easily understood and followed recipe plus sources for weird ingredients. By the way--not all the recipes are killer hot--it depends on the pepper you use and your discretion with the recipe chosen. In a search to break away for the ordinary and incorporate healthier Mediterranean foods into diet take a look here.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book...not too spicy., February 18, 2008

By 

Sunday Daskalea "Meltemi" (NYC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mediterranean Hot: Spicy Recipes from Southern Italy, Greece, Turkey & North Africa (Hardcover)

I agree with the author above but I do believe the recipes are superb and the author is quite a well-respected authority on Greek cooking in particular, as well as the Mediterranean as a whole. Her pepper referneces are not very detailed, it's true. I think professionals still speak to laymen as somewhat simpleminded and in this case, I am a professional. I do think the home cook will find these recipes quite executable and reliable, which is more than I can say for chefs as Batali that always leave a very pertinent ingredient and or step out of the recipe, so your final result will never be as good. This is despicably miserable and stingy. Miss Kremezi does not do that. Like most Greeks, she gives her all. A deserving James Beard Award winner (though not for this book).