MEDITERRANEAN: Food of the Sun

The Mediterranean diet is held up as the route to healthy eating, and these 350 recipes from the Mediterranean, all of them attractively illustrated with colour photography, make for an irresistible cookbook. Covering all the day's meals, the recipes include appetisers and soups, meat, poultry, fish and seafood, vegetables and salads, finishing with grains and pulses, desserts and pastry. The first chapter gives a brief introduction to the region's ingredients, and while many are well known, some may need a description and explanation for the everyday cook, for instance vine leaves which can be stuffed with a delicious variety of fillings, or swordfish steaks which are popular and plentiful in the Mediterranean. Starters are often substantial, for instance Deep-Fried New Potatoes with a Saffron Aioli or Baba Ganoush with Lebanese Flatbread, while lighter alternatives include Lemon-Soaked Anchovies or Sherried Pimientos. There is a magnificent Bouillabaisse, or you can try the nourishing Greek egg soup Avgolemono. Main courses include the essential trio of Moroccan Paella, varieties of Seafood Risotto, and the classic Stuffed Squid. Well known lamb dishes such as Kleftiko and Moussaka are balanced by Lebanese Kibbeh and every kind of lamb skewer. Calves' Liver with Honey, or Polpettini with Fontina Cheese are new ways of doing beef, while Spanish Pork and Sausage Casserole is an international staple and Turkish Circassian Chicken is a popular cold dish. Desserts include sherbets, tarts, cheesecakes and a range of fruit creams. 17 x 22cm, 512pp, each recipe with full instructions and colour photos.