Collection Highlight: Cookbooks for Ramadan

Did you know there are cookbooks in the library? Try searching the catalog to inspire your next culinary adventure! We have a wide array of ebooks that you can access conveniently from home, or explore the beautifully bound recipes on the shelves of Olin Level B. We have significantly expanded the section specifically related to the Middle East in support of associate professor Hayrettin Yücesoy’s class, “Of Dishes, Taste, and Class: History of Food in the Middle East.”

According to Professor Yücesoy, “Cookbooks provide valuable insights into the cultural customs, social organizations, and culinary habits of a society. They offer a window into how conversations surrounding food reflect social structure in its economic, political, and cultural dimensions. By studying cookbooks, we gain a deeper understanding of labor practices, enduring habits, connections across regions, and social hierarchies.”

During the Islamic Holy Month of Ramadan, it is standard practice for believers to fast from sunrise to sunset, and gather for Iftar to break their fast in the evening. The end of the month is marked by Eid al-Fitr with a celebration, feasts, and especially sweets. Among these feasts are dishes traditional to the holiday that are shared across the Ummah, the global community of Muslims. See this sample menu of a royal medieval Iftar from Scheherazade’s feasts: foods of the medieval Arab world.

Learn more about the fascinating intersections of culture, class, and flavors in the social history of Middle Eastern food when the class is offered again in spring 2025! In the meantime, try this recipe recommended by Professor Yücesoy, whose provenance he explains:

“This appetizing recipe for Bazmaward, originating from Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq’s Book of Dishes, dates back to the tenth century and is credited to the Abbasid Caliph al-Ma’mun* (reigned 813-833). Its simplicity belies its exquisite flavor. Featuring chicken breast, walnuts, citron pulp, mint leaves, tarragon, basil, and salt, it promises a delightful culinary experience.”

Recipe for Bazmaward

Ingredients:

• One lavash, flour tortilla, or similar thin flatbread
• One whole roasted chicken breast, deboned and diced
• 1½ to two lemons, peeled, deseeded, and diced
• One table spoon finely minced fresh tarragon
• One tablespoon chopped mint leaves
• Two tablespoons chopped basil
• Salt to taste

Instructions:

• Lay the flatbread on a clean work surface.
• Evenly distribute the diced chicken, walnuts, lemon pieces, tarragon, mint, and basil over the flatbread.
• Roll up the flatbread tightly and slice it into four pieces.
• Warm the slices in the oven before serving for an extra touch of indulgence.
  
  Savor this irresistible dish, perfect for either the evening fast-breaking meal (Iftar) or the pre-dawn early meal before fasting begins. Its delightful blend of flavors and simple preparation make it a welcome addition to your Ramadan table.

*Caliph al-Ma’mun is also credited with expanding Bayt al-Hikma (House of Knowledge), the Grand Library of Baghdad, which was a major center of study, translation, and proliferation of scientific research.

Highlighted books include:

El-Haddad, Laila M., and Maggie Schmitt. The Gaza Kitchen: A Palestinian Culinary Journey. Just World Books, 2016.

Ibn-Saiyār al-Warrāq, al-Muẓaffar Ibn-Naṣr, et al. Annals of the Caliphs’ Kitchens: Ibn Sayyār al-Warrāq’s Tenth-Century Baghdadi Cookbook. Brill, 2010.

Salloum, Habeeb, et al. Scheherazade’s Feasts: Foods of the Medieval Arab World. 1st ed, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2013.