"iraq" news and stories

When Claudia Roden's Book of Middle Eastern Food was first published more than 30 years ago, it set a standard for Middle Eastern cuisine in the US. The foods of Morocco, Turkey and most Arabian countries were almost entirely unknown. As the tastes of American chefs grew to love and crave new flavors, Roden updated her book into The New Book of Middle Eastern Food. This volume contains most of the recipes set forth in the original, as well as many new ones. The recipes are divided by type and main ingredient, so there are chapters dedicated to soups, yogurt, meat dishes and vegetables, though there is a lot of crossover between the sections as some ingredients, like yogurt, are widely used. Roden's presentation of the material is very interesting, as she takes the time to explain a lot of the origins of dishes and ingredients and the lore that surrounds them in the Middle Eastern cultures she describes.

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Homesickness often shows itself in cravings for certain foods. For many soldiers from Vermont currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, the craving was for jerky. Not just any jerky, but venison jerky. So, doing their best to oblige their hometown troops, law enforcement officers and game wardens in Bennington County, Vermont, started collecting venison. They looked for illegal hunting kills and fresh roadkills to use for their dried treats. In the end, they came up with 170 pounds of venison that was turned into jerky by a Bennington grocery owner. Ironically, the local Elks Club footed the bill for curing and shipping the meat.

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