Janet Mendel

A good, if somewhat basic, guide to Spanish cooking. (There are few illustrations). Written by an ex-pat American living in Spain, this is very much a book about how to make the best of your cooking experience while living in Spain, rather than how to recreate the Spanish culinary 'experience' at your next dinner party. That said, it is very easy to recreate these recipes in any Western country. The book is well organised, and there is a good level of description about the ingredients, show more rather than just listing how to use them. show less

Introduction presents the history of the people wo settled Spain. It notes that tomatoes arrived from Peru or Mexico in 1520 where they caught on in Italy, but the rest of Europe waited 200 years to embrace them. Each recipe discusses the place of the food in the culture in a way that may guide the reader toward older traditions and whispers of Medieval cooking.