- The Fertile Crescent region has long been regarded as pivotal to the rise of civilisation. Alongside the story of human development, innovation, and progress, there is a culinary tradition of equal richness and importance. The Culinary Crescent shows Heine's deep knowledge of the cookery traditions of the Umayyad, Abbasid, Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal courts. In addition to a fascinating history, Heine presents more than seventy recipes--from the modest to the extravagant--with dishes ranging from those created by the celebrity chefs of the bygone Mughal era, up to gastronomically complex presentations of modern times. Beautifully produced, designed for both reading and cooking, and lavishly illustrated throughout, The Culinary Crescent is sure to provide a delectable window into the history of food in the Middle East. Contents : No pork, no alcohol -- A thousand and one saucepans -- Cooking among the high and mighty -- Cookbooks and kitchen practices -- Itinerant ingredients -- The flow of commodities to and from the East -- Tomatoes and peppers -- Western influences on Middle Eastern cooking -- Doner kebabs and falafels -- Middle Eastern cuisine in Europe -- Old and new -- Modern Middle Eastern cuisine -- Your food -- Our food : the role of politics and economics. Originally published in German as Köstlicher Orient by Peter Heine, © 2016 Verlag Klaus Wagenbach, Berlin.