By Clifford A. Wright

Author of A Mediterranean Feast

This is an important food book written by a distinguished research scholar, cook and food writer. Wright makes you feel as if you are on-location in the friendly sunny Med when he teaches you why the foods are available, then how the folks there make little snacks with the fresh foods. Wright gives intense scrutiny to all his projects, so much so he dedicated this 514-page book to his youngest son, "who wondered when we would again eat ‘big’ food."

Here are some of the foods, recipes and color the book is chock full of:

One of Wright’s many indexes, "Cheesy Mouthfuls," contains such muchies as Spanish Baked Cheese Marbles, Gruyere Half-Moons, his favorite, Saganaki and an item he calls Provolone and Mortadella Bombs. He feels Saganaki with a squirt of lemon and a glass of oouzo aside the Ionian Sea is pretty close to what a heaven must be.

Under "Frittatas and Other Eggy Delights," he borrows dishes from Andalusia, Cordoba, Tunisia and Egypt, noting there are only four countries where Frittatas are eaten: Italy, Spain, Algeria and Tunisia. One eye-catcher is Poached Eggs in Garlicky Yogurt.

The "Saucy Little Dishes" parts are meant to open the appetite and satisfy the soul. These little dishes, little foods, are ever-popular and Wright keeps changing his mind about his favorite, probably most. Try Pork and Pine Nut Meatballs in Romesco Sauce, Carp Croquettes in Walnut Sauce in the style of the Greek Jews. How about Fresh Anchovy in Orange Sauce.

Another section is "Stuffed Vegetables" ranging from zucchini flowers, olives, potatoes to even onions. The Imam (word for a Muslim prayer leader) Fainted is a stuffed eggplant dish, one of Turkeys’ most famous mezes, for it is said the prayer leader fainted when he realized how good the dish was. Few recipes gain such lofty titles.

In his "Filled Pastries, Puffs, Pies and Baked Turnovers" section Wright offers the recipe for Spicy Octopus Pie in a Red Wine Crust from the Port of Sete. He offers a care-filled lesson on cleaning an octopus you have caught yourself.

"Pizzas, Calzones and Empanadas" is a sizeable section. His San Vito’s Pizza, comes with its own history and calls for pork shoulder, tomato, Italian sausage, salami, cinnamon, cheeses, fennel seeds and oregano. Calzones and Empanadas are carefully described, all being breadish conveyors of tasty ingredients, baked in very hot ovens.

His section entitled "Fried Tidbits," brings you Fried Kibbe, Mediterranean-Style Fried Small Fish, Fried Stuffed Cabbage Bundles from Catalonia, French Fried Pumpkin with Green Sauce from Naples, Fried Stuffed Olives from Venice and mjuch more.

Wright’s "Seafood Salads and Platters" is probably crowned by the Venetian Seafood Antipasto – shrimp, mussels, cockles, little necks, oysters, baby octopus, tuna steak and cod fillets, bearly cooked and served drizzles with olive oil and squirted with fresh lemon.

In closing the book would be incomplete without his recipes for assorted sauces and spice mixes. Find Wright’s Allioli, Romesco Sauce, Harissa, Ras al-Hanut, Tabil and more. Doughs and batters are there, suggested menus, too. Wright wisely groups the food for certain groups, i.e. A Summer Grill Party with Arab Meze for 12, Passed Appetizers for a Cocktail Party made for 20 – he pulls together many diverse groups and occasions. Interesting.

On the purely informal, local, U.S. level, my daughter, JoAnn, has a delightful little habit of walking by you and pressing a little crème brulee ramekin in your hand, one containing a little treat she has made up just for you. When you buy this book, you will do well to buy a set of these little cups.

© Marty Martindale, 2005, Largo FL