Floyd Around the Med Book

It's all right for some. Here's Keith Floyd cooking his way round the Mediterranean, accompanied by a film crew for the television series. Greece, the South of France, Turkey, Spain, Morocco and Tunisia and Egypt are his destinations, where he explores the rich variety of cooking styles that have evolved around the shores of the Middle Sea, all founded basically upon the same seasonally available diet. Thus, in Greece Floyd cooks a beautiful and sophisticated "Fricassee of Spring Lamb with Green Peas and Egg and Lemon Sauce" (it also includes Cos lettuce and baby leeks); and in North Africa, by contrast, the equally stylish but quite different "Lamb Couscous with Root Vegetables and Courgettes".Keith Floyd is particularly good at capturing this local essence of food and cooking. He has a nose for the unusual and can sniff out unexpected but authentic combinations, an invaluable asset in what is perhaps over-familiar territory. From Spain, for example, a chocolate sauce for lobster; from Tunisia, a beef stew flavoured with coffee. Wherever he goes, the recipes are unfailingly delicious. In characteristic Floyd style, he enthusiastically invades casino kitchens, barbecues on beaches and sets his portable stove up in Roman amphitheatres, everywhere cooking on the spot. His commentaries on the cultures he visits, from Cannes to Cairo, make for ripe and entertaining reading. (Perhaps distancing the book somewhat from the series, he also allows himself some pungent observations on the exigencies of making popular television.) Fans will find this a characteristically expert, inviting and lavishly illustrated guide to these ancient and vibrant cuisines. --Robin DavidsonRead More