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Mediterranean Grains and Greens, by Paul Wolfert (HarperCollins, 1998). There aren’t quite as many Turkish recipes in this volume as in Wolfert’s Eastern Mediterranean book, but there are enough to warrant an appearance on this list.

The Mediterranean Kitchen, by Joyce Goldstein (William Morrow, 1989). I think I may have made just about every recipe in this very excellent book. One of its unique features is that Goldstein indicates how, by changing only an ingredient or two, a recipe can go from being Italian to, say, Turkish, Portuguese, or Moroccan, allowing for more mileage out of nearly every recipe.

The Mediterranean Prescription, by Angelo Acquista, M.D. (Ballantine, 2006). This book received a quiet reception, but it deserves more notice. Its subtitle is Meal Plans and Recipes to Help You Stay Slim and Healthy for the Rest of Your Life.

Mediterranean Street Food: Stories, Soups, Snacks, Sandwiches, Barbecues, Sweets, and More from Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, by Anissa Helou (HarperCollins, 2002). Streets foods deserve pride of place as they are so much a part of the Mediterranean lifestyle. Helou’s recipes are great for cocktail parties or light lunches and dinners.

Mediterranean Women Stay Slim, Too: Eating to Be Sexy, Fit, and Fabulous!, by Melissa Kelly (Collins, 2006). Though the title is a nod to another favorite book of mine, French Women Don’t Get Fat, by Mireille Guiliano (Knopf, 2005; Vintage, 2007), this book is quite different, filled with many recipes as the author is also the co-owner and executive chef of Primo, a restaurant in Rockland, Maine, where I had one of the best meals of my life.

Meze: Small Plates to Savor and Share from the Mediterranean Table, by Diane Kochilas (William Morrow, 2003). In this great volume, Kochilas has divided the chapters by specific types of mezes, such as dips, spreads, and relishes; small egg dishes; meatballs and kebabs; and finger foods and fried treats.

The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: A Delicious Alternative for Lifelong Health, by Nancy Harmon Jenkins (Bantam, 2009). A revised and updated edition of the groundbreaking volume, first published in 1994.

Olives: The Life and Love of a Noble Fruit, by Mort Rosen-blum (North Point, 1996). Though Turkish olives don’t figure in the book, this is a fascinating read. “Next time the sun is bright,” Rosenblum observes, “and the tomatoes are ripe, take a hunk of bread, sprinkle it with fresh thyme, and think about where to dunk it. I rest my case.”

Secrets of Saffron: The Vagabond Life of the World’s Most Seductive Spice, by Pat Willard (Beacon, 2001). Though Turkey is no longer a source for it, saffron, mostly from Iran, is sold in many markets in Istanbul, so this is a worthwhile read to learn more about this tiny flower, from which “so little is needed to turn life into a sumptuous feast.”

The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen: Recipes for the Passionate Cook, by Paula Wolfert (Wiley, 2003). There are a number of Turkish recipes in this book, and two I particularly love are Turkish Red Lentil Soup with Paprika and Mint Sizzle, and Melt-in-Your-Mouth Green Beans with Turkish Pepper.

INTERVIEW

Eveline Zoutendijk

Eveline Zoutendijk, originally from the Netherlands, went to Istanbul for the first time in May 1997 and has been living there since October 2001. She holds a Grand Diplôme with honors from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris and cooked for a year in a Michelin-starred restaurant in the Netherlands as the only female in a kitchen with sixteen men. She then attended hotel management school in Glion, Switzerland, and began working for the St. Regis Hotel in New York. Five years later she decided to take a year off and travel the world, which was when she discovered Turkey. Toward the end of her second visit of what would turn out to be eleven visits in twenty months, she had already decided she wanted to move to Istanbul, but finding a decent job turned out to be more difficult than expected. She received an offer to open the Four Seasons George V in Paris,