Product Description
Food is the portal to Armenia’s past and present-day culture. This culinary journey across the land called Hayastan presents the rich history, wondrous legends, and fact-filled stories of Armenian cuisine. Authors Irina Petrosian and David Underwood take readers on a memorable and sometimes humorous tour of Armenia by way of the kitchen.

What ancient Armenian fable warned against genetically-altered food? What little-known Armenian fruit may have helped Noah on the ark? What was the diet of David of Sassoun, the legendary Armenian Hercules? What was the influence of the Soviet Union on the food ways of Armenia? What strange and exotic fruits and herbs are sold in Armenia’s markets? Why do Armenians go to cemeteries to "feed" the dead? What role did coffee and bread play in Armenian marriage rituals? These questions and more are answered in this first modern guide to Armenian food. If you are curious about one of the world’s most ancient cultures, or are contemplating a trip to Armenia, don’t miss the chance to read this book.Includes rare photos and illustrations, notes and sources, and index. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Much more than just a cookbook

I collect Armenian food cookbooks.However, I have to be selective because I can't afford to buy them all.This one caught my eye because of the good reviews it received.After receiving the book in the mail it didn't take me long to realize this book was like no other in my collection.It is much more than just a good cookbook, much more. The author takes you deep into the past and present food culture of Armenia as you travel on a historical journeyof Armenia, its people, culture and foods. I learned more about Armenian food from this book than all my others combined.I Highly recommend Armenian Food, Fact, Fiction & Folklore.

Finally a well researched and authentic book on Armenian Cooking
If you are looking to buy a book on Armenian food, look no further.

What a great book!

I am learning a lot from it. Not only it has great and authentic recipes but also provides historical and cultural references and anecdotes.

I would buy the book just for the chapter on herbs and spices. Finally I know that, for example, Dandoor is Purslane.

It has a glossary or culinary terms near the end which I also find very useful.

And, of course, recipes are as authentic as it gets.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Yummy
Recipes are very similar to my grandma's traditional middle eastern recipes. The grape leaf recipe is especially good.

Secrets of Cooking,Armenian /Lebanese/Persian
This book is full of easy delicious and contemporary recipes.If you like the middle easern palate, this book is almost all inclusive.The pictures are colorful and helpful in showing how the final product should look.The hard cover is surdy and the pages of quality paper.I highly recommend it.

Desserts use Cool Whip; even vegetable recipes use meat
I question how traditional the recipes can be since the desserts contain cool whip!Moreover, virtually every single recipe in the Vegetables chapter contains meat (usually lamb or stewing beef).The entire book contains one recipes recommended for vegetarians, and that is a very common one (certainly not remotely unique to Iran, Armenia, or Persia).I'm returning my copy; this was a huge disappointment

all of the other (positive) reviews are true!
My wife is Armenian from Lebanon but it is her mom who is the cook. In turn her mom was from Aleppo, Syria, which Patricia Wells describes as a culinary mecca in the Middle East in one of her travel food writings. This cookbook is the most authentic one for the traditional Armenian recipes of the Middle East diaspora: my mother-in-law has tested a number of them and confirms that they can be trusted.

Of course there are as many variations of these recipes as cooks (more, since when I get her to dictate recipes for posterity more than once, they always change), but these simple straightforward ones work and are good. Some of my food tales are at drbobenterprises.com.

I have bought about 15 copies of this book to give to relatives and friends over the years. Among all cookbooks in this area (and I have many as an amateur cook with a heavy cookbook habit), it stands out. So if you are interested in this cuisine, buy the book.

Armenian cooking made clear.
I am married to an Armenian and can now finally hold my own against my mother-in-law's cooking!No small matter, as she is a fabulous cook.I have tried lots of the recipes in this book and have yet to find one that was not superb.They are all step by step which really helps to break down what can be done ahead and shows which recipes are hands-off vs those that require constant attention.I really like the variation suggestions at the end of each recipe, which have encouraged me to try my own substitutions with great success.Some of the recipes that call for baking I have cooked on the stovetop successfully so I don't have to heat up the house so much.
A lot of the recipes are VERY heavy on butter but I find I can easily cut back on that (often by 50%) and still have wonderful results.If you like middle eastern food at all you'll love these recipes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

You can go home again
For basic home-type Armenian cooking, they don't come better than this. Simple easy to understand instructions. Like having my mother standing at my elbow. ... Read more

Product Description
ictoria Jenanyan Wise grew up with the flavors, scents, and seasonings of Armenian cooking-a cuisine that com-bines Mediterranean flavors with Persian and Russian accents. In her thirteenth cookbook-and her first on Armenian food -Wise collects traditional favorites and inspired contemporary variations. Recipes include: - Lavosh, Armenian pizzas, and other savory breads - Shish kebab, moussaka, and other lamb dishes - Baked and roast chicken prepared with yogurt, dill, turmeric, pomegranate, and more - Grilled mackerel with lemon and dill; red snapper stew with tomato and artichokes - Stuffed vegetables (dolmas) and stuffed grape leaves - Baklava and other fillo-pastry sweets; lemon yogurt cake; almond and rice flour pudding with toasted almond slices, and more. This authentic and warm-hearted cookbook will be met by a ready audience of Armenian-Americans, as well as lovers of Greek, Turkish, Lebanese, and other Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A voyage of discovery
My mother's father was Armenian, but very little of the Armenian cuisine or culture got passed down from him to her or to me. It wasn't until about ten years after his death that I started trying to reconnect with the food, music, and history of Armenia. This book was a present from my boyfriend, along with a dinner he prepared using the recipes in the book. I've made a number of the recipes in here at this point. They've turned out very well. Wise makes the instructions quite clear. Within and in between the recipes, she gives a glimpse of her family's relationship to their culinary heritage and traditions. It's insightful and entertaining. Thanks to this book, I've discovered bulgur, begun a love affair with plain yogurt, found out how versatile pomegranate molasses can be, learned the secret to great shish kebab (excellent meat and simple preparation), and I've started to feel like the traditions my grandfather's family brought with them from Gesaria/Kayseri aren't lost after all.

Recommended recipes:

Lamb and rice stuffed dolmas
Salad with pomegranate vinaigrette
Bulgur pilaf
Tarkana
Homemade madzoon (yogurt)

Book was a gift
Though this book made my friend cry with happiness, there was a burn mark in the inside cover. I didn't have time to send it back and wait for a new one so I made a joke about it.

Very Good Evocation of Another East Med. Cuisine
Ms. Victoria Jenanyan Wise, a highly experienced cookbook author from an Armenian family has successfully blended traditional products of the Armenian terroir with modern California style and market to give us a taste of what Armenian cuisine tastes like in our American setting. As this objective is not the same as a faithful evocation of the native Armenian cuisine, it is important you do not buy this book with the intention of faithfully recreating your own Armenian culinary heritage. Ms. Wise is giving us her Armenian culinary heritage, not an anthropological document.

She is delightfully successful in evoking the Jenanyan memory of Armenian cuisine with recreations of Armenian recipes, family interpretations of Armenian recipes, and her own deft experiments with Armenian methods and ingredients as interpreted by what is available in the California marketplace.

Ms Wise scores her first points with me by including a map of the historical Armenia and its surrounding lands which primarily includes Asia Minor (Turkey), the Caucasus, Syria, Iraq, and Iran. Armenia today is on the eastern edge of Turkey, with parts of ethnic Armenia being in Azerbaijan. One of the little mysteries of the book is how this terroir can be considered `Mediterranean' since it is a good 500 miles from the Bosporus, where the Black Sea empties into the Mediterranean. Although the author doesn't invoke this justification, she is in good company, as Paula Wolfert has included Georgia, which is north of Armenia and even further from the Mediterranean in a book of Eastern Mediterranean cuisines. Wise rationalizes the importance of Armenian cuisine by pointing out that the Armenian highlands are very fertile, a rich land for growing wheat, and possibly the historical origin of wheat culture.

Armenia shares some major culinary elements with lands bordering the Mediterranean such as yogurt, wheat, lamb, and eggplant. On the other hand, olives and olive oil, the cornerstone of Mediterranean cuisine is less important than butter, especially clarified butter, in Armenian cooking.

Since this is neither genuine Armenian nor purely Mediterranean, what is the attraction of this book. In a word, it is variety. If you are especially fond of the cornerstone Armenian ingredients (yogurt, lamb, eggplant, bulgar and legumes, and you are tired of your Italian, Greek, and Levantine sources, this is the book for you. The chapter subjects are a mix of the traditional and the quintessentially Armenian. These are:

Yogurt - Ms. Wise gives us the whole picture, including a reliable recipe for making homemade yogurt, and yogurt substitutes for staples such as fresh cheese, crème fraiche, and bechamel sauce. She also gives us the important caution that although you can start a yogurt culture from a commercial yogurt, the dry yogurt starter from a health foods store will give you better results. Take that Alton Brown.

Armenian Mazas - The Armenian take on the Greek and Turkish Meze cuisine. The stars here are eggplant, chickpeas, tomatoes, onions, pickling cucumbers, and zucchini. One surprise is in the recipe for string cheese.

Breads and Savory Pastries - The signature product here is `Lavosh', the Armenian Cracker Bread which is dry like matzo, but leavened with yeast like pita, and baked with a covering of sesame seeds. Pita and Armenian `pizzas' are also present, along with several fillo based Greek / Turkish like savory packets.

Salads - Old World style, but New World ingredients are emphasized here. Legumes and spinach are the stars here, along with the old war-horse Taboulleh.

Kufta - One of the most distinctly Armenian dishes in the book. This is less a dish than a whole family of dishes, closely related to the Georgian dish, Kibbeh, described in Paula Wolfert's `The Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean'. Part of what makes Wolfert's book great while this volume is merely good is the fact that Wolfert gives detailed, diagrammed instructions on techniques for making Kibbeh while Wise simply gives us many different recipes and a small sidebar of tips. Both Kufta and Kibbeh are a style of cooking which puts all sorts of different ingredients, from meats to barley to bulgar to legumes into a stuffed or not stuffed `meatball'.

Lamb and other Meats - This is how to do Shish Kebab right, and other tales of lamb cookery. An interesting ethnic tidbit here is that while Armenians were Christian, Muslim lands surrounded them, so they had little interest in pork, even if they had no religious inhibitions against it.

Poultry, Game, and Eggs - This is a chapter that will give relief to a tired inventory of poultry recipes.

Fish and Seafood - Another Old World style blended with modern techniques and sensibilities. Focus is on fresh water fish and shellfish.

Vegetables - Eggplant, Eggplant, and more Eggplant. I just wonder how okra got to Armenia from Africa.

Pilafs - Bulgar, rice, lentils and nuts.

Sweets - Baklava is the headliner, even though the author admits it is no more Armenian than Pizza. Filo dough, peaches, apricots, almonds, walnuts, and pistachios star here. Great source of nut nutrition here.

Like many other ethnically oriented cookbooks by skilled culinary authors, this one offers new, nutritious, dishes to Armenians, foodies on the lookout for novelty and vegetarians on the lookout for novelty. This is a very good book that succeeds in its objective, but it is not a great book. The anecdotes of family history are pleasant, but do not have the evocative power of, for example, some of the stories told by Gennaro Contaldo in `Passione'. On the other hand, `Gourmet' magazine has declared Eastern Mediterranean cuisines as one of the next big things in eating. This book is as good a source as many.

Highly recommended for those with an interest in this cuisine and in Eastern Mediterranean food in general. Relatively easy recipe methods. Very good price for the quality of the content. ... Read more

Product Description
Now home cooks can try more than 150 fail-proof Armenian favorites without investing lots of time and effort. With a dash of history, a pinch of nostalgia, and a splash of wit, Ghazarian reveals the secrets of this naturally healthy, olive oil-based cuisine. Delicate line drawings accent clear, easy to follow instructions. This book captures the soul of this ancient yet astonishingly modern ethnic cuisine. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Myeah.....
This book is no different from other Armenian cookbooks that mix Armenian recipes with non-Armenian recipes with little or no differentiation. Some interesting entries...

Delicious, healthy and easy to prepare meals
To all HEALTHY "food-loving" fans:

Delicious, healthy and easy to prepare meals achieved by following the
"Simply Armenian" recipe book. You will be MOST satisfied...ENJOY!

[Chef David Michaels, Melbourne, Australia]

Ethnic Armenian
Love the recipes in this book.Many are very similar to the ones passed on to me verbally by my mother-in-law.It is good to see them in print so that I can finally pass them on to my daughter's.Everyone will enjoy these recipes if you enjoy branching out to try new and different foods.Very natural and healthy eating.

Expat in Italy
I received "Simply Armenian" last year as a gift and it is now one of my favorite cookbooks. Everything I've made from this cookbook has been delicious, healthful, and I feel a bit adventurous preparing these recipes. My husband loves the Nivik Salad and the Chicken and Spinach Borek stuffed pastry is the perfect meal in my mind. I also enjoy reading the accompanying family stories as I prepare each dish. "Simply Armenian" motivates me to step outside my comfortable routine of American and German cooking and try something different, more ethnic than usual. I'm happy to recommend "Simply Armenian".

Well written, great recipes
Ghazarian's SIMPLY ARMENIAN is now a well-worn staple in my cookbook repertoire. The recipes are delicious, both historic and contemporary, and I give this treasured anthology as a gift to friends of all degrees of culinary expertise. Buy it for those who are adventurous or timid in the kitchen, and enjoy their appreciation. Elegant simplicity at its best!
VAndrews ... Read more

Product Description
Inside find a compilation of 450 recipes from scores of Armenian cooks. about 300 of threm are Classic and Updated Armenian recipes. The spiral binding allows the colorful laminated cover and book to stay open, while you cook.This book has a detailed index, and also a glossary of more than 100 words which explain foreign words and cooking terms. Sprinkled liberally throughout the book are Armenian historical facts and proverbs, plus 38 pages of household hints.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

A wonderful cookbook for Armenian food!
Thank you St. Andrew Ladies Society for providing such delicious and user-friendly recipes. I won't blame you for the weight I am gaining!!!

Has the main dishes we were looking for
I bought the book for my wife who was raised on Armenian food, but the recipes that she got from family were of the type, "a little of this, and a bit of that" and she isn't that type of cook.The book contains the typical Aremenian dishes you can find at Middle Eastern restaurants, but they also have those that you only find at Aremenian restaurants.In addition, the more popular dishes often have several variations.Often they have easy, short-cut versions, and then the more complex, traditional approaches.While my wife and I want to make traditional versions we generally don't have time and the short-cuts are appreciated.

Living in Two worlds
I enjoy trying the different recipes for the basic dishes because I can always learn something.The recipes bring back memories of my mother's wonderful cooking.It is good to have a source to try my hand at producing food like hers.This cookbook represents me, born in the United States of Armenian heritage.I appreciate the "original" recipes and the "updated" ones to reflect the ingredients (and time) available to produce these dishes.The book is an ambitious effort that is done very well.

Americans want it the easy way
Too "New" for my taste. If I buy an ethnic cookbook I want it authentic, not one using readymade Western supermarket ingredients.
I am Greek Italian. Yes, I have two kids, an elderly mother's home to run too, and a job. I welcome anyone to look into my freezer, it contains little else than icecubes. I do make pies from scratch, when normal, not so thin dough can be used; I do use frozen phyllo when only very thin is essential, as well kadajif, because I cannot roll it as thin myself, nor have the patience to bother with difficult kadajif making. I usually don't make my own pasta, and I bake bread once in a while only. I don't like using all those readymade things, devoid of nutrients and full of chemical preservatives, colours and what not.
Thus I agree with the only negative voice on this book that ethnic cookbooks should really present a true picture of the local cuisine, with fresh ingredients, because the result is not comparable at all. A compromise would be to put a note at the end, saying "you could also used canned or frozen" etc, for those who are hooked on convenience foods or for when you've got really no time.
I also appreciate it when authors don't step in too much to offer their interpretation or re-elaboration and "creative" recipes, (like in so many so-called Greek cookbooks, in which you see Greek ingredients used in a totally non-Greek way, sometimes ingredients that are not even present in the markets together because they belong to different seasons of the year!), and present us the authentic recipes only. Or, if they want, they could clearly state that this is not authentic, but an ethnic-American mix. Surely I don't expect to find marshmallows as an ingredient in a book of Armenian (or Greek, or Indian, or whatever...) recipes!
This is the problem of many compilation books. The bona fide compilers just trust the people who send them the recipes and print them as they are, with no editing and/or research to test their originality. They print the name of the contributor, thus passing on any responsibility. Too easy! The people contributing, sometimes second generation or third generation Armenians, often just incorporate ingredients and techniques from the country they are currently living in (the U.S.A.), their recipes therefore being much less authentic than would be the purpose. Of course most of the readers never know the difference, on the contrary, they are even more enthusiastic (as the reviews of the specific book show), because they welcome the sight of their familiar ingredients, which they can conveniently obtain in a supermarket. Not for me, thanks!
I think the solution to the dilemma is clear information, clearly stated principles, on the cover of the book itself. So that one knows BEFORE buying the book to which of the two categories it belongs: authentic recipes or adapted to modern-day American ready-made food lover? This way, everybody would get what they want, and everybody would be happy.

Best Cook Book Ever
I purchased this book thinking it was for a good cause and to support the Ladies Society and thier hard work.Little did I know it was to my own advantage!! I thought I knew how to make most Armenian dished but I was surprized on how much more there was to know!This cook book is one of my latest purchases and is the most worn out!I gave one to my sister too but her 17 yr old daughter "relocated" the book to her own room and she is experimenting with the receipes. I get a kick out of the proverbs too!!good job!! great book!! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

The Standard
I have half a dozen Armenian cookbooks, and not of them can compare to this one, I have never made a bad recipe out of this book and the recipes are always superior to the other books, I have altered them a little time to time, (for example I add a little more sugar to my choreg, but for the most part they are very good) The only recipes which on occasion are superior to the ones in the book are my grandmother's.

Different and tasty!
My family is Armenian and i had not even heard of a few recipes in here. But, when I made them (even the ones we knew well), I was amazed at how "grandma's style they were.

If you like to learn a new food - or you are Armenian - this recipe book has to be the best out ther. And so complete.

Alice Bezjian is awesome
This is a wonderful cookbook that I use very frequently! Some of the recipes call for pounds and ounces which I could do without but everything I've ever made (veggie grape leaves, baklava, sini kufte, etc) have been amazing.I highly recommend this wonderful and very comprehensive cookbook. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Fantastic
I married a 100% Armenian husband, and my mother-in-law gave me this book back in 1974.Since then I have aquired a few Armenian cookbooks and of course the Armenian church ones too.The Armenian Cooking Today By Alice Antreassian, is by far the best,it's my "bible" for
Armenian cooking and way surrpasses any of the others I have ever tried.I am ordering one now for my daughter. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 6492 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.Contains 8,000 to 12,000 word essays on specific culture groups in the United States, emphasizing religions, holidays, customs, and languages in addition to providing information on historical background and settlement patterns. Also covers ethnoreligious groups such as Jews, Chaldeans, and Amish. Each essay lists organizations and research centers; name, address, and contact information for periodicals, radio, and television stations; and a further readings section. ... Read more

Product Description
Selected Armenian recipes compiled by the Cookbook Committee of the Trinity Guild of the Armenian Holy Trinity Apostolic Church ... Read more

Product Description
A heritage collection of time honored Armenian home recipes. ... Read more