Immigrant Heritage Month: Food for Thought Book Club
Location
This event will take place in person at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, 3rd Floor, Room 303.
Food for Thought Book Club meets to discuss books on food. These could explore food history, a particular cuisine, the relationship between food and culture, chef biographies, history of food festivals, novels, essay collections and more. Join us at this session for a discussion of The Nutmeg Trail: Recipes and Stories Along the Ancient Spice Routes, by Eleanor Ford.
Reading the book prior to the program is strongly encouraged to facilitate conversation, but all are welcome! Additionally, this is NOT an author appearance - it is a conversation amongst library patrons and staff about the book.
About the Book
From humankind’s earliest travels, people have followed and sought out the spice routes. These maritime trading trails acted as the central nervous system of the world, enabling the flow of goods and ideas.
The Nutmeg Trail is a fascinating culinary exploration of spice, showcasing how centuries of spice trading and cultural diffusion changed the world’s cuisine. Eleanor Ford presents a unique and enlightening guide to cooking with spice as she follows the trails of ancient maritime trade through Indonesia, Malaysia, China, Vietnam, Thailand, China, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, and the Emirates.
Eleanor examines how spices can be used, combined and layered—how some bring sweetness, others fragrance, heat, pungency, sourness or earthiness to create something one-of-a-kind. Chapters and recipes are divided by spice—by the fire and thunder of ginger and peppercorns, floral petals & bark, chillies, lime & lemongrass, earthy cumin & coriander, plus complex spice blends.
Combining historical research with a travel writer's eye and a cook's nose for a memorable recipe, The Nutmeg Trail is a cookbook interwoven with stories that explore how spices from across the Indian Ocean, the original cradle of spice, have, over time, been adopted into cuisines around the world.
Get the Book
- Borrow: NYPL Catalog
- E-Book app: SimplyE, available on iOS and Android.
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All programs are subject to change or cancellation.