Gourmand World Cookbook Award winnerMy copy of The Keralaamp10Kitchen has notes scribbled in it and has turmeric stains on certain pages.amp10Now its your turn to enjoy. So line up your spices ready your gratedamp10coconut and go to it. You are in for both a literary and gastronomic treat.Abraham Verghese author of The Covenant of WaterNow in an expanded edition with new recipes and photographs this unique cookbookmemoir transports readers to Kerala a verdant tropical state on the Malabar Coast of South India.Since ancient times seafarers and traders have been drawn by the lure of spices to Kerala. Saint Thomas also traveled this spice route converting several Brahmin families who later intermarried with Syrians who had settled here thus was born the vibrant Syrian Christian community of Kerala. Today ayurvedic massage resorts and backwater cruises make this scenic land a top tourist destination and spices still draw both travelers and gourmands to its rich culinary heritage. It is this legacy thatamp160The Kerala Kitchenamp160brings us through more than 170 recipes and the stories that accompany them.Authentic and easy to prepare these recipes are adapted for the North American kitchen and accompanied by a guide to spices herbs and equipment as well as a glossary of food terms. Interwoven between these recipes in the best tradition of the cookbook memoir are tales of talking doves toddy shops traveling chefs and killer coconuts evoking the beauty of a bygone era as well as the compelling pull of the present one.Sample recipesMeen Vevichathuamp160Fish Curry Cooked in a Clay PotParippuamp160Lentils with Coconut MilkThiyalamp160Shallots with Tamarind and Roasted CoconutPesaha Appamamp160Steamed Rice BreadPaalappamamp160LaceRimmed PancakesKarikkuamp160Pudding Tender Coconut Pudding