"A great Christmas present written by the husband and wife team of Moro".
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Famous for Spanish- and North African-style food, the couple have gone East - literally and metaphorically. A few years ago they `acquired' an allotment in London's East End and found, amongst fellow growers, Turks, Greeks and Cypriots. The two Sams swiftly became part of the allotment community even if there's little detail of any actual digging in the book. Rather it marks the passage of the seasons and the breadth of the crops with rich and alluring recipes - some their own, others weeded from neighbours.
Not that you have to grow-your-own to enjoy or cook them. They concentrate, not surprisingly, on vegetables and are cool about using up "all the bits" or eating weeds or young leaves - I'd never imagined young poppy leaves had anything to offer; now I can't wait to try them next spring. Recipes highlight Moro's approach to cooking of "three simple flavours jostling in the mouth to create something exciting". Strong on soups, there's a buxom leek and rosemary soup with blue cheese (great for any leftover Stilton over Christmas) or a heavenly almond and fennel with scallops. Bitter leaves with tahini and caramelised onions, one of FoodLovers featured recipes, is a bitter-sweet sensation and pumpkin pisto is fast becoming my favourite way of cooking pumpkins this autumn.
Now Moro East the allotment is sadly gone. The fertile land has been swallowed up by bulldozers, concreted over and incorporated in the Olympic site. For a mere four weeks, the two Sams write poignantly "it will be used as a pathway between stadiums". Luckily for us, the book remains.
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Another treat from Moro
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The first two Moro cookbooks are rated higher than the Bible in our household, they're stained, sticky and thoroughly loved. And although I have yet to try many of the recipes from Moro East - i only just got it, give me a chance - I'm familiar enough with Sam Clark's recipe style to know that this is another winner. It's beautifully laid out, the recipes are easy to follow and, more importantly, inspire you to experiment and add your own ideas.
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