With growing interest in fermentation and the medical benefits of a Mediterranean diet, Armenian food offers a new take on healthful deliciousness. It combines the best flavors and techniques of Mediterranean and central European cuisines into fresh and satisfying dishes, served with plenty of pickles, sides, and the soft, ubiquitous bread known as lavash. An ode to Armenian food and culture, Lavash is part cookbook, part travelogue, and part lookbook of tempting food and revealing atmospheric photography. More than 60 recipes―arranged by course―cover authentic breads and everything you eat with them, from soups and salads to mains and sweets. For both armchair travelers and home cooks, here's a book as enticing in the reading as its recipes are to the palate.

The first canning manual and cookbook authored by a Michelin-starred chef and restaurant owner, "The Preservation Kitchen" reveals a world of endless flavor combinations using revolutionary ideas that bring homemade preserves deliciously to life. Pairing science with art, Paul Virant presents expert preserving techniques, sophisticated recipes, and seasonal menus inspired by the award-winning fare at his restaurant, Vie, in Western Springs, Illinois.
Imaginative tangy jams, brandied fruits, zesty relishes, cured meats, and sweet and savory conserves are the focus of the first half of this book, while seasonal menus pairing these preserves with everything from salads and cocktails to poached fish and braised meat compose the second. Brandied Cherries used in Cherry Clafoutis, or as a garnish for the Beer-Jam Manhattan, are a sweet reminder of the summer harvest. And the Chicken Fried Steak with Smoked Spring Onion Relish anticipates warmer days when you're still deep in winter.
Alongside recipes and menus, Virant draws on his extensive technical knowledge and experience to provide detailed and comprehensive guidelines for safe canning practices, testing pH, pressure canning, water bath processing, and storing. But no matter how precise the science, Virant never forgets the art in each handcrafted preserve and thoughtfully developed recipe. His unique approach re-imagines seasonal eating by harmonizing opposite or unusual partnerships: the brightness of summer fruit may be tempered with the earthiness of meats and winter produce, or the delicacy of spring vegetables might be enriched by the robust herbs and spices more typical of fall. "The Preservation Kitchen" not only demonstrates and instructs, it encourages and explores the limitless possibilities of capturing the seasons in a jar.