Serving up the Pharaohs' food by the plateful is meat and drink for one of Egypt's foremost cookbook writers, Magda Mehdawy. Gamal Nkrumah samples the delights of her Grandmother's Kitchen Fragrance or fetor, some staples of ancient Egyptian cuisine such as fenugreek and garlic seem designed to be evocative. And, so are certain Egyptian cities. If you approach Alexandria by sea, you might get a hint of why this Mediterranean metropolis was once known as "The Bride of the Sea". Alexandria has a long tradition of exploiting the opportunities its location, as the gateway of Egypt, offers and not least in the versatile domain of victuals. This maritime city has, from time immemorial, been the heartland of the cosmopolitan influence on Egyptian cuisine (Byzantine, Ottoman, Levantine and modern European), but the picture is changing rapidly with the influx of American-inspired fast food outlets that first appeared in Cairo and now across the country. Magda Mehdawy's recipes can seem beguilingly like a time warp, dishes from the days of the Pharaohs. Fast food, as far as she is concerned, is public enemy number one. She is an Alexandrian, nevertheless, and she readily acknowledges that the dishes of her hometown are as diverse as its colonial heritage and resulting ethnic mix. Alexandrians have absorbed a melange of Greek, Italian, Levantine and Ottoman cooking traditions to create a distinctive cuisine. But, then so are many modern Egyptian repasts. To her credit, Mehdawy concocted a powerful cocktail of data for the preservation of her grandmother's recipes and she hints throughout her works at the highly personal nature of the art of cooking. For millennia, the jewel in the crown of Egyptian cuisine was the samna baladi, ghee or clarified butter. The precious cream that oozed out of the ballooned udders of the barseem -fed cows and water buffaloes were, as it were, the big wheels that made Egyptian country cooking turn. Or, rather the fuel that oiled soups, stews, casseroles, desserts and pastries both sweet and savory. Mehdawy, however, has an instinctive appreciation of the value of the old-fashioned Egyptian foodstuffs. "Even traditional sweets such as assaliya [molasses candy] and simsimiya [a sesame candy] have a good nutritional value. And so do doum [the fruit of the doum palm], kharoub [carob] and lib [the seeds of melons and pumpkins]. These are all nutritious traditional snacks," Mehdawy asserts. She also has an insatiable appetite for exploring and documenting the cuisine of Egypt and refuses to confine herself to her native Alexandria. In her quest for the authentic Egyptian cuisine she reserves a special side serving of Saidi (Upper Egyptian) and Nubian cuisine in her cookbooks. For a Muslim, she is irrepressibly inquisitive about certain Coptic comestibles. "The most ancient and authentic Egyptian edibles have been retained in traditional Coptic, Saidi and Nubian dishes," stating I suppose the obvious. Vestiges of ancient aromas and flavours persist alluringly. There is something peculiarly pleasing about amateurish research about ancient Egypt that confirms widely held opinions based on shakier foundations. Many of the vegetables, fruits and grains common in contemporary Egyptian cuisine are radically different from the ones the ancient Egyptians used. Imagine modern Egyptian cuisine without tomato, rice or sugar. Tomato is an essential ingredient for the most popular modern Egyptian stews. Rice is perhaps second to none but wheat as a staple Egyptian grain. And, bread, made of wheat flour, is literally called eish, a corruption of the Arab word for life, in colloquial Egyptian. And yet, in ancient Egypt, bread made from wheat was the prerogative of the privileged. The poor had to make do with bread baked with the flour of lesser grains such as barley for instance. And, the ancient Egyptians had no refined sugar to sweeten their desserts with, either. Even so, some contemporary Egyptian desserts such as fenugreek paste, hilba maquda, most certainly have their roots in ancient Egypt. It is perhaps for that particular reason that the American University in Cairo (AUC) Press invited Mehdawy to a book signing assemblage at the 41st Cairo International Book Fair. Not only did they publish an English translation of her bestseller My Egyptian Grandmother's Kitchen, but they will also publish another of her works later in the year on ancient Egyptian cuisine. "I grew up watching my grandmother cooking most of these dishes. I enjoy preparing them for my family -- her three daughters Noha, Nermeen and Nancy," Mehdawy smiles demurely. She recalls how she declined many seemingly lucrative offers to start up catering businesses. "It was far more fun cooking traditional Egyptian dishes for her brother, Essam, living abroad whenever he visited. "He lives and works in Vienna and has a foreign wife, so he naturally misses home-cooking," she explains almost apologetically. So how did this archeologist by training turn to cooking and writing about food for a living? "The ancient Egyptians gave special importance to the kitchen. The room furthest away from the entrance of the house was always used as the kitchen. Among the kitchen equipment and cooking utensils were the all-important clay-covered oven for baking, lots of earthenware pots, mortars and pestles for grinding grain. They never slaughtered cows, only oxen," she elucidates. There are benefits, I suppose, to being outside the herd. Mehdawy, nevertheless, is a trendspotter who aspires to become a trendsetter, to boot. "I pray to God that I have been successful in what I set out to do and that the final outcome is of value to anyone seeking traditional Egyptian food," she remarks wryly. "With the progression of scientific discovery in the field of nutrition, the value of our old- fashioned foods has become evident." In her scholarly manner she unearthed several recipes that date back to the days of the Pharaohs. Mehdawy's masterpiece, My Egyptian Grandmother's Kitchen, was an instant bestseller for which she was awarded the Al-Ahram Appreciation Prize in 2004. It was arguably the most complete collection of Egyptian recipes ever assembled. So far, so straightforward. Mehdawy's Gourmand winner Modern Egyptian Cooking sheds further light on contemporary Egyptian cuisine. The recipes the author selects are not confined to authentic time-honoured Egyptian dishes, but include those infused with foreign influence. Béchamel toppings, for example, are now widely used in Egyptian cuisine. The rich and unabashedly calorific béchamel is incorporated in pasta ( macarona forne ), fried eggplant ( musaqqaa bil bashamil ), stewed cauliflower, stuffed artichokes and sweet potatoes. Rice, too, which was unknown to the ancient Egyptians, is prerequisite to many modern Egyptian dishes. Ruz muammar (rice baked with cream and milk and occasionally peppered with chunks of meat, giblets and other tasty morsels) is often reserved for festive occasions such as the Coptic Christmas. Shank and chicken fatta are also rice-based dishes topped with a garlicky tomato sauce. Stuffed chitterlings, mumbar mahshi bil ruz wel khodra, with rice and greens are a popular and inexpensive dish. Mahshi, the Egyptian version of the Turkish dolma, is another rice-based dish that was introduced into the country with the Ottoman occupation in the 16th century. There are many varieties ranging from tomato, vine leaves, cabbage and lettuce, to bell peppers, aubergines, courgettes and onions. Egypt stands astride three continents: Africa, Asia and Europe -- via the Mediterranean. Yet, its cuisine has evolved from its distinctive traditional roots. Even though the ancient Egyptians grew the olive, they preferred to cook using sesame oil. To this day most Egyptians, in sharp contrast to their Mediterranean neighbours, abjure the use of olive oil and stick to their time-tested ghee. Egypt is a timeless land in more ways than one. The people's forebears since time immemorial cooked certain contemporary Egyptian dishes. Take kishk, for instance. This is a thick, creamy yoghurt and flour-based sauce much favoured by Upper Egyptians and identified as ancient Egyptian in origin. Peasant women from Upper Egypt can be seen selling dried kishk balls to passersby on the pavements of Cairo. The balls are then blended with milk, strained and set aside to thicken. Grated onion and crushed garlic, salt and pepper are added and served usually with chicken, but also occasionally with bean sprout ( kishk fuul nabit ) or prawns ( kishk gambari ). Catfish casserole with cracked wheat ( tagin qaramit bil firik ) -- the deep-fried fatty freshwater fish is sandwiched between two thick layers of cracked wheat and baked in the oven after being drenched in tomato sauce sprinkled with crushed garlic. This, like kishk, is presumed to be of ancient Egyptian origin. Bisara khadra, crushed beans stewed with greens, is a delectable and ancient Egyptian soufflé-like peasant dish accented with deep-fried onion rings. Bisara safra bil basterma is a more exotic Alexandrine version of the dish with the addition of pastrami. Stewed broad beans, popularly called fuul medames, cooked in a variety of methods being augmented with different spices and secret ingredients -- the latest being the addition of soya beans -- are the indisputable national dish of Egypt, or at least for the country's poor. It is affordable and highly nutritious and is a favourite breakfast dish. "This legume is a very important staple food since the days of the Pharaohs because of its high protein and mineral content," Mehdawy explains. "Recent scientific studies indicate that broad beans cooked, stewed or otherwise contain natural chemicals which impart feelings of satisfaction, happiness and contentment. They lessen anxiety and promote relaxation and induce sleep. They do so by causing the brain to release a large number of neuropeptides." "Calcium-rich chickpeas are yet another legume consumed since the times of the ancient Egyptians." Ads abu gibba (brown lentils) are a nutritious alternative to the chickpeas and broad, or fava beans. Lentil soup, made from the bright orange-coloured split lentils, is a tasty winter dish in Egypt. High in fibre and protein and low in fat, lentils have the added advantage of cooking quickly, Mehdawy discloses. Kushari -- brown lentils with chickpeas, rice and pasta -- is another popular and inexpensive dish. It is hard to get a table at the numerous kushari eateries and it is impossible to book ahead. Many Egyptian families prefer to prepare their own version of kushari at home and the same goes for the crushed bean patties, taamiya, also known in the Levant as felafel. "The re-use of boiled cooking oil amounts to a health hazard," the archaeologist turned cook and nutritionist adds. " Firik bil akawi, cracked wheat with oxtail is a decidedly winter dish. If you are very adventurous try breaded fried brain, boiled brain and baked head of lamb or ox. Alexandria-style liver is considered a delicacy by Cairenes as well as Alexandrines."
