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Background Sources
Food Culture in the Mediterranean
Part of the 'Food Culture Around the World' series, this volume offers an insight into the food culture in the diverse culture of the Mediterranean, and discusses the role of food within religions festivals, culture and health.
World Food: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Social Influence from Hunter-Gathers to the Age of Globalization
Comprehensive in scope, this two-volume encyclopedia covers agriculture and industry, food preparation and regional cuisines, science and technology, nutrition and health, and trade and commerce, as well as key contemporary issues such as famine relief, farm subsidies, food safety, and the organic movement. Articles also include specific foodstuffs such as chocolate, potatoes, and tomatoes; topics such as Mediterranean diet and the Spice Route; and pivotal figures such as Marco Polo, Columbus, and Catherine de' MΘdici. Special features include: dozens of recipes representing different historic periods and cuisines of the world; listing of herbal foods and uses; and a chronology of key events/people in food history.
The Food and Culture around the World Handbook
This book provides specific information on the food and culture of each of the 195 countries in the world. Designed to be consistent and concise, it uses an outline format that details the cultural factors related to food ( such as geography, ethnic group, religions and education) and the food itself ( such as typical dishes, special occasion foods, meals and service and street food and snacks).
Countries and their Cultures
Presents the cultural similarities within a country that set it apart from others by examining over 200 countries to document the myriad ways in which culture defines and separates the nations of the world as much as geographical borders do. Surveys each country's shared values, behaviors and cultural variations from foods and rituals to pastimes and arts, using a standard entry format for easy comparison.
The Oxford Companion to Food
Over 3,000 entries on every possible food, its history, cultural significance, and culinary usage.
Iberian Peninsula
"Iberian Peninsula: Overview," in Encyclopedia of Food and Culture
The characteristics and features of Iberian cuisine cannot be understood without reference to the culinary influence of the Romans, Arabs, Jews, and Christians, and the dietary exchange that followed the conquest of America and colonialism in Africa and the Far East.
Southeastern Europe
"Eating up Yugoslavia," in Communism Unwrapped: Consumption in Cold War Eastern Europe
This chapter examines the complex culture of food consumption in postwar Yugoslavia, primarily through the window of cookbooks. Following the evolution of cookbooks as officially produced and popularly consumed texts, Wendy Bracewell argues that these texts held significant clues to the politics, dilemmas and contradictions of the Yugoslav kitchen