His partnership with director James Ivory has yielded a succession of acclaimed and award-winning films, including A Room with a View, Howard's End and The Remains of the Day. But Merchant's talents extend into the culinary world as well, as evidenced by this exquisite collection of over 100 recipes from his native India.

The New Indian Cuisine for Fearless Cooks and Adventurous Eaters Ismail Merchantýs Indian Cuisine, the celebrated producerýs first collection of recipes, was hailed by the New York Times as one of the ten best cookbooks of the year. Now, in Ismail Merchantýs Passionate Meals, the author leads fellow cooks further along on his odyssey, offering over a hundred new, tantalizing recipes. The collection opens with a series of delicious appetizers to whet dinersý appetites, from refreshing lassi to spicy vegetable fritters. Main courses, including meat, poultry, or seafood, represent the author at his most creative, lending American staples like veal, turkey, and even hamburgers exciting new dimensions. Passionate Meals closes with a selection of Indiaýs superb breads, pickles, chutneys and sweets, which Merchant, following Indian custom, shares as a gesture of goodwill and friendship. For grand entertaining, as well as for casual and delicious cooking out of the ordinary, Ismail Merchantýs Passionate Meals is a welcome reminder that food still has the capacity to nourish and be an adventure.

Tantalizing, Exquisite, And Remarkably Original Dishes From A Talented And Imaginative Master Chef Ismail Merchant Draws On His Childhood Memories Of Exquisite Indian Food To Create Quick, Delicious Meals. Included Here Are Hors D'Oeuvres And Drinks (Mustard And Chive Prawn Bites, Beer And Lemon), Soups (Ginger Broccoli Soup In Just Twenty-Five Minutes), Fish, Poultry And Eggs, Meat (Lamb With Onion And Tomatoes In Less Than Forty-Five Minutes), Vegetables, Salads, Rice, Lentils, Sweets (Cinnamon-Brandy Baked Pears, Sweet Saffron Rice), Pickles And Chutneys-Tasty, Fast-Cooking Meals Delivered In Clear, Easy-To-Follow Recipes, Along With Ismail'S Insider Anecdotes About Films And Stars. A Wonderful Book By A Brilliant And Passionate Cook. 'It Is An Exemplary Work And One Of The Most Original Departures From What You Normally Expect A Book On Indian Cooking To Be. It Is Not National. It Does Not Deal With Traditional Concepts. And It Is Not Regional. It Is Simply One Man'S Inspired Notion Of What His Native Land'S Food Should Taste Like. It Is Tailored To His Own Sophisticated And Remarkably Original Palate. And The Recipes Are Easy To Follow.' -Craig Claiborne

Authentic Indian recipes that are simple and totally doable Ashia's Table features well-known traditional Indian dishes alongside a selection of exciting new dishes based on Indian flavors and textures, all of which can be easily made at home. Ashia Ismail-Singer's debut cookbook pays homage to her heritage, blending it seamlessly with a modern and authentic take on her native Indian cuisine. Her recipes aren't just a list of ingredients and measurements: For Ashia, they are memories of childhood, food experiences that have been passed down through generations, and which connect her to her family and homeland. With chutneys and bites for grazing, light lunches, nourishing main dishes, desserts, home baking, and more, this book brings you a collection of recipes inspired by India's rich food culture, made with ingredients that are easy to find wherever you are. Ashia's Table is a beautiful book to be cherished for its delicious recipes, stunning photography, and attractive design.

Ismail Merchant's account of the filming of A Room with a View is really a song in praise of the Tuscan table. For while Merchant recounts the problems - both hilarious and daunting - in trying to shoot a movie in the crowded tourist mecca of Florence, his most passionate prose is reserved for those moments - and there were many of them - when he and his cast and crew stopped to sample the bounty of the Tuscan countryside and the world-famous creations of the Florentine kitchen. Accompanied by production shots and stunning still life photographs by Derrick Santini, Ismail Merchant's text lets the reader wander behind the scenes in the shooting of a major motion picture. We learn how, for example, a "view" was created from a room that, in fact, had no view, and how, amid angry demonstrators and hungry pigeons, fully dressed stars and extras managed successfully to complete the famous scene in the Piazza Signoria. But between takes, Ismail Merchant always returns to the table, whether it is set at Florence's famous Il Cavallino restaurant or in the stately Villa Maiano, whether it is really only a picnic spread out on a hillside or tripe eaten on the street. And, when not at the table, Merchant is in the markets, sampling the fruit and vegetables fresh from the farm that give Tuscan cooking its unique character. When the tale has been told, and the last meal eaten, to satisfy the reader's inevitable hunger, Merchant provides seventy recipes from antipasti to desserts that can be successfully prepared in any kitchen.

I have never experienced that most subtle of senses - smell - captured so well in print. The aroma of fine cooking just floats off the pages. Don't read this book if you're hungry. You might eat it.' - Simon Beaufoy, Oscar-Award-winning screenwriter, Slumdog Millionaire Abbas Haji is the proud owner of a modest family restaurant in Mumbai. But when tragedy strikes, Abbas propels his boisterous family into a picaresque journey across Europe, finally settling in the remote French village of Lumiere, where he establishes an Indian restaurant, Maison Mumbai. Much to the horror of their neighbour, a famous chef named Madame Mallory, the Indian establishment opposite her own begins to garner a following. Little does she know that the young Hassan, son of Abbas, has discovered French cuisine and has vowed to become a great French chef. Hassan is a natural whose talents far outweigh Mme. Mallory, but the tough old Frenchwoman will not brook defeat. Thus ensues an entertaining culinary war pitting Hassan's Mumbai-toughened father against the imperious Mme. Mallory, leading the young Hassan to greatness and his true destiny. This vivid, hilarious and charming novel - about how just a small distance of a hundred feet can represent the gulf between different cultures, different people, their tastes and their destinies - is simply bursting with eccentric characters, delicious flavours and high emotion. 'Outstanding! I wished it went on for another three hundred pages.' - Anthony Bourdain