FST 2202 - Culinary Culture of the Levantine Region

Credits: 4
The Levantine, or the Eastern Mediterranean region, stretching from the Nile to the Euphrates and Tigress rivers, is not only the birthplace of the world’s 3 monotheistic religions. It is also an ethnically, religiously and linguistically diverse area were many of the first civilizations started, and where many food items originated, and crops and animals were domesticated. The Levantine culinary culture is a “mélange of ingredients, recipes, and modes of consumption rooted in the Eastern Mediterranean.” In this course, we will explore the regions culinary traditions, the history of various ingredients and dishes such as various spices, sugar, olive oil, hummus, falafel, kebabs, shakshuka, shawarma (gyros or Döner). However, any exploration of the foodways of any region is incomplete without the study of its history, geography, ethnic make-up, linguistic and religious traditions.
McDaniel Plan: International Nonwestern