Claudia Roden was born and brought up in Cairo. She finished her education in Paris and later studied art in London. She writes about food with a special interest in the social and historical background of cooking. With the publication of the bestselling A Book of Middle Eastern Food in 1968, Claudia Roden revolutionized Western attitudes to the cuisines of the Middle East. Her books include the international award-winning classic, The Book of Jewish Food, as well as The Food of Italy and Arabesque. Claudia has won six Glenfiddich awards for her writing, and in 1989 was awarded Italy's two most prestigious food prizes.