Hi, I am Chef Zara. In this post, I will guide you through Maltese Cookbooks.
I love discovering new food and cooking with friends and family. One of the most common questions that I often get is for cookbook recommendations. I have created this guide for friends, family, and new friends alike. I hope that you enjoy our site.
Mediterranean food right here!
Maltese cuisine is an eclectic mix of Mediterranean, Italian, and Middle Eastern influences. Maltese cuisine is rich in history and tradition. This island nation’s diet has been influenced by its inhabitants’ lifestyles since prehistoric times. Although Maltese cuisine contains many elements from different cultures, it still has many unique characteristics that make it one of the most exciting cuisines in the world.
The most common features of Maltese cuisine are the use of diced vegetables and fruit, as well as a wide variety of pasta shapes and sauces. Meat, fish, and dairy products are also popular ingredients in Maltese cuisine. So if you’re dying to try their mouth-watering recipes and cook Maltese cuisine, here are the best Maltese cookbooks to use as your reference!
You can’t miss our selected list of 10 Maltese Cookbooks! 👨🍳
1. Maltese: Cooking Made Easy
Why We Love It ❤️
The food itself is simple but delicious—the author includes traditional dishes like bollitine (smoked sausage), tal-basa (lamb stew), herbed chicken stew with vegetables or potatoes and carrots cooked in olive oil; as well as some international favorites like ratatouille or pasta primavera made with fresh vegetables from the market or frozen ones from your freezer!
The timeless Maltese recipes are all based around ingredients that are readily available in most grocery stores: eggs, milk, and butter – so you wouldn’t have any trouble sourcing ingredients.
Review 📖
Leon Cutajar’s new Maltese cookbook is a testament to how well they’ve kept up their passion for food and cooking. This book offers a variety of recipes that are easy to follow but still very flavorful. The author offers great tips on how to make your own stock and preserves, which can save you money over time!
Malta is a small, isolated nation in the Mediterranean, and like many other European islands, its cuisine reflects this isolation and is also influenced by its neighboring cultures, including Italian and Ottoman. The Maltese has been cooking since at least the 15th century—and they’ve always been passionate about it.
About the Author ✍️
Leon Cutajar is an author and is currently residing in Malta. This is his first cookbook.
2. Maltese Traditional Recipes
Why We Love It ❤️
The author, an expert in the field of Maltese cooking, has included some interesting stories about the author’s family members who were brought up with traditional Maltese meals, and this makes this book even more interesting, as well as useful, for anyone who would like to know more about Maltese traditional foods due to the cooking methods handed down over time.
Review 📖
Maltese Traditional Recipes: Delicious Maltese Cooking is a cookbook for anyone who wants to learn more about traditional Maltese dishes while encouraging healthy eating. The recipes are easy to follow, and the ingredients are simple to find. This book is not just another recipe book that you’ll read once and never look at again.
About the Author ✍️
Joseph Vella is a native of Malta from Valletta, born during World War 2. He is the proud father of six adult children and he is also a grandfather and a great-grandfather. He has authored several books. Maltese Traditional Recipes is his first cookbook.
3. A Guide to Maltese Cooking
Why We Love It ❤️
The recipes are all quite simple and straightforward: there are no fancy ingredients or difficult techniques required here. Each recipe comes with a brief description of what’s in it and why you should be cooking it—it’s not just a list of steps without any context or explanation. The book also provides some background information about why certain ingredients were chosen for specific dishes in Maltese cuisine, as well as suggestions for substitutions if necessary (for example, using chicken instead of beef).
Overall, I think this book would make a great addition to any home cook’s collection!
Review 📖
Maltese cooking is a unique blend of French and Italian influences. The book A Guide to Maltese Cooking by Francis Darmanin is an ideal introduction to this style of cuisine. The book is easy to follow, with clear instructions on how to prepare each dish, including step-by-step photos that help you to visualize the final product. It also includes a glossary of ingredients, which will make it easier for readers who don’t know much about Maltese cuisine.
4. Taste of Malta
Why We Love It ❤️
Caruana also includes helpful tips for cooking with each ingredient and how long it takes to prepare it. If you’re looking for a Maltese cookbook that will give you everything you need to know about a specific cuisine, like Ross Fil-Forn (a baked rice casserole made of ground beef, sausage, cheese, and eggs), while also being accessible enough that you don’t need any specialized knowledge to cook recipes from it, this is definitely worth checking out!
Review 📖
Claudia Caruana’s Taste of Malta offers a comprehensive guide to Maltese cuisine, from savory pies to sweet desserts. The book is organized into sections by ingredient, making it easy for readers to find recipes that match their needs and interests.
The author does an excellent job of explaining the history and culture behind each dish, helping readers understand how these dishes are prepared and why they’re important to Maltese culture.
About the Author ✍️
Claudia Caruana is a Malta native and has authored several other books.
5. East/West
Why We Love It ❤️
If you’re looking for a cookbook that will teach you about diverse cultures through their cuisine—or if you have just moved to or are planning on moving to Malta—this is your book! This book will help you become familiar with Maltese cooking while also giving you ideas on what foods to try when visiting Malta or enjoying Mediterranean cuisine at home with family or friends.
Review 📖
Shane Delia’s book, East/West: A Culinary Journey through Malta, Lebanon, Iran, Turkey, Morocco, and Andalucia is a must-read for anyone who is a foodie.
The book is broken down into two main sections: the first is a chapter on the cuisines of Malta and Lebanon; the second is chapters on cuisines from each of these countries as well as their neighbors. Each chapter includes an overview of what to expect in terms of flavors, techniques, and ingredients, as well as an outline of how to prepare each dish. The mouth-watering recipes are accompanied by beautiful photography and illustrations throughout each section of the book.
About the Author ✍️
Shane Delia is a chef. He has authored several other cookbooks.
6. Cooking Maltese Cuisine
Why We Love It ❤️
Maltese cuisine is a unique and sophisticated way to cook, and Valerie’s Cooking Maltese Cuisine is the perfect guide for those looking to learn more about the history and traditions of this style of cooking.
This cookbook is a great resource for anyone interested in learning more about what they can cook at home using ingredients available in their local grocery store!
Review 📖
This Maltese cookbook is organized into chapters that focus on different types of dishes: soups, salads, pasta, desserts, fish dishes, meat dishes, poultry dishes (with recipes for chicken and turkey), and seafood dishes. Each chapter begins with a brief introduction from Valerie about what she likes about Maltese food and why she decided to create this cookbook. Then she goes on to explain how to prepare each dish—and sometimes gives some tips about how to make them even better!
7. Food and Cookery of Malta and Gozo
Why We Love It ❤️
Helen Caruana Galizia’s Food and Cookery of Malta and Gozo is a great introduction to the culinary traditions of two small islands in the Mediterranean. This collection combines recipes from both Malta and Gozo, as well as brief histories of the islands’ cuisines. The book also includes directions for cooking methods and ingredients, as well as tips on where to find them.
Review 📖
The book is broken down into chapters on soups, fish dishes, meat dishes, vegetable dishes, fruit dishes, desserts, bread (including buisca), dolmas (stuffed leaves), seafood salads and stews, grains (pasta) and legumes (beans), condiments and spices, oils and fats. Each chapter includes a listing of ingredients needed for each recipe along with an explanation of how many servings per recipe are needed or how much time it takes to make each dish.
This is an excellent introduction to Maltese cuisine!
About the Author ✍️
Helen Caruana Galizia is an author, educator, and culinary. She has authored other cookbooks.
8. Cooking in Corktown
Why We Love It ❤️
This Maltese cookbook is great. Not only does it have some amazing recipes, but also it showcases the history of Maltese immigrants in Detroit when the family migrated from Malta.
The book starts with a brief history of the Maltese people before moving into recipes for chicken and vegetables, as well as a few desserts. The author’s own family has been cooking their way through these dishes for years and she has included some cooking methods handed down and tips on how to use them in her own kitchen.
Review 📖
The book is divided into three sections: “Recipes,” “History,” and “Kitchen Tips.” The last section includes instructions for making your own spices by drying herbs and spices yourself. This was an interesting concept for me because I’ve never done it before—but now I want to try it!
The author also includes some helpful notes on what kinds of ingredients you’ll need depending on what dish you’re preparing, as well as some ideas for substitutions if you don’t have something readily available at home (like sage instead of rosemary).
9. 25 Years in a Maltese Kitchen
Why We Love It ❤️
The author’s writing style is accessible and friendly, making this a great resource for home cooks as well as more experienced cooks. The recipes are organized by season, so you can find the perfect dish no matter what time of year it is—and they’re all different enough that you won’t get bored easily!
Review 📖
This Maltese cookbook is an ideal gift for people who want to try cooking without being intimidated by long ingredient lists or complicated steps. Each recipe has its own picture (which helps make it clear what you’re supposed to do), but there are also detailed instructions that show what needs to be done step-by-step so that even someone who isn’t cut out for cooking can still get something satisfying out of this book!
This book is a wonderful resource for anyone who has ever longed to learn how to cook their way through a Maltese kitchen. It’s packed with recipes, from breakfast treats to soups and stews, but it also includes tips on how to think about ingredients and techniques in the context of a Maltese kitchen.
About the Author ✍️
Pippa Mattei is a cook, food writer, and teacher. She is the author of several culinary books.
10. 365
Why We Love It ❤️
I really enjoyed reading about all of these different ways to prepare food—it helped me see cooking in a new light! If you’re looking for a new way to approach cooking (or even just want some inspiration), then this book is definitely worth checking out.
Review 📖
365: A Year of Everyday Cooking and Baking is a book that takes the concept of “home-cooked meals” and makes it accessible to all. What if you could cook your favorite meals every single day of the year? Would you do it? Meike Peters, the author of this book, says yes!
The book is broken up into 365 days, with a recipe every day for a whole year. The timeless Maltese recipes are simple enough for anyone to make—they’re not complicated or time-consuming—but they’re also interesting and delicious. They’re mostly Mediterranean and Central European from Polish and other countries inspired, but there are some other options thrown in there as well. There is no set menu for each day—you can choose how many recipes you want to make for a whole year!
About the Author ✍️
Meike Peters is a James Beard award-winning author and runs a food blog. She has written two culinary books.
Final Thoughts about Maltese Food
Maltese cuisine is a fusion of many different influences, and the Maltese people have adapted their recipes to suit their needs. The country’s cuisine has changed over time, but there are still some things that are consistent throughout its history.
In this review of the 10 best Maltese cookbooks, we’ve found that all of them share common themes: they’re all easy to follow, they offer a variety of options for anyone, and they make cooking fun whether you’re a chef or a beginner, you need to know more about Mediterranean cuisine!
