Berg's family-inspired cookbook goes to Ebury Press

Ebury Press has signed a deal for Meliz’s Kitchen: Simple Turkish-Cypriot comfort food and fresh family feasts, the debut from food writer and content creator Meliz Berg. 

Publishing director Laura Higginson acquired world rights from Juliet Pickering of Blake Friedmann Literary Agency. It will be published on 30th June 2022. 

Ebury Press described the book from Berg, a self-taught cook and recipe developer, as “a celebration of the melting-pot of delicious spices and fresh flavours that make a Turkish-Cypriot Kitchen”.  

The synopsis for Meliz’s Kitchen says of the author: “Inspired by her Turkish-Cypriot heritage, and experience of growing up in a household that combined both traditional Cypriot and London living, she created the blog and Instagram page Meliz Cooks. Meliz has since built a loyal following who return to her again and again for flavourful, comforting dishes.  

“In her first book, Meliz’s Kitchen she celebrates the food that influenced her as a child and shares new easy go-to meals for busy family life, as well as exclusive twists on her blog favourites, all combined in nine chapters of nourishing cooking.” These include Meze & Salata (dishes and salads to share) as well as Ocak and Kizartma (traditional stove-top dishes) among others. 

Ebury said: “Meliz’s recipes are pure sunshine on a plate. Packed with simple, vibrant meals and comforting dishes, this is a joyful collection of mouth-watering food and wonderful writing that will show people how easy it can be to bring big Turkish-Cypriot flavours to the kitchen every day.” 

Meliz commented: “I have dreamt about writing this cookbook for so long. I always wanted it to feel like a storybook of recipes that tie together my colourful Turkish-Cypriot heritage and family history through food. There are beautiful traditional dishes I regularly make at home and have learnt so much about from cooking with my mum, as well as new ones that utilise the familiar flavours and ingredients Cypriot cuisine is recognised for, but have been adapted to suit current, busy lifestyles.  

“Ebury gave me the autonomy to stay true to myself and my food writing, as well as the opportunity to authentically capture the recipes through my own photography. I’m so proud to finally say that I have written a compendium of stories and recipes from my kitchen, Meliz’s Kitchen.”