This cookbook is so good! I immediately followed Roya on TikTok! I can’t believe I hadn’t stumbled upon her account before. The first thing that stood out to me in the introduction is the idea of food as a link to home. I related to the fear of losing a loved one and wanting to capture those important stories, life lessons, and in this case, recipes. I also appreciated the notes on language and the deliberate choice to use the terms Iranian and Southwest Asian. The Farsi word for del meaning both heart and stomach was eye-opening to the Iranian culture. I found it helpful that the beginning of the cookbook explains the key spices and herbs used to create unique flavors and that Iranian cuisine is not reliant on dairy. We are a mostly dairy-free family so it was so great to go into the book knowing I’d be able to cook most things without looking up substitutions. The cookbook is broken into sections by meal. There’s even an entire section dedicated to rice & pilafs which is a dream! I love rice. I enjoyed some of the Iranian twists on meals I think of being traditionally American like pancakes and French toast for breakfast. Maman and Me has beautifully crisp photos (a picture-heavy cookbook is a MUST for me… especially with foods not in my usual repertoire) and recipes with ingredient lists that are easy to follow. I’ll be keeping this handy on my Kindle to cook from for years to come. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy.