I would like to thank my mother, Hanan Malouf, and my sister, Juman Malouf, for encouraging me to write this book and for showing me that finding inspiration for sweet treats could come by travelling, exploring and keeping my eyes open even in the strangest of places. A double thank you to Hanan for accompanying me on my trip to the USA and eating everything put on the plate in front of her in the name of research!
Visiting the South would not have been as much fun or as tasty if it weren’t for the following people: my aunt Dr Najla Malouf, and my cousins Ruth and Mike McGranahan in Durham, North Carolina; my cousins Bert and Amy Anderson in Atlanta; Beth Jones Nazar in New Orleans, my friend of over 25 years; and Christi McCrary in Dallas, who I’ve known since we were 14 years old and who took me to the Texas State Fair to eat a deep-fried peanut butter, banana and jelly sandwich.
Thank you to Zoë Waldie for your on-going support and guidance – and for taking care of my mother now that Deborah has gone.
Thank you to Louise Haines and Georgia Mason at Fourth Estate for taking me in so warmly and for being excited about my mad recipes.
A big thank you to Joss Herd and Bianca Nice for testing everything so wonderfully and enthusiastically and faithfully, no matter how bizarre the ingredient or how gigantic the end product. Thank you to Myfanwy Vernon-Hunt for continuing to make things gorgeous and feel just perfectly Hummingbird; and to Kate Whitaker, working with you on the past three books has been a privilege, and more beautiful each time.
And a final thank you to my wonderful colleagues, past, present and future, at The Hummingbird Bakery – I continue to be lucky to have you.