Award-winning author Kitty Morse was born in Casablanca, Morocco, of a French mother and British father. She emigrated to the United States at the age of seventeen. While studying for her Master''s Degree at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Kitty catered Moroccan diffas, or banquets, and went on to teach the intricacies of Moroccan cuisine in cooking schools and department stores nationwide. In June 2002, she conducted a Culinary Concert on Moroccan culture and cuisine hosted by Julia Child, as a benefit for the Harry Bell Foundation of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. From 1983 to 2007, Kitty organized an annual tour to Morocco that included culinary demonstrations in her family home, a Moorish riad south of Casablanca.

Laurie Smith has had her gorgeous photographs appear in such publications as the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times as well as in Saveur, Time, and Garden Design magazines.