You may be surprised to know that Egyptian history spans more than 7000 years  during which a great deal of political  cultural and  culinary shifts have taken place Much of what we now recognize as Egyptian cuisine has taken influences from parts of the Middle East (Egyptian falafel  shawarma  or hummus)  Europe (creamy béchamel  tomato sauce  and pasta)  the Mediterranean (fresh vegetables  beans  and herbs)  and even Africa (savory spices like allspice  cloves  and cumin)