Miso Wild Garlic Beans, Kale and Steak

Growing up in the expansive Persian Gulf, spring felt like an elusive dream.

Avocado Mango Yellow Lentils Lime & Chilli Verrines

Many relationships are forged and strengthen over meals or social events. Emotions evoked and lasting impressions are made when people come together at the table to share a meal. As a daughter of an hotelier our family moved often from country to country, always leaving behind friends and a community that had taken us in. It was never easy and yet I watched my parents form new friendships and build a social environment in each new city with ease.

Egyptian Lentil Soup with Pumpkin and Caramelized Onions

People say, the second half of our lives will seem a lot shorter than the first. Many people will arguably confirm this feeling. I presume a reason for this could be that many things in our daily lives become more and more routine. Maybe that’s why in retrospect years seem like just a few weeks. 

Mujadara Jnoubiyeh - Lebanese Lentil and Bulgur Pilaf and Cabbage Salad with Za’atar and Sumac

Weimar – Brussels – Normandy Coast – Paris – Weimar

Weimar – Valdobbiadene – Rome - Amalfi Coast – Venice - Weimar

We are thinking of getting away. Satisfy the itch on our feet, packing up and heading to different shores. Not the travel we have been doing for work, workshops or photo shoots but the travel for us. The kind of travel where time is not an important commodity, instead it is the adventure and the experience that makes a trip memorable.

Baked Eggs with Spiced Chickpeas and Chard

When things begin to move – they really roll. It’s been a busy few weeks for me, juggling the tasks on the various projects I am working on. There are no complaints as I am so happy to be in the process of moving forward, focused and ready to tackle all kinds of issues and chores I am faced with. Some tasks fall so very easily into place each process integrating into the other effortlessly. Others are more taxing and demanding, requiring more attention and often a lot more nerves.

Dal Fry – Lentils The Punjabi Way

On the phone I tell her that I will not be hungry. “It’ll be late and I think we’ll just relax and then go to bed!” She fusses and persists as she always does - I let her. I know she needs to do this. She has been planning for weeks already, asking us every time we talked on the phone what should she cook, anything particular we like for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It usually takes up several minutes of our conversation, both of us talking with great passion, before we get to other topics, seemingly inconsequential in comparison.

Chipotle Black Bean Chili

What comes to mind when you think of American cuisine? Is there even such a thing as an American food culture? Be honest now, how many of you thought instantly of hamburgers, s’mores, doughnuts or corn dogs? Or did you laugh scornfully and think microwave dinners and fast food?

I’ve always wondered why the thought of American food raises so many eyebrows and why it seems to have such a bad reputation around the world.

Cannellini Bean Salad with Olives and Ricotta

I love buying glossy food, travel and lifestyle magazines. Usually heading straight to the section where they are neatly stacked, magazine upon magazine in rows after rows, I like to take some time to browse through my favorites, setting aside two or three that will make it home with me.