Simply Roots

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Happiness

And finally thank God for the simple things in life!

And why do I have a feeling that in Lebanon we are heading towards this bleak black pit too.... Today we are experiencing a suffocating sand storm, isn't that how we all feel today with the garbage crisis, political crisis, economic crisis, refugee crisis, civic crisis .... Nature today is depicting how Lebanese are feeling today living in Lebanon. Will we have a wave of Lebanese refugees soon in Europe and the United States? ... I wouldn't be surprised at all...

Helwa Ya Baladi - Dalida (Cover by Lina Sleibi) حلوة يا بلدي - لينا صليبي

This songs speaks to me... What happened to Lebanon? I don't recognize it anymore. It breaks my heart.

Albert ... Bocusse... Lyon

Bon voyage my boy ... Till we meet again around a table and share memories and stories of food. Fly like an eagle and learn from the best . Make the world your oyster, yet always stay true to your roots. — with Albert Massaad at Taylor's Port Cellars.

Website Soup for Syria

Soup for Syria The website is up and running. It explains it all. Take a few minutes to read it.

Tina and I eating soup for Fitr / filming for Al Hura

photo credit Mustafa Assi

Saturday, July 11, 2015

"soup for syria" cookbook to help syrian refugees in lebanon ".حساء من ...

This is a report that was made by Alhura TV to introduce our book project Soup for Syria. I invite you to watch it. Cristina and I cooked soup for an Iftar during Ramandan at Aya's family tent.

Meatless Monday

I will be making open faced sandwiches with my homemade bread, spread with goat cheese and toppings that will leave you perplexed... salty / sweet depending on your mood. Come, it's great fun!

Welcome to my Blog! Ahlan wa sahlan!

I have been roaming through Lebanon for years documenting the food I eat, the people I meet, and the adventures I live through on a vast culinary journey. Traveling remains one of my favorite things to do in life. I often travel to delve into the food cultures of other countries too, which define clearly their culture and heritage. I am always equipped with a notepad and a camera to transmit all the feelings and joy (sometimes the sorrow). I write cookbooks to document our Lebanese culinary heritage and work as an activist to give a voice to those less fortunate through food stories and photography.

Forever Beirut: Recipes and Stories from the Heart of Lebanon

Man'oushe : Inside the Street Corner Lebanese Bakery

Winner of the Gourmand World Cookbook Award. “Despite the dislocation caused by its civil war and the continuing conflict with its neighbor to the south, Israel, Lebanon has managed to nurture its justly admired culinary traditions. Among these institutions are the city’s bakeries, each unique to its neighborhood and serving deliciously fragrant breads and pastries. Massaad’s book celebrates these bakeries and teaches how to replicate their products in a contemporary American kitchen. Specifically, man’oushé refers to breakfast bread, a disc of flat bread perfumed with sesame and wild thyme. Working from just several basic yeast doughs, Massaad shows how to form and bake a host of Lebanese breads and meat pies. A reasonably adept home baker will find Massaad’s recipes easy to follow, and thanks to the Internet, assembling ingredients is not a burdensome challenge. The book’s full-color photographs bring into focus not just the foods but also the lively characters who constitute a remarkably diverse nation. Especially useful for libraries with significant Middle Eastern immigrant populations.” —Booklist