I am sorry for not posting on Tuesday last week and yesterday. There is so much that has been happening on so many levels and I needed some time to step back and think.

I was going to write about all the things that have been weighing on my mind, the news and terrible images from Aleppo, the news from Jordan, some personal defeats and betrayals that hurt..But since the world seems to have so much hate and ugliness at the moment, I have decided to shift my attention and focus on the beauty around me instead of feeding the ugliness. It seems that the need to slow down and focus on the full half of the cup increases with every passing day and in that spirit, I am sharing a few pictures I took over the past week of things that brought me joy. I do hope that you’ll take a moment to slow down and enjoy them and if you have an extra minute, share a beautiful moment that you have experienced this past week with me in the comments. I really can’t tell you how much joy your comments and support mean to me.

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Instead of ranting about the exams or the weather, I thought I would start today’s post with something inspirational. I think that we could all use a few tips when it comes to turning our days from “just OK” to amazing!

The rules of being amazing

Risk More Than is Required

Learn More Than is Normal

Be Strong

Show Courage

Breathe • Excel • Love • Lead

Speak Your Truth

Live Your Values

Before getting to today’s recipe, please allow me to thank you …

After last week’s post I received so many  comments, messages and emails and I am truly at a loss for words. The kindness, concern and compassion that you have all showed was heartwarming and I deeply appreciate it. I am fine. I know so many of you were concerned that I sounded depressed or worse yet, desperate but I really wasn’t. I was just venting and I really appreciate the fact that you listened. Thank you.

Growing up,the only association between pumpkins and desserts for me was  in the form of the traditional candied pumpkin that is usually served in the winter as a filling for a special kind of Palestinian bread called zalabia. You see, pumpkin in my book was associated with savory recipes like pumpkins and lentils in tomato sauce,and pumpkin frittata.It wasn’t until I started blogging that I was blown away by all the sweet possibilities!

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Ftoot is a type of bread popular in Palestine. The name ftoot means crumbled and it refers to the crumbled cheese infused through out the bread.

Last year, when I shared the Nabulsi recipe for ftoot ,I promised that I’d share my mum’s recipe for ftoot which is my go to recipe for this bread and it is a little different from the Nabulsi version. Well I’m finally doing that today 🙂 but before I do, allow me to take you on a little trip

I told you in my previous post that we were planning a road trip. Since Eid was on Wednesday we had a long weekend and we decided to take the kids on a road trip to Abu Dhabi the capital of the UAE.

Abu Dhabi is about 270 km from Ras Al Khaima and since the kids and I  have never been to it during our 2 year stay in the UAE, we were really looking forward to the trip.

Abu Dhabi -like Dubai and most major cities in the UAE- is famous for its modern sky scrappers ,shopping mega-centers  and themed amusement parks and though all of that was fun to visit, the part I enjoyed the most in our 3 day trip was our visit to  the city of masdar (the eco friendly city of the future) and our tour in the Sheikh Zayed grand mosque which is a true architectural master piece.

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When I posted the batheeth recipe, I promised you more recipes from the UAE and the Arabic peninsula and this is the first in a series coming your way over the next few weeks.

I have to admit that the popular Emirati recipes are growing on me, be it batheeth, Masoub, karrak tea or the long list of rice and spice dishes that are so popular here.

Today’s recipe is one that my kids got me to try. After a cultural day at school they came home super excited about masoub, logaimat and khameer bread (I know this sounds like gibberish now but I promise to dedicate a post to each and every one of these recipes)

Masoob by chef in disguise

My kids love Nature valley oat bars! They are on my shopping list every single week. My kids usually take them to school in their lunch boxes or enjoy them for breakfast, crumbled over a bowl of honey vanilla Greek yogurt. I love how they are the perfect portable snack on a road trip or when we go for a walk by the sea.

Just like Nature Valley honey and oat bars