From my table to yours!

Gulf Weekly

06-03-2025

Bahrain-based Palestinian-Jordanian food enthusiast Farah Abu Maizar has launched the fourth edition of her digital Ramadan cookbook, the biggest one yet, featuring recipes that dip into her cultural kitchen and family favourites.
The 146-page publication, Every Little Crumb's Ramadan 2025, carries 110 creations - from soups, salads and starters to mains, desserts and suhoor (morning meal before fasting), 85 per cent of which are new and exclusive to this edition.
Farah, a certified dietician from American University of Beirut, has also been mindful of making the recipes healthy while retaining their flavours.
'It took me around eight months of food testing, photographing and writing up the recipes, with the last three months being especially intense, filled with almost round-the-clock work,' the 37-year-old creative, who launched her website Every Little Crumb in 2019, told GulfWeekly.
'What makes my cookbook different is that I approach it from the perspective of a busy mum, who wants to prepare mostly traditional food but in a really easy and approachable way.
'For me, communal dining means gathering with people you love, over food you love, and making lasting memories. There's nothing like breaking fast with the people closest to you, and it really brings out the true spirit of Ramadan,' the mother of three, who lives with her family in Riffa Views, added.
Growing up in the US, Farah was exposed to diverse cultures and, in her blogs, is committed to showcasing her Middle Eastern heritage and American upbringing. Add to it her background in nutrition which guides her passion for cooking.
'I fell in love with food and cooking as a child. Some of the first books I ever checked out in a library were cookbooks.
'I combine scientific knowledge and years of experience to craft delicious, mostly Middle Eastern recipes that appeal to anyone who loves food, with any level of expertise in the kitchen,' the full-time content creator, who has called Bahrain home for the last 27 years, revealed.
Some of her favourites that feature in the book include her mum's mansaf, cauliflower fakhara ('clay pot' - a traditional cooking method), zucchini mint soup, two-ingredient flatbread and halawit iljbn (sweet cheese rolls).
'My mom and I prepared this dish (mansaf) when she was visiting from Amman (Jordan). It's time-intensive and very particular (on measurements and procedure), but the result is a show-stopping dish of tender lamb cooked in a yoghurt sauce. It's a cherished tradition in Jordanian and Palestinian families, and I'm so happy to finally have learned how to make it and pass that knowledge on to my readers.
'I adapted my aunt's handwritten halawit iljbn recipe, which gave little direction – typical of Arab mums (smiles) – and made it something that people can replicate with ease.
'I love making vegetables really exciting to consume, like in my cauliflower fakhara where they outshine any meat, cooked in a yoghurt tahini sauce, topped with toasted nuts, pomegranate seeds and parsley.'
The recipes in the book are light and healthy, many calling for food to be air-fried or oven-baked instead of deep-fried.
'I believe in eating healthy while making food delicious,' she added.