Save the Grace

Few days after Ramadan started I read this article by Washington Post about
How Muslims Celebrate the month of Ramadan.  

The first wrong word is " Celebrate". Ramadan is not a month of celebration, it is a month of pious devotion and struggle with one's desires and  curbing one needs.  Ramadan is solely being conveyed merely as a month of diverse "Iftar" food, drinks and scrumptious meals. This might be true in some families. But breaking one's fast should always be done in moderation for one's own  health and for fulfilling the main reason why he is fasting in the first place.

Here is one beautiful comment I saw on the web "Let us also be reminded that when you and I break the fast at sunset, the hungry continue with their fast."But what should be done to those hungry? Here is one cause " Save the Grace" Lebanon , find more about it the interview with  the team : 

Holy Month of Ramadan

Muslims around the world will be fasting for a whole month starting tomorrow July 20, 2012.
( To know more about Ramadan Greetings, Dates and Rules from Huffingtonpost Religion )

From Pearl's Powder , we wish you all a Ramadan Mubarak and may God accept your fasting.

Thy summer food is not eternal

“Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And Summer's lease hath all too short a date” William Shakespeare.

Summer blisters with all the amusing activities on the sea, the mountain views, the delicious barbeques, the night camping, and the porch’s reckless meetings….These cheerful moments fleet away quickly. And just like summer’s beauty described by Shakespeare as having a short “lease” date , so does the food during summer. Summer heat affects majorly the food we eat.( esp. in Lebanon where electricity goes out )
 It causes bacteria to grow at a faster rate making food rotten and spoiled. Apart from the high temperatures, another reason behind this is simply not handling the food properly and hygienically. Consequently, the risk of developing diseases from food poisonings increases and our health becomes jeopardized. ( Read more about Food Poisoning ) 

Vigilance is the key when purchasing and preserving food, as well when we are eating out in restaurants.  

Chicory Leaves: "Hendbeh"

                                                                      Guest Post by Food Technologist Francine Francis

Chicory Leaves

General Information on Chicory
Chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) also known as “Succory”, “Hendibeh” or “Witloof” is part of the family plant of Asteraceae. This perennial plant is indigenous to South Africa, Europe and Asia but it is now grown, found and consumed worldwide.