Cooked with Delicious and Good Intentions

We, the millennials, the tech savvys and social media addicts, are a nation of aspiring cooks! At least that's what most of us write on our Twitter bios, share on Pinterest boards, and post as Instagram photos, yet-honestly-we barely have time for cooking daily... Nevertheless, most of us rely on social media to choose food, whether through restaurants' reviews, recipe's blogs, or friends' comments about products. But our social media profiles can go beyond just sharing individual food photos, recipes and reviews. Social media has been rising as a crucial aspect in the communication between consumers and the food brands on one hand, and between consumers and health care practitioners on the other... 
How do food companies and food experts deal with social media?Well, that is what I explored and wrote about in Cloud961 issue number 5.

Download full issue here

Pearl's Powder Finalist on Beirut Social Media Awards

 Pearl's Powder is proudly among the finalists of the "Best Food Blog" ( Category or Circle No 5).

For the first time in Lebanon,  activists on social networking sites will receive awards for their social media work....From the organizers who brought Blogging Lebanon, Social Media Changing Lives, and Geek Fest Beirut 5.0, the Online Collaborative are bringing us this year : Beirut Social Media Awards!

Why Chicken Wings are the Ultimate Food Millennials?

Why Chicken Wings are the Ultimate Food Millennials??

" Millennials are defined as individuals between the ages of 16 and 34. In the United States alone, there are 80 million people in this category. They want to participate, or co-create, in a brand’s marketing. They crave adventure. They look to their peers for affirmation. They turn to social media — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and the like — to express themselves.

Pearl's Powder on "Be7ke" Youtube Show.

This Ramadan 2012, Be7ke released its second season!

“Be7ke?” which  is the fi­rst global Ramadan web-series,  features inspirational three-minute episodes that are released online everyday throughout Ramadan.

One episodes was featuring me  to talk about the culture of food that entails that people to  love their food and eat moderately and consciously. As a food expert, I stressed the fact that a whole food system, that protects consumer's health, should be mutually and ethically reinforced: from the farm to the plate.
Watch this 3 min episode. English Subtitles are available when pressing the CC button

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 : 

January News & Announcements

Pearl's Powder blogger  was interviewed by  the Gate's Magazine for the January Issue !

 Thanks  to Lana from L' Armoire De Lana for giving me this opportunity. ( If you love fashion ,you might want to check her  glamorous blog! )

Link to Loulwa Kalach's Interview with the Gate Magazine

Also you might also what to check Paty M from PatyMsNutritionWorld to read her post about the " Social Media Changing Lives"  thank you dinner for all those who participated in the Conference.
The dinner was hosted by Amarress and organized by AUB's Online Collaborative.
(Link to the Post)

Social Media Changing Lives Conference

Social Media Changing Lives

Check out the rest of the posters!

After the success of “Blogging Lebanon” last December, Online Collaborative at the American University of Beirut proudly announces its annual conference for this year “Social Media Changing Lives”.

There is no doubt that social media is expanding drastically in the world, and especially in the Middle East, yet this change is not only related to technology and the internet. Social Media is revolutionizing every aspect of our lives. The aim of this conference is to discuss how social media is changing fields such as education, culture, business, media and journalism, music and art, NGOs, politics, religion, human rights, science, the environment and the personal lives of everyone who is using them.

This conference will be taking place on December 16, 2011 at 12:00 PM at Issam Fares Hall at the American University of Beirut.

Check the schedule and speakers list below and don't forget to join our event on Facebook.

A Letter to The Syndicate of Lebanese Restaurants

The live grill ( See More photos Below)

A  successful  event was  organized by the Syndicate of Owners of Restaurants, Cafes, Night-Clubs and Pastries in Lebanon . The event , " Feast For Change",   was the first official food & wine event in Lebanon’, and will continue to be annual. 

Remarkably, I liked the fact that for the first time an event as big as this was for  a charity for Monuments, specifically the beautiful old buildings in Beirut that are threatened to be demolished.  Lady Sursock Cochrane donated a percentage of proceeds of this event to her foundation for protecting natural sites and old buildings in Lebanon , APSAD.

According to Beirut Night Life :" The event, which was sponsored by Bank Audi, MasterCard, Vresso and Boecker was attended by Syndicate Board Members, as well as city’s top VIPs, socialites, ministers, media and owners of the following businesses who also generously offered to set up live cooking and beverage stations at the event:
BRGR Co, Couqley, Salmontini, Diwan Al Sultan, BO18, Al Falamanki, Shogun, White Coast, Leila, Mayrig, Cro Magnon, Eric Kaiser, Oslo, Hallab, Platinum Chocloate, Gou, Faqra Catering, Chili’s, Gabriel Bocti, Fattal, Enologia, Vintage, IXSIR, Chateau Ksara, Chateau Musar, Massaya, Diageo and Cin Cin."

As much as this event was greatly organized , we  watch  one week later , an attack on Lebanese Restaurants on Marcel Ghanem's TV  show ( LBCI  group), Kalam el Nas. The reports on this program showed  how horrific and disgusting it is to eat outside our houses in Lebanon.

Food Online

Ironically, eating  by  itself is not just a biological need but also a " social " habit. This  greatly explains the invasion of food throughout the social media sphere. We tweet about what we ate ,or what restaurant we went to, we upload facebook pictures of birthday cakes, of  family dinners,  of  barbeque  gatherings,

Ofcorse, food shouldnt be our main concern, but food is and will always be a trend .
And that's why business focuses on this domain greatly. Not to forget web- based technologies.

From recipes websites, to food bloggers, to restaurant review applications , to place-based websites , such as FOURSquare but specifically, FOOD SPOTTING that help you find and share food instead of reviewing restaurants. And through this website/app, you are able to recommend your favorite dish and see other's recommendations.

Yet , another interesting website was launched just today CONSMR, which shares opinion on consumer packaged goods ( including food) and lets you rate them!!
Here is the full review on MASHABLE "Consmr Aims To Be the Yelp for Supermarket Goods"

Intersting Websites, dont you think?

Blogging Lebanon Event

So, I never posted the events I attend . But this time it is different. It is related to Blogging. I am basically a member in the AUB's Online Collaborative and we are organizing this event, check it out guys! :)

After its unfortunate cancellation last May due to student protests at the American University of Beirut, AUB's Online Collaborative is announcing the relaunch of AUB's First Lebanese Bloggers Convention, now renamed to Blogging Lebanon. This event that attracted many bloggers from the Arab and international scene is rescheduled to Friday December 3, 2010 at the American University of Beirut. The aim of this convention is to gather bloggers from around the region under one roof. The event will include several guest speakers from different backgrounds who will share their experiences and discuss different topics related to blogging and social media, such cultural aspects, privacy issues, importance of blogs, political implications, and dangers etc... Below is the list of guest speakers we have so far:

• (Her Majesty) Frances Guy, British Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon, http://blogs.fco.gov.uk/roller/guy/
• Imad Bazzi, Executive Director of CyberAct and Journalist, http://www.trella.org/
• Diana Nemeh Afif, Business Owner/Writer, http://www.dinbcity.blogspot.com/
• Marc Dfouni, General Manager of Eastline Marketing, www.eastlinemarketing.com/blog
• Farah Abdel Sater, President of the UN Youth Association of Lebanon, farah-has-a-lot-to-say.blogspot.com
• Naeema Zarif, Art Director, http://www.naeemazarif.com/, on behalf of Creative Commons Community in Lebanon and Middle East Region
• Arek Dakessian, Online Content Manager of Shankaboot, http://www.shankaboot.com/
• Johnny El-Hage, Events Coordinator at AUB, http://www.johnnyhage.com/
• Mohamad Shawash, Head of Design, http://www.moeys.net/
• Ayman Itani, Social Entrepreneur, http://www.aymanitani.com/
• Mohammad Hijazi, President of AUB's Online Collaborative, moudz.blogspot.com, on behalf of Arab Social Media Forum http://www.arabsocialmediaforum.com/
• Meedo Taha, Architect & Filmmaker, http://www.meedosite.com/
• Loryne Atoui, Designer and Photoblogger. Currently projects: http://www.onewigstand.com/ and http://www.mosaic-ashrafieh.com/ (with Spreadminds) 
• Representatives from Arab Thought Foundation (Fikr), http://www.fikrconferences.org/
• The list will be updated with more speakers and the exact time of each session will be posted soon
  
  For more information and inquiries, don't hesitate to contact us at: online.collaborative@gmail.com. Meanwhile, join our event page on facebook and help us spread the word by inviting your friends.
  
  If you are a non-AUB guest, please read this very important post about your entry to AUB campus.