A Message to our Fans

I wanted to post a message to many of you who love the photos of these foods while exclaiming that you "miss it" or "I wish I had learned how to make this" or "why didn't I follow Sitto or Gido while they were making this?" or "I sure do miss Mom..Sitto...Giddo.."

I had those thoughts years ago, too. I was lucky though. Our new little family moved to the Midwest when I was in my twenties. Having grown up with my Syrian heritage and then confronted with a total loss of Mom, Sitto, my Syrian church and my whole community, I would have been devastated, but for my beautiful family. I do remember that I called Sitto so many times to ask her about this or that...being so frustrated that I couldn't buy some of those foods near me. Mom and Sitto sent me packages of Smede, Bulgar, spices and such and so, little by little I learned..I practiced..I made stupid mistakes and got my grandmother to laugh over some of them. But I call myself lucky because they were there for me to answer a question, to correct me if I misunderstood something and to keep my Arabic fresh! What lovely support they all gave me!

So why am I telling you this? Because as I wrote the first cookbook, I kept that time in my memory and my heart. It helped me to write and, most importantly, it reminded me that you, the reader, the novice cook, the fan of Syrian foods, the wistful cook who wished they had learned that dish...that's who I wrote for and to!

Talk to me about these dishes, ask me questions. I can walk you through these recipes. Just as my family guided me when I was young, I can now pass it forward.