My 'healthier' Maklouba

I've been having good days and bad days when it comes to my attempt to eat better and lighter.  It didn't help that I went to visit family, I swear I had good intentions.  In any case, I'm back in Dubai and trying to get back on track.  Last night I had grilled chicken with salad, no carbs.  Yay me! 
Tonight, I thought I would try to makeover a favorite of mine - Maklouba.  Maklouba is a Palestinian dish where you cook chicken (you can use red meat instead), with some vegetables like eggplant, cauliflower and capsicum and with rice, all in one pot.  Once it's ready, it is flipped onto a big serving dish so that all the ingredients are piled up over each other in the reverse order that they were placed in the pot.  That's the literal meaning of Maklouba - upside down.


I learnt the original recipe from my mother in law and I was really craving it.  I decided to try to make a slightly healthier version here.  So rather than fry each vegetable first, I baked and grilled them.  And I avoided rice all together.  So here's the recipe:


My 'healthier' Maklouba:

Ingredients: (This is for two servings)
4 Chicken Breasts 
2 Eggplants
2 Capsicum (1 green and 1 red - just for fun)
2 Large Tomatoes, cut into round slices
Olive Oil
Chicken Stock (I used MAGGI cubes dissolved in boiled water)
Arabic spice mix
Salt and Pepper

Method:
1. First, peel half of the eggplants, so that each eggplant looked like it was striped.  Cut them lengthwise and put them in a baking dish.  Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Mix them around with your hands.

2. Bake them in the oven for about 20 - 25 minutes on high heat until they start to turn golden.  Half way through, make sure you turn them around so they don't stick to the baking dish. 
3. Meanwhile, cut the capsicum into large slices and grill them on a dry pan for a few minutes.
4. Boil the chicken breasts for a couple of minutes and then pan fry them with a little olive oil to get a nice golden color.  Season with salt and pepper.  Do not cook entirely. 
5. Prepare the chicken stock.
6. Now in a smaller baking dish, drizzle very little olive oil on the base.  Make a layer with the sliced tomatoes. Then add the chicken breasts, then the eggplant and the capsicum.  

7. Sprinkle a little Arabic spices and drizzle some of the chicken stock.  You may want to put a small plate on top of the last layer of capsicum just to hold everything in place.  Then add a little more chicken stock.  Cover with foil paper and put it in the oven to bake for another 20 - 30 minutes. 
8. Take it out of the oven, remove the smaller plate carefully and flip the entire dish onto a larger serving plate.
9. I served it with cold yogurt with cut cucumbers and a little crushed garlic and salt.

BAFTA Fashion

1. Kate Winslet in Stella McCartney - Showing her sexier side with a cut out dress that has just the right balance of showing some skin and elegance.

2. Vera Farmiga in Marchesa - I thing she looks fabulous.  Ethereal, modern and glamorous all wrapped into a bundle.

3. Audrey Tautou in Lanvin - This is a very fun, laid back look.  Not sure if it's formal enough for the event, but it's definitely stylish.  The red accessories and lipstick keep it from being too cute.

4. Olivia Williams in Catherine Walker - This is just awful!  Everything about it, the shape, the cut outs, the sheer fabric underneath... my eyes hurt.

5. Carey Mulligan in Vionnet - This off the shoulder, floral print dress makes her look three times her age and totally doesn't work with her hip hair style.  Oddly enough, she received great reviews for this look.  What do you think?

6. Claire Danes in Burberry - She looks very elegant in this champagne colored gown.

Images: InStyle, Glamour

What I Fancy This Week

I love writing lists.  Lists of things to do, things to pack for a trip, movies to watch, etc.  Here's a list of things I would love to have or do this week, some more accessible than others, but hey a girl can dream!

Dress by Madison Marcus - I like shirt dresses, but sometimes find them a bit stiff. This one is made of silk so it has a nice flowy shape and the asymmetrical touches funk it up. The color is brilliant too.

Bikini by Mara Hoffman - When I DO lose the weight and look fabulous (positive thinking), I will buy this. Love the shape and the Egyptian Pharaoh inspired print - it's colorful without looking like a Hawaiian Tropic ad.

Taste of Dubai - One of the many things I loved in London was all the food events I got to check out. I got to taste lots of yummy treats that were prepared on the spot, buy some great products and I got to see Gordon Ramsey cook live (I fancy him by the way). So I was really happy to learn about this event, which apparently was very successful last year. I'll be there this March.

Go to Thailand.  Oh wait, I am doing that in 2 weeks.  YAY!

DwellStudio Travel Bag - Since we are traveling soon, I would love to have a fun travel bag for my son's essentials. 

Louis Vuitton Bag - Since we're talking bags, I don't mind having one myself.  Love this LV, its perfect for spring/summer and spot on trend. 

Vintage Chanel Signature Motif Necklace - this is an authentic piece which has some really cute pendants. How cute is the little Chanel bag!

Images: Madison Marcus, Mara Hoffman, Designchild, PhiPhi.Phuket.com, ilvoelv, shopbop 

Two steps forward, one step back

I was doing so well! Yesterday I had a wholewheat toast roast beef sandwich for my lunch and a plate of shish taouk (grilled chicken cubes) with salad for dinner.  I usually have shish taouk sandwiches, but I chose to just have the chicken on a plate instead.  I was so proud of myself, up until an hour ago.  Akram (my husband) and I decided to stay in and make some dinner.  As I was about to quickly go get supplies from the supermarket to make this healthy dinner, I got lazy. And the idea of still coming back and cooking it made me lazier.  I was pretty worn out as Yousef (my 6 month old son) drove me nuts today.  It's like he was on a hunger strike for some unknown reason, he literally would not eat, and as the mothers out there know, this also means serious mood swings, for the both of us.  So yeah back to my point, I got lazy and I gave in.  How terrible, ON DAY 3!!  I ordered my usual from Hardeez.


Lesson of the day: Plan Ahead.


So tomorrow is a new day, start over.  I also need to get myself to workout but that's going to be a little difficult because I'm traveling to Kuwait on Friday for a few days to visit family.  Oh god, that means more food.


By the way, if anyone out there who reads this has had the same issue with their baby, please let me know how you solved it!

Mission No Junk

I'm about to cry just writing this.  Let me explain.

I love junk food.  Love it.  As of a few years back I used to have it about 3 times a week easily.  Recently, I've cut down to about once a week which is a challenge.  Let me clarify what I mean by junk food, in case you think I'm just being dramatic.   I mean McDonald's, Hardeez (for those of you who live in the Middle East, you would be more familiar with this godsend), Wendy's, KFC and the list goes on and on. 

I used to be blessed with a high metabolism.  I was that tall skinny girl who could eat anything. Lucky me.  Well, I got used to it.  Now, I'm 31 years old and my metabolism is slowing down QUICKLY, but I'm still eating the same stuff... and I honestly have a guy's appetite in terms of portions.  Add a pregnancy to the equation.  Plus, one of the new things I'm experiencing as a mother is that I'm worrying about things like cholesterol and my future health.  

Ok I am not "fat" (sorry if I'm not being P.C. here), but I don't like how I look and feel.  I'm about 5'9" and I weigh about 67kg.  So I have about 5kg (possibly more) to lose.  This means... gasp... no more junk.  And lots of exercise, because I need to tone up too.  The good thing is I have a deadline, first week of June.  Ibiza.  Seriously, if that's not motivation, I don't know what is.  Maybe the fact that I am going with 9 or 10 super hot girl friends? hmmm...

So here's the deal:

1. I will be blogging about this mission as often as I can. 

2. I'm a pretty decent cook if I do say so myself, so I will also be sharing my recipes, which HOPEFULLY will be at least semi-healthy (but I'm sure some of them wont be so healthy but definitely tasty - and hey they aren't fast food!)  My recipes will be a mix of Arabic recipes from my family, to a few I find from other sources to a few of my own concoctions. 

3. I'm a foodie and I don't believe in eliminating an entire food group or starving myself, so there will be no "detox" plan or cabbage soup for a week thing happening here. There will be a lot of some what balanced, non junky, tasty recipes. 

4. THIS IS A DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A NUTRITIONIST OR A PROFESSIONAL DIETIAN OR A PROFESSIONAL TRAINER OR A PROFESSIONAL CHEF.

So, here goes! Day 1 - February 15th.

I think I was pretty good today.  I only had tea with a little milk for breakfast (never been much of a breakfast person - unless I'm on holiday).  I did have an early lunch which was 2 scrambled eggs with steamed spinach (the spinach was left over from a puree I made my son), with 2 pieces of wholewheat toast.  And for dinner I made really easy and yummy baked chicken breasts with salad.  Here's the recipe for that:

My Easy and Yummy Chicken Breast Recipe:

Ingredients:

• I made 4 chicken breasts for my husband and myself.
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 3 large garlic cloves, peeled and cut
• 1 rounded teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• About a teaspoon of Arabic Bizar - this is a spice mix I use often, you should be able to find it easily in the Middle East or in the Middle Eastern section of a supermarket.  It consists of ground coriander, cinnamon, cloves, turmeric, cumin, fennel, cardamom and fenugreek.  If you can't find the mix, you can make your own :)
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:

• Mix the lemon, garlic, mustard and spices in a small blender if possible or just in a little bowl and pour over the chicken breasts.  Let the chicken marinate for at least half an hour.  
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to about 220 degrees.
• Bake chicken, preferably cover the dish with foil, for about half an hour or until cooked through.
• Serve with Salad!

For the salad dressing, because I already had lemon and mustard in the chicken marinade, I decided to try something different. I mixed Olive oil with a little white balsamic vinegar and pomegranate molasses, and seasoned with some salt.  

It was pretty good!

Valentine's Candy

For the eyes that is...

I thought I would have a little fun today, I mean yes, I will be going out on a "date" with my husband tonight, but this is just me in my la la world, day dreaming... So, these are the 10 guys that I totally love, love, love (after my hubby of course).


1. Ashton Kutcher - Why do I love him? Come on! Is there ANYONE who doesn't?  Seriously.  He's got a great sense of humor, he likes to let me know what he is doing every hour of his day (I actually think he partially owns twitter), he is super sweet with his wife... forgot her name... and yes he is STUNNING.  Granted he isn't a fan of Valentine's day, but even his theory on that is kinda cute: "I think every day should be a day of romance. Then, on Valentine's Day, you should get to tell whoever you hate that you cannot stand them. There would be one day of hating, and 364 days of love."  I can love you for 364 days easy!

2. Robert Downey Jr. - Let's see... he is beautiful, look at those eyes! He has a dark past and what's hotter is he overcame it, he's a phenomenal actor and he's slightly quirky.  Looking forward to Iron Man 2.

3. Patrick Dempsey - McDreamy... need I say more?  Actually I will add this... he races cars professionally too.  Oh and did you see that scene in Grey's a few seasons back where he cries because he thought Meredith was going to die?  

4. Justin Timberlake - He is sooooo HOT.  If you are in doubt, please check out any of his music videos post NSYNC.  And he's an awesome musician, and he can dance, and he can act, and he isn't afraid to laugh at himself, and he plays golf (just thought I would pop that in), and he's now designing clothes.  Did I miss anything? Justin go on tour again please!! This image is from the new campaign for a Givenchy Fragrance called Play.  

5. Tom Cruise - I'm a loyal gal what can I say?  He was my first love and still has a place in my heart.  I don't care what people say, he's gorgeous and he's a fantastic actor.  Come on... Cocktail, Top Gun, The Last Samurai, Tropic Thunder (hilarious!), a Few Good Men, Magnolia, Interview with the Vampire, Rain Man etc. etc. etc.  And it says something that he isn't intimidated by taller women.

6. Clive Owen - Love the accent and he's just a man's man.  I can watch Closer again and again.

7. Brad Pitt - I really wish I can be more original... He's really hot.  Put the personality of his character in Legends of the Fall, with his charm in Meet Joe Black, and his body in Fight Club, oh and add the tattoo he has in Ocean's Eleven all together and enjoy.  Not that he isn't perfect in real life.  

8. Johnny Depp - I think he is the one guy that EVERY woman, no matter what her taste is, loves him.  He is THE bad boy.

9. Jesus Luz - for those of you who don't know, he was Madonna's Brazilian boy toy up until a few weeks ago, one word - DAMN!

10. Matthew Mcconaughey - The body, the little boy's smile, the accent and on top of all of that he's a father now... awwwww!

Images: Starpulse.com

If you fancy someone else, let me know!

Valentine's Day Style

This is the L.A. premiere of a movie I am dying to see, Valentine's Day.  Not only does it have a killer cast, it has McDreamy AND McSteamy in it without that annoying Meredith Grey to ruin the fun.  Given the cast, I was sure there would be plenty to scope in terms of style and glamour.  Well that's what I was hoping for...

Jessica Biel in Oscar de la Renta - Hmmmm this red and white frou frou gown is a wee bit too feminine and girly and valentine-y for my taste.  Also, a little bit, just tiny bit over dressed don't you think?

 How fancy? 

Anne Hathaway in Marchesa - This dress is cute from a distance but upon closer inspection, it started to bother me.  I believe feathers should be avoided on all types of garments - no exceptions!

How fancy?

Demi Moore in Chanel Haute Couture - This is nice, cute.  I would've liked this for my sweet 16... maybe she borrowed it from one of her daughters? (YES, I am just a tad jealous of her... she does have Ashton...sigh)

How fancy?

Jennifer Garner in Valentino - I actually really like this dress, it's a nice twist to the LBD.

 How fancy?

Jessica Alba in Proenza Schouler - One day I will find a bad photo of you Jessica.  This is a very cool outfit, its fresh and sexy, the shoes are perfect and I love her hair too.

How fancy?

Images: People, Toronto Sun