Dalia's Kitchen: October 2013

"Dubai Goes Pink" and a Lamb and Pea Risotto...

How do you say "mère poule" in English and my famous Peanut Butter French Toast

Image by Sukaina Rajabali

I used to scold my mother for worrying too much about us. Growing up I was the child who was scared of riding a horse, skiing, or going on a hike because my mother was always anxious about us falling or hurting ourselves. She made sure that we knew all the gory details about anyone whoever fell, and even though I love you more than life dear Mami - I somewhat blame you for making me worry about people I care for so much now. I am officially a "mère poule", a mother hen in my adult days.

I'm not sure that the translation from French to English actually has the same underlying meaning, which is basically a mother that keeps her chicks very close so that nothing happens, and always worries about them. I have been in denial, and just realized over the weekend that I have turned into the worst kind. In my defense, there are valid reasons behind why I have become such a worrier. I do not want to get into my sad stories too much, but my father was diagnosed with lung cancer years ago, after I spotted his wheezing and sent him for a checkup. A while later, my nephew was diagnosed with congenital glaucoma, a serious eye condition which is very rare in children. Unfortunately he was misdiagnosed by several pediatricians. So I know for a fact that those two incidents in my life catapulted my anxiety to another level. Even though I like to think that I am a calm and realistic person in all other aspects of my life, and know better than to worry all the time, I simply do.

The reason for my rambling about this is that Phares, my son, started heavily coughing and breathing on Friday eve. To my surprise I was really calm and figured it was just a strong cough and a cold. That was until Phiras, my husband said that his wheezing looked like it could be asthma. Once he uttered those words, I called my pediatrician and when she did not answer, we rushed to the emergency immediately. Thank God, hamdellah, he only has a strong case of bronchitis, but the scare alone gave me a few more white hairs.

When we drove to the hospital I realized that we actually did not know how to get to the nearest one, even though we have lived in Dubai for so many years now! Well now we do and realized how silly we were for not knowing something so vital. I guess Phiras and I are still parents in training...

On to the yummier things in life, and one of my all time fav recipes, Peanut Butter French Toast. It's one of the older recipes on the blog, and actually made the front cover of BBC Good Food Middle East. Trust me it's a must unless you have a peanut allergy, and you can drizzle that peanut sauce on pretty much anything and everything! Absolutely divine...

Much love,

D xx

Recipe from the cookbook "Food, Love and Life from Dalia's Kitchen"

"Dubai Goes Pink" and a Lamb and Pea Risotto...

How do you say "mère poule" in English and my famous Peanut Butter French Toast

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