I am a true daughter of the Mediterranean, born and raised literally blocks away from the Mediterranean Sea in Port Said, Egypt. Port Said stretches 19 miles across the Mediterranean Sea; just short hours away from places like Morocco, Lebanon, Turkey, Greece, and Italy. It is also a strategic port, Egypt’s main gateway to the Red Sea and the Middle East. I consider myself blessed having grown up in a vibrant part of the world that has allowed me to develop culinary passions far beyond my hometown’s cuisine.
My mom loved to cook, and we always had guests over. Picture gatherings out of the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Yup, that was my family’s home; loud and abundant with people and food. I never before intentionally stopped to think how much that affected me. My best memories of home include food and people.
Hospitality is not unique to my parents. People of the Mediterranean, from Europe to North Africa and the Holy Land, are known for their passion for good food and their gracious hospitality. I hope this personal blog of mine will show you a glimpse of that. We won’t have the sandy beaches here, but we will surely celebrate healthy and wholesome flavors of that wonderful part of the world.
Since I’ve already been asked, “what brought you to the United States?” I will go ahead and add this little history. I moved to the U.S. to attend college in Michigan; and that is where I met my soon-to-be husband. We got married; lived in Michigan 11 more years; had two daughters; and learned many more delicious Mediterranean recipes watching my mother-in-law. Our little family recently went through a couple of moves to Des Moines, IA, and later to Atlanta, GA where I now split my time between home and this amazing blog called The Mediterranean Dish.
Other than cooking and blogging, I enjoy reading, yoga and international travel. Where have I been? Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Turkey, Switzerland, and Jordan.
I am very excited to make my kitchen accessible to many through this blog. Thank you again for being here. Please stick around, subscribe, and share the love!
From the heart,
Suzy