Middle East
Welcome to The Grapevine – a new monthly series from Pink Jinn where we pass the mic to artists, thought leaders, influencers and pioneers from across the Middle East, North Africa and the global diaspora. They’ll be sharing their top arts, culture and lifestyle picks with all of us – from the books and podcasts shaping the way they think, to the music, food, places and brands that bring magic to their everyday.
As a daughter of the diaspora, my feet have touched the soil of many lands and crossed their boundaries; forming temporary homes wherever I settle. Aside from the quiet nests I have created throughout my life, I have also gained something else; an inner grasp of geographical narratives on global issues. More particularly, the case of the U.S invasion of Iraq: through the lens of the East and the West.
Today’s recipe by the wonderful Lama Gharaibeh is a creamy, dreamy delight full of fabulous Middle Eastern flavours. Layali Lubnan translates as ‘Lebanese Nights’ and is a heavenly combination of cream, pistachios, rose water, mastic, honey, and orange blossom water. Even better, it can be prepared ahead of time, which makes it the perfect choice if you’re entertaining this Eid or need a make-ahead showstopping dessert for a dinner party!
Today we’re heading to North Africa, where bakeries and home cooks alike all across the region are busy preparing for Eid Al Fitr, including preparing delicious makrout biscuits just like these! These sweet treats are stuffed with a fragrant date paste spiced with cinnamon, and traditionally they are deep fried before a decadent soaking in syrup or honey infused with geranium water.
We’re so lucky to be able to share a very special recipe for Tunisian Makrout with you today, thanks to Nesrine Toujani of Treats Homemade, who has preserved her grandmother’s recipe and is sharing it with us all to enjoy at home.
Today we’ve got a fabulous sweet treat for you courtesy of Muna Kenny at Munaty Cooking – Luqaimat! Wonderfully crunchy on the outside, delicately spiced with cardamom and saffron, and meltingly soft within, Luqaimat are drizzled with honey or date syrup to create a dessert to die for. Muna’s recipe even includes her secret hack to ensure that your Luqaimat have that perfect crunch. We do warn you, you won’t be able to stop after just one – Luqaimat are so good that they featured in A Thousand and One Nights!
Today we’re very excited to share a recipe designed by award-winning cookery writer and food artisan Dima Sharif! Her Musakhan Canapés are the perfect dish for iftar get-togethers (the evening meal after dusk falls and the day of fasting ends), dinner parties or Eid celebrations. This imaginative spin on mouthwatering traditional Palestinian musakhan is the perfect appetiser to serve at your next do – and even better, they are suitable for vegans and vegetarians for the ultimate in stress-free entertaining.
It’s Women’s History Month, and here at Pink Jinn there’s nothing we love more than celebrating the achievements of incredible women. To mark the occasion, we’re going on a trip through history to highlight the stories of 6 awe-inspiring women from the Middle East and North Africa who we should all know more about. From warriors, freedom fighters and activists to pioneers in the fields of healthcare and even aviation, this is a pretty amazing collection.
Our Founder, Laura Cretney, shares the story of Pink Jinn, from a tiny British island to the deserts of Oman.
This year has been anything but easy, but a host of stellar movie releases from the Middle East made 2022 a remarkable year for filmmaking across the region. We’re ending this year by looking back through these triumphs of cinema, so that you can start 2023 with a ready-made list of outstanding and poignant films to watch. Bear witness to the horrors of the Nakba with Farha, gain a sense of the struggles faced by artists and filmmakers working under Iranian censorship in Jafar Panahi’s No Bears, see life through the eyes of a Syrian family starting a new life in Belgium in My Paper Life, follow Yusra and Sara Mardini’s perilous journey to safety in The Swimmers, and feel true fear with Reem, a Palestinian woman whose life is plunged into disaster in Huda’s Salon.