I wanted my kids to feel that magic with Ramadan, especially since we're a minority in this country. So we kind of do big parties, Welcome Ramadan parties, and we count good deeds … and I really try to make it extremely fun and extremely big so that, Insh’Allah, they have good memories of it when they grow older”.

… the pandemic has actually helped us do Ramadan right. Because Ramadan, often in our communities turns into a party every night, and it's not supposed to be like that. Of course, community, family, and friends are important. But Ramadan is really about withdrawing yourself from a lot of material things and having more time for contemplation.

“When I was born, my parents couldn’t figure out what to name me, so my dad went around different mosques in Brooklyn, where I was born, asking “What should I name my daughter?  I want something unique, not something very common.” And someone said, “What about Maeda from Sura Maeda?” It’s a chapter in the Quran. The guy said it’s like “feast” with an abundance of food”…

“…I walked into the house and it smelled like spices – a mix of cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, turmeric… That must have been the smell of my childhood and I didn’t know it. But I immediately felt like “home”. American homes don’t have that distinct smell – no two homes have the same smell - but when you’re an immigrant, that’s your story”.

For Aziza, it’s a reminder of home -she can’t break her fast without it. She learned the recipe from her mom though she had to figure out the measurements herself - “your eyes are your scale” is the advice her mom gives, whenever Aziza asks.

Sarah is half Korean, half Palestinian American. Her unique heritage influences all her undertakings and food is no exception. Add to the mix, that of a busy New Yorker, and what you get are recipes that are quick and easy to make, healthy and tasty.

“Food is universal, that’s why I like to cook for friends both to introduce them to Turkish food and celebrate Ramadan and introduce them to what it means, and to Muslim culture, so that it counteracts the negative things people hear.”

"Food is such an important part of culture, and especially living in the US, growing up in a town where we didn’t have much of a Yemeni community, I feel it's important to learn those recipes so I can pass that part of our identity to my son".

Cooking has always been Shereen's passion, and she learned everything about cooking from her mom, though nowadays she also picks up new recipes from the cooking channels she likes to watch.

“During Ramadan, people will get off work early – before Iftar the streets are very crowded with people making their way home. But the minute the sun sets, if you step outside, you will see the streets completely empty and quiet. You will hear the Adhan more clearly than at any other time of the year, it is absolutely beautiful.