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8 Muslim Food Bloggers To Follow On Instagram This Ramadan

8 Muslim Food Bloggers To Follow On Instagram This Ramadan
Getty/HuffPost
Getty/HuffPost

Ramadan is a time of fasting and spiritual purification. But another important aspect of the month begins after the sun sets, when families gather together to break the daily fast over a joyous evening meal called iftar.

Home chefs often spend days planning elaborate iftar menus. Giving an iftar meal to a friend or another fasting Muslim is seen as a blessed act, so some chefs make it a point to invite others over for the meal, or to give food at a community center or mosque.

Because of Islam's geographic spread, the iftar meal looks and tastes different for members of different cultures. In Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population, families might sit down to eat opor ayam, a chicken stew made with coconut milk, curry paste and lemongrass. For black Muslim families in America, a special treat for the evening could be bean pie.

Below, HuffPost has compiled a list of Muslim foodies to follow during Ramadan. If you'd like a glimpse of the flavors of Ramadan, scroll down ― or better yet, try out a few of these recipes.

  • Amanda Saab is a Michigan-based former Master Chef competitor whose Ramadan recipes are inspired by her Lebanese grandmother. Check out the recipe for her turmeric cake with honey buttercream.
  • Yvonne Maffei is a home chef and cookbook author from Chicago, Illinois. The daughter of a Sicilian father and Puerto Rican mother, Maffei converted to Islam after grad school. She started her popular blog "My Halal Kitchen" in 2008, hoping to help Muslim chefs learn how to make the food of her childhood -- lasagna, meatballs, etc. -- according to Islamic dietary guidelines. She explains how to make ground chicken stuffed eggplant.
  • Nour Zibdeh is a registered dietitian based in Virginia. Zibdeh has plenty of tips on how to eat nutrient-packed meals that will keep you healthy and energized during Ramadan.
  • My Big Fat Halal Blog is known for blogger Ayesha Razak's reviews of halal restaurants in London. But the site also features ideas for healthy meals during Ramadan. Check out her Healthy Oats recipe.
  • Malika Ameen is a pastry chef and cookbook author of Pakistani heritage. She grew up celebrating Ramadan in Chicago and has learned a few tricks along the way about how to cook for a fasting stomach. Her watermelon chaat is both sweet and spicy -- and it's also a quick way to get hydrated after a day's fast.
  • Curious about what Japanese halal food looks like? Check out Marhamah Sapandi's Instagram. This Singapore-based chef trained at Tokyo Sushi Academy and uses halal ingredients (like a non-alcoholic mirin substitute).
  • Steak and Teeth is a food blog run by Tanim Rahman, a dentist, and Siddika Ahmed, who is studying to be a mental health nurse. Along with posting London restaurant reviews, these bloggers share recipes that are perfect for Ramadan. It's customary to break the fast during the month by eating dates. Steak and Teeth put a sweet twist on this tradition in this recipe for white chocolate dates stuffed with a raspberry and white chocolate almond filling and coated in pistachio crumbs.
  • Sawsan Abu Farha is a chef of Palestinian heritage who now lives in the United Arab Emirates. Follow her on Instagram for delicious Middle Eastern recipes and you're certain to also get a short history lesson on the origins of the recipes she posts. Try her recipe for Makloobeh, an upside-down, one pot Levantine rice dish.


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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.