I am a designer, painter and ceramicist. I have worked in the design field for many years, both in Paris and in London. I came to food writing in 2010. Food has always played an important part in my life. The love of it pushed me to explore and write about the flavours and recipes of  my Baghdadi heritage. The result was a cookbook called Flavours of Babylon. Thereafter, I became involved in food demonstrations for different charities and a documentary on an Iraqi Passover for the BBC with Giles Coren. Our roots are where we spring from but not necessarily our whole identity. 

This is the topic that I discuss in my new book FROM THE TIGRIS TO THE THAMES published in 2025.

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My Story

I was born in Baghdad into a Babylonian Jewish family where my parents and forebears come from. My early childhood ambition was to be a writer. As a very young person, I would hand write short stories on lined paper, then sew the pages together to form a book. I would practise for hours beautiful Arabic calligraphy, making swirly black designs with a special pen. My ambition, as an 9-year-old, was to become a writer and a poet.

Unexpected events changed the course of my family’s life, and we left Baghdad. When we came to the UK, I was twelve years old. I was faced with a new language, a new set of rules, a new world. It was exciting but a culture shock all the same.

Over the years, my memories of Baghdad faded into the background. I stopped writing short stories. I stopped drawing my calligraphy. And I began to paint. This led me, later on, to art school. I studied painting at Byam Shaw and graphic design at the Central School in London.

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I loved all aspects of design, especially typography and calligraphy. I worked as a designer for many years, first in advertising and then as a freelance designer until, finally, I set up my own design company in Paris, Les Editions BlaBla, and later in London, specialising in stationery, greeting cards and other products for the gift market.

One day by chance, I met a potter and discovered clay. My early fascination with calligraphy had led me to painting, and now childhood memories of earthenware pots informed my first encounter with clay. Touching this malleable, sensual material was a revelation. A love at first touch. I stopped my design work and immersed myself in the world of clay. Clay Art

Calligraphy led to painting; and clay to making pots and bowls, which, for me, speak of nourishment and plenitude – in turn an association that draws the mind to food. This became the next step of expression for me. I wrote my first book entitled Flavours of Babylon.

For me, food is more than just nourishment and recipes, it is also a language and an identity. Not only does the food we eat define us, it also tells us about our climate, our soil, what grows in our land and what does not grow. In short, it recounts our history as well as our influences and our interaction with the world around us.

My second book From the Tigris to the Thames is a story recounting my family’s exile from our homeland. It is a tapestry, part memoir and part cookbook, where I interweave recipes with personal reflections on the idea of home and belonging.

We humans have always used food to define who we are, to which community or group we belong, and wherein our rituals and traditions are inextricably entwined. Today, more than ever, food continues to define us: we are vegetarians, vegans, pescatarians, carnivores, omnivores – each requiring specific meals, be it wheat-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or fat-free – and so it goes on. Consequently, cooking for my family and friends has gradually become a more complicated affair, inspiring me to create varied menus to accommodate everyone.

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