Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup muesli

• 1/2 cup almond milk

• 1 tbsp maple syrup

• 1 tsp olive oil

• Salt

Steps:

1. Place a small pot under medium heat and add in your milk and muesli.

2. Next mix that together and lower the fire until your porridge reaches a thicker texture

3. Now mix in your maple syrup

4. Pour your porridge in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil

5. Lastly sprinkle some flaky salt on top

6. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 whole mango

• 1/2 a red bell pepper

• 2 cucumbers

• 1/2 an avocado

• 1/2 a red onion

• A handful of coriander

• Half a squeeze of lemon

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• Salt

Steps:

1. Start by chopping up all your mango, bell pepper, cucumber, avocado, and red onion, and add them all to a large bowl.

2. Next, give everything a good mix.

3. Now finely chop your coriander and add it to your salad.

4. Next for dressing: squeeze in your lemon juice, and add in your olive oil.

5. Mix everything together and finish with a garnish of salt!

Enjoy!

Apart from the literal castle that sits near one of the town's bustling farmers' markets, the STREETS of Edinburgh should really be something to boast about.

If you're familiar with Diagon Alley, you’ll recognize Victoria Street almost immediately. I was mesmerized by the vibrantly colored rainbow shops, old cursive shop signs, and fairy lights that hang above the pedestrians the entire hill down.

It’s impossible to resist walking into every little shop.

I was even MORE amazed by Edinburgh’s nature. The parks are huge and green as can be. That is until the seasons change, and you’re blessed with the orange and reds of October leaves and the old barren trunks that come with winter’s arrival. My favorite park has to be the Meadows, right in front of the University of Edinburgh (my college!). Its lush fields are cozy up next to a well-known hot chocolate stand—Uplands Roast!

At either end of the Meadows lie two towns, Newington and Bruntsfield. Funny how I’ve moved from one to the other during the last few weeks of freshman year. More often than not, if I needed a break, I took a LONG walk through Holyrood Park, which runs parallel to Arthur’s Seat, giving you the perfect view of the hilltop from down below. Even better, at the end of Holyrood Park is Portobello Beach!

I’d take the 2-hour walk to Portobello now and then when my mind needed a rest, and once I tried a pizza place called Civirenos! I highly recommend it; the line can be long, and the seagulls might try to steal your pizza, but it’s warm and delicious on a cold winter day.

Also, if you love a solo hike and nature surrounded day, Edinburgh is surrounded by close destinations. The Scottish highlands for instance- and FAMOUS for their cows! Look how majestic they are:

The brunch scene is amazing if you're a foodie like me! I could go on forever about the best cafes and pubs to enjoy a hearty meal. And the people are so warm and welcoming that the transition from home to university seems much easier after a few encounters with Edinburgh locals.

If you're someone who is into colder weather, Harry Potter, long walks, and old architecture, then Edinburgh is truly the perfect place to study or just visit.

I’d give it an 8.5/10. AHAHAHAH. The missing points go to the fact that there is no frozen yogurt in all of Edinburgh. What’s up with that?!

In all seriousness though, there are plenty of reasons why people may NOT want to live in Edinburgh. The days get shorter and shorter; sunset comes as early as 3:30 pm when you reach deep December. It gets cold, like, really fucking cold.

You need a GOOD winter jacket and something to protect your face from the wind! January to March are the hardest months because the Christmas season is over! But if you can survive a harsh winter, with some candle lighting, deep reading, focused studies, and winter strolls, then you will definitely love living in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Drop down any questions you have in the comment section! I’d love to share my experience with any freshmen or people moving to Edinburgh in the foreseeable future!

Thanks for reading, and see you in the next one

Love,

Hanan

Ingredients:

• Protein Pasta (mine is from Banza- it’s their chickpea pasta shells)

• 4-5 cherry tomatoes

• 1 tbsp tomato paste

• 2 handfuls of baby spinach

• 4 tbsp cottage cheese

• Olive oil

• Salt

• Pepper

Instructions:

1. Boil around half a pot of water.

2. While your pasta water is boiling, drizzle some olive oil in a separate pan, and add in your cherry tomatoes. Cover pan with a lid.

3. Let your tomatoes simmer for 2-3 minutes, then add in 2-3 tbsp of water and your tomato paste.

4. Stir in the tomatoes and recover with lid.

5. Now that tour water is boiling- add in your pasta.

6. Back to the sauce: After another 2-3 minutes, check if your tomatoes are soft- if so, slightly compress them.

7. Next add in your cottage cheese, if you want no clips blend it before adding to the pan.

8. Mix well and cover with the lid for 1 minute.

9. Lastly, add your spinach to your sauce, and cover with the lid until the spinach has wilted.

10. Drain your pasta leaving a bit of water in the pan, and add in your sauce to the pot of pasta.

11. Season with salt and pepper, and enjoy!

1. Listen to August, by Taylor Swift; if you’ve never heard this song before, you’re so lucky!!!

2. Have a picnic and use real picnic baskets to carry all your food!

3. Celebrate National Coloring Book Day, August 2nd, and complete a page of your favorite coloring book.

4. Take a LONG, long walk and listen to Steph Bohrer’s playlist titled “porch swinging” on Spotify.

5. Make your own August-themed Spotify playlist of all the songs that remind you of this month.

6. Shop specifically in home decor stores for something that makes your room slightly cozier, as we near autumn.

7. Swim! Swim in any body of water as much as you can before it gets too cold!

8. Bring your book to the park and read for hours under a tree.

9. Make homemade granola.

10. Host a summer-themed dinner party and create your own menu, design your own invitations, and send them to your friends!

11. Start an August Pinterest board.

12. Watch your summer comfort movie.

13. Play card games with your siblings.

14. Complete and frame a puzzle you find beautiful.

15. Visit a horse's stable and ride a horse if you can!

16. Bake Elle Gibsons’ banana bread cookie dough balls.

17. Enjoy the August produce.

18. Go on a solo hike (if you live in Edinburgh, Arthur’s Seat is perfect)

19. Write an August journal entry on how you spent this month and what you take away from it.

20. Freeze a large batch of green grapes to enjoy.

1. Homemade açaí bowl topped with granola and almond butter

2. Rainbow Garden Bowl

3. The trifecta: eggs, avocado, and cottage cheese

4. Almond matcha latte

5. Everything but the bagel eggs

6. Fresh cherries and chocolate granola

7. Half and Half: Cheese Omelette and Avocado Spread

8. Two-ingredient pizza (high protein)

Ingredients:

BASE:

• 1 1/2 cups almond flour

• 1 cup of crushed salted peanuts (or walnuts if you prefer)

• 3 tbsp almond butter

• 2 tbsps maple syrup

• 1 tsp salt

• 2 tbsp avocado oil

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This is the point where we all fall down the rabbit hole of regret and the torturous feeling of inevitable unhappiness. These days especially, with social media making it so easy to compare our lives to others, we feel even more pressure to play the part, to have something to show for. You need to have one thing that only you can do, that you are the best at, that you can outshine others with, so people can believe you are special.

The toxic mentality of “finding your niche” is ruining the organic, natural journey every person takes to discover a passion. Instead of starting hobbies for pure interest or enjoyment, people film their first time at a new gym, snap and record videos of the new pottery shop that’s just opened up, vlog solo dates while talking to the camera (as if it’s not literally a SOLO date), or waste hours for the sake of “being aesthetic.”

It’s like being at a horse stable and seeing everyone take pictures, yet no one actually takes the horses for a ride. The societal pressure to become something hides the fact that life is meant to be a million different unknowns, followed by questions that turn into adventures that give people meaning. How could we ever become one thing? Love one profession? How can we know what we want to be at age 8, when we’ve barely lived and seen the world? Even at 50, we should not be expected to have total control of life, and our futures should not be so limited as to describe them as something so finite. Just as we should not neglect our pasts, since the journey is why we’re all here experiencing it anyway.

You notice this is a real pattern when more and more people suffer from identity crises or massive crashouts when one thing, in their preplanned lifetime, doesn’t go as expected.

And we question why so many of us are considering a major switch, or a complete 180 life realization, that we hate our jobs? It’s because we are being groomed to subscribe to the authenticity scam. Do what the influencers are telling you to do: get skinny, buy all these useless skincare products that are NOT worth your money (why are we listening to celebrities for skincare and not our dermatologists??), and then when you look hot but almost dead, you’ll have found your trendy performative passion in life, the one thing that only YOU are perfect at, and you’ll be so, so, so, so HAPPY. Sorry, I know that just sounded so pessimistic, and I too am slightly cringing, but this reality will only continue to grow if not acknowledged.

Speaking of, Wilde does a fantastic job of breaking this fucked-up matrix. This was the full quote:

Something Stephen Fry (a well-published writer) said was that we are not nouns; we are VERBS. I am NOT just a university student. I’m not just a girl (as much as I love to say it). Referring to me as one thing, or even as someone becoming something, denies all my other interests and passions, which I love too! I’m not a writer; I write. I’m not a musician; I make music. I’m not a singer, but I sing! Labels are so limiting to a person who dares to dream. Because they also come alone, singular and lonely.

If you are among those I have mentioned and feel even slightly stuck, please remember that you have the ability to change. You cannot make any decision that will confirm what the rest of your life entails. Switch majors, transfer schools, move out, move in. Believe in yourself because we will truly never know how capable we are until we try.

I’ll give you me, for example: senior year of high school, all I could imagine was soon-to-be life in California, at one of the UC universities. I wrote out all my applications, waited, and I got in. I had one too many arguments with my parents about going to the US, and the final decision was to reject all my offers from California and go to Edinburgh instead! The tables turned, and I was heading somewhere completely unlike anything I expected, but I adapted, and I grew to love Edinburgh as my own city. Now I’m in another predicament where I’m not sure I’m keen on my studies; maybe nutrition will be a better choice for me. Should I transfer to the US, because NOW, funnily enough, my parents will let me go? Not to mention, I have my cooking page, Substack, and Pilates certification to maintain. AND I’ve been working at a Lagree studio for most of my summer.

It was far too easy for me to overthink everything—believing that I was doing too much, and instead I should focus all my energy on ONE thing, just stick to one thing and be really great at it. But why, when I love to do so much more? I love the feeling of being inspired and of starting something new. When you put yourself out there and let yourself be nothing, you are held to no standards and no boundaries. By failing, rejecting, trying again, shifting, and living with intention sparked by interest and passion rather than by fears of failure, you will succeed in finding and feeling meaning.

Ingredients (for one pizza):

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 tbsp baking powder

• 1 cup Greek yogurt

• 1/4 tsp of salt

• Add whatever toppings you like!

Instructions (for one pizza):

1. Preheat your oven to 425 F

2. Combine your flour, Greek yogurt, salt, and baking powder together until you have pizza dough that is not overly sticky or too dry either!

3. Then flatten your pizza out until it’s a relatively THIN circle (it should be thinly rolled out so the dough is fully cooked in the oven)

4. Next, add your sauce, cheese, and toppings (this part is fully up to you!)

5. Then bake for around 20-30 minutes, depending on how thick your pizza is!

6. Enjoy!

PS: Please don’t be put off by the photo I uploaded! I know it’s not the greatest picture, but it’s the ONLY one I had!! I promise you I ate the whole thing; that’s how good it tasted.

When I think of home, my mind travels to the historic streets of Jabal El Weibdeh, the Shawarma store at the corner of my old high school, and the beeping of cars in midday Amman traffic, which eventually morphs into a song of sorts.

I think of the smell of freshly cooked shakshuka and the faces of my cousins as we sit and enjoy 12 pm breakfast. Eagerly followed by a brewed cup of mint tea and a pit stop at Four Winters ice cream.

Family. My whole family! I get to see my grandpa as I drag him to the Yanboot Saturday market and laugh embarrassingly as he shoves a whole egg into his mouth before we’ve grabbed our plates.

This may be specific to me—but I especially appreciate the health and wellness takeover that’s spread through Amman. At this point, my days become branded with CORELAB Lagree classes and Good Clean Yum protein bars that taste like dessert.

I’ve already experienced the touristy areas, but that doesn’t make them any less exciting to revisit.

1. WADI RUM: Camping in a gorgeous mars-looking dessert while falling asleep under the clearest painting of stars.

2. AQABA: The best little staycation for locals; enjoy the beach, waterfront restaurants, water activities, and endless nights of dancing to music with friends.

3. THE DEAD SEA: Have you ever read your book in the middle of the sea before? Well, now you can! The hotels are beautiful and a full luxury experience. Don’t forget to cover yourself from head to toe in Dead Sea mud. This mud does wonders, WONDERS, to your skin.

4. PETRA: One of the 7 wonders. An ancient monument half built and half carved into rock. You can literally ride a camel to this destination!

Some personal CLASSICS✨📀

• Rainbow Street: Local markets and shopping stores for antiques, jewelry, art, clothes, decor

• Jabal El Weibdeh: A town frozen in time, famous for its boho, artsy style. The cutest cafes too!

• Bulbul B&B and Eatery: Spectacular hotel and restaurant serving classic Middle Eastern cuisine.

• Reeminikin Cafe and Funun Collective. Both places are where you can sit, relax, and paint pottery!

• Ward Adventures: Organization of hiking experts to guide you through Jordan’s endless land and water wadis.

I’ve come to love Jordan with my whole heart, so now I feel responsible for sharing its beauty with as many people as possible! It’s never a bad time to come visit, and yes, I mean that even now!

Let me know if you have any other questions about absolutely anything!

All the love,

Hanan

Ingredients:

• 2 medium-sized, super ripe bananas

• 1 cup almond flour

• ½ cup coconut flour

• 3 heaping tbsp almond butter

• ¼ cup maple syrup

• ½ cup of sugar-free dark chocolate

• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil

• 1/2 tbsp pumpkin spice

Steps:

1. Mash your bananas in a large bowl

2. Mix the coconut flour, almond flour, almond butter, maple syrup, and pumpkin spice into your mashed bananas

3. Next, roll your dough into a size you prefer; mine were slightly more than a tablespoon each

4. Then, in a microwavable bowl, melt your coconut oil and chocolate

5. When your chocolate is thoroughly melted, dip your balls in it until they are all fully covered.

6. Coated in chocolate, place your balls on a tray lined with baking paper, and sprinkle a little flaky salt on top of each one.

7. Lastly, let them chill in the freezer until the chocolate has set!

8. Enjoy!

I’ve never placed an order I regretted, and as for my most recent one, the cake was impeccable.

I ordered this raspberry chocolate cake, filled with raspberry compote and COVERED in fresh raspberries. Have I said raspberries enough yet?

Jokes aside, her cakes are light, airy, but can also be full on fudge and rich!

She loves to incorporate fruits into her desserts, as well as different flavors like matcha, lemon, chocolate, vanilla, carrot cake, red velvet…

She also makes party pieces, banana bread, cookies, bars, Reese’s peanut cups, chocolate covered and MATCHA covered fruit!

I’ll have her website linked, so if you’re ever in Amman, you can give her a try!

• website: thedottir.com

You’ll need:

• 2 pieces of sourdough toast

• 2 eggs

• Shredded cheese of your choice (I love cheddar!)

• 1/2 an avocado

• Everything but the bagel seasoning

Steps:

1. I would say everything, but the omelette is pretty self-explanatory. SO, start by placing your pan under medium heat.

2. Next, crack your eggs in a bowl and whisk till the whites and yolks are fully combined, with no separation evident; this is super important.

3. Now pour your eggs into your pan, making sure to cover the entire base. Almost immediately, you will notice the eggs start to cook underneath.

4. Sprinkle half of your cheddar cheese into the middle of your egg circle (if you will), and start to flap the sides of the eggs inward and over until they nearly touch the middle.

5. Next, you are going to add the last of your cheese on top of your folded sides and flip the entire omelette over! Leave it on the pan for only a few more seconds before removing from the fire.

6. After cutting into your omelette, you get creamy bites of slightly runny eggs!

Enjoy!

You only really need TWO ingredients:

• 2 eggs

• Everything but the bagel seasoning

Instructions:

1. Heat up your pan as you usually do, crack your eggs, and one the whites are ALMOST fully cooked, sprinkle a ton of everything but the bagel seasoning on top.

2. Cover with a lid for another 30 seconds, and enjoy!!

I usually ingredient prep rather than meal prep, so I’ll buy fruits, veggies, protein, and just create a meal from what I have!

Here’s was my list of the week:

1. Asparagus

2. Eggplant

3. Broccolini

4. Clementines

5. Red Apples

6. Six salmon fillets (I freeze them to use throughout the month)

7. Three packs of beef meatballs (I freeze these as well)

8. Almond milk

9. Two vegan protein pastas from AllPlants

10. Hummus

11. Cottage cheese

12. 0% Greek yogurt

13. Rice cakes

14. Kiwis

15. A fresh loaf of sourdough from my local bakery!

Let me know if you want to know what I made with all this!!

With food prepared the morning of by their incredibly talented chef, this secret gem of a store turns into the local hubbub of conversation and community.

It’s unlimited plates of food for only 10 JDS, roughly 14 US dollars, and you get a variety of options that are typical to Arabic cuisine!

Here’s what a few of my plates have looked like:

And these photos are only from the time I actually remembered to take pictures! I’ve been to Yanboot almost every other week for a whole year! Or ever since we started the a tradition with our friends, of going every Saturday!

I can’t recommend this place enough, not only for their brunch but for their organic collection of fruits and vegetables, nut butters, granola, flours, bars, healthy snacks, milks, and so so much more!

Here is the link to their website where you can find more details about their brunch, as well as everything they sell in store! For those living in Amman, you can order and deliver their products through their site!!

• LINK: https://www.yanboot.com/shop/

Anyway, if you go, tag me in your photos and let me know if it was your vibe!

I paired the cherries with a blueberry jam that took me less than 5 minutes to make (jam recipe is already up on substack).

And for some even more protein I added around ¼ cup of cottage cheese!

Cottage cheese truly tastes like dessert when drizzled with honey and some sea salt.

Now here are the INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of Greek yogurt

• ¼ cup of blueberries

• 1 tbsp or chia seeds

• 4-5 cherries

• ¼ cup of cottage cheese

• Honey

• Flaky salt

• Pumpkin seeds

• Crushed walnuts

How to MAKE IT:

1. In a microwaveable glass add your blueberries and chia seeds. Then microwave for 1-2 minutes.

2. Next removed your mixture from the microwave and let it rest while you assemble the rest.

3. Add your Greek yogurt to the base of your bowl

4. Cut your cherries in half, remove the pit, and add to your bowl.

5. Add your cottage cheese to your bowl.

6. By now your jam should be a thick consistency- add it to your bowl as well.

7. Lastly top your cottage cheese with honey, crushed walnuts, and pumpkin seeds.

8. One more thing- sprinkle some flaky salt over everything. Trust me on this :)

9. Enjoy!!

• This was actually a spread my sister and I put together for a little graduation dinner celebration I hosted!

• It was summer and nearing the end of school, so I wanted everyone to have the option between fruits, crackers, nuts, breads, spreads, and cheeses!

This was our MENU:

1. Fruit platter

   (strawberries, pineapple, kiwi, peaches)

2. Nut platter

   (mixed nuts and apricots)

3. A whole sliced watermelon

4. FIRST savory charcuterie board

   (cheese, crackers, dates, grapes, extra watermelon)

5. SECOND vegetable charcuterie board

   (labneh, hummus, breadsticks, cucumber, carrots)

6. Sourdough toast platter:

   (Peanut butter & banana, avocado & lemon, labneh & zaatar, cream cheese & smoked salmon)

And THESE are some photos of the appetizers all done! There aren’t really any instructions for this recipe; you just assemble everything!

Ingredients:

• Cherries

• Blueberries

• Your favorite granola

Just put everything together bowl!! These flavors go perfectly together and you could even add in some Greek yogurt and honey for some extra creaminess.

This just goes to show that you can find time to cook even when you think there isn’t any!! You just honestly have to make it a part of your daily routine. 🫶🏼

Without further ado, here are my favorite meals from June:

1. Baked Chicken Thighs

2. Mashawi and Tabbouleh (Grilled Chicken and Lamb Skewers)

3. Mango Sticky Oats

4. Greek Yogurt Pancakes With Raspberries

5. Greek Yogurt Cinnamon with Peaches and Almond Butter

6. Peach Cobbler Chia Pudding

7. Iced Salted Honey Matcha

8. Orchard Bowl (Crunchy and Fruity)

9. Chia Pudding and Granola Bowl