This morning when I was reading the newspaper, I found myself thinking of an answer that

This morning when I was reading the newspaper, I found myself thinking of an answer that chef Carla Hall gave during her interview for In the Company of Women. When asked what the world needed more of, she said, “The world needs more face to face conversation, perhaps over a meal, so we can really get to know each other without assumptions.” I’ve been thinking about the way food brings people together and can teach us about each other’s cultures and values. In those simple moments of sharing a meal together, we get to connect with each other, learn, and undo assumptions and stereotypes, all while creating new bonds of mutual understanding. So as we head into the weekend, I wanted to share 6 recipes from our archives that celebrate Middle Eastern cultures and refugees that have been at the center of difficult conversations in world news. These places and people are far more than the sound bites being played on television, and these dishes (and the stories behind them) tell an important narrative about their history and the universal values of feeding and comforting the people we love. xo, grace Image above: This recipe for sweet Somali flatbread, malawah, and spiced milk tea is from Halimo, a former Somali restaurateur in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya. This recipe is part of a cookbook project, Between Meals, by the Bay Area organization, Refugee...