How To FEED your KIDS on TIME DON’T WAIT TILL YOU’RE STARVING TO DECIDE WHAT TO EAT, OR YOU’LL MAKE UNHEALTHY CHOICES” — MAYA KOBEISSI

Planning — Know ahead of time what you want cook. Shop ahead of time for the ingredients. Preparation — Pre- shop, pre- chop! Determination — Don’t give up… It takes time to fall into a routine of serving home cooking to your children and feeding them ear

only learn good habits at an early age, but have time to digest their food before their bath and bed time,” she explains. “While they eat, I try to incorporate the same ingredients into something my husband and I can enjoy right after they go to bed around 7.30pm. This way, the hardest part — the preparation — has been completed and all that is left is assembly or simply heating the dish, if required.”

Planning is critical to the entire routine. “Every Saturday, my kitchen looks like a mad lab,” she says. “I plan ahead — at least 3- 5 dishes, incorporated with tons of good- for- you ingredients, protein, and vegetables. These range from green beans and meatballs, spinach and shredded chicken, panko- crusted chicken breasts to hearty bolognaise. I pack away the meals in small pre- portioned containers; some go in the fridge and the remaining into the freezer. Over the week, these are the meals I serve in my children’s lunchboxes and for early dinners at home. By the end of the week, the containers are finished and we start over. Nothing lasts in the freezer more than a week or two, max. All you need to do is serve with rice in some cases.”

It’s perfectly normal to miss that 7pm cut- off in a city like Dubai, assures Farah. “After all, we live in a place that is bustling until the late hours of the night — and most outings entail dining. Personally, I try to keep it transparent when it comes to “night- time eating” at home