Do you diet? Why are you always dieting? Do you eat at all?? You should eat more!!!!! Why are you starving yourself? (Really? You would know since you live with me 24/7…. ). You don’t need to exercise, you’re so thin!! You don’t eat anything, do you? My response to all these questions/statements? STFU!! Ok, I’m kidding. I don’t really say it but that is EXACTLY what I do want to say when I’m presented with these ludicrous comments.

I’m not even going to get into how often people make these assumptions about me and my diet. My friends know that I actually eat everything including bread (I live for it) and chocolate (incidentally, every night). BUT, I eat in moderation. AND I eat small portions. Plus, I don’t snack on chips and similar junk food, although I do love me some peanut butter pretzels. Lastly, I avoid carbs at night. Also, this blog post will not be accompanied by any food pics. I say so for two reasons: a) I’m not a food blogger - there are plenty of fabulous ones out there & b) Because, I like to do things differently but you already knew that about me:) And lastly, ok, that’s three reasons, I love the combination of serious-ish content and pretty pics with me as the subject in those pics!

Breakfast: A cup of coffee ALWAYS! Greek yogurt with almonds and a drizzle of honey. If I’m really hungry I’ll add a tablespoon of home made granola. Funnily enough, I do not like fruit in the morning, unless its papaya. Once in a while I’ll make myself some oatmeal.

Lunch - A kale salad with some protein. Or a fried egg with sprouted bread plus baby spinach. I eat a lot of spinach. Yes, it’s very Popeye-ish of me:) Sometimes, I’ll eat leftovers from the previous night and mostly focus on the protein portion of the leftover.

Mid afternoon snack - A Perfect Bar (LOVE all the flavors, it’s preservative free and is packed with proteins) or fruit. I love blackberries, strawberries, tangerines and papaya, of course. A teaspoon of almond butter or half an avocado.

4 PM, when that hunger strikes with a vengeance - A cup of chai at home or a matcha latte with almond milk from Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters on Union Street (best effing matcha latte EVER). Dates, almonds or a handful of pistachios. Yes, I’m nuts for nuts:)) Sorry, I just had to!! Sometimes a cheddar cheese stick from the kids stash in the fridge. Yes, I know it’s processed but I like it so I eat it. Stop judging me … :)

Dinner - I cook Pakistani food once a week, for example - Qeema and Chawal (Ground beef/chicken with cumin & coriander served with rice). But I eat very little rice and mostly indulge on the qeema. Karahi Chicken (cubed chicken cooked in an onion & tomato sauce with turmeric and red chillie powder & garnished with green chilies & cilantro. Spicy but sooo yum. The chicken is eaten with a wheat roti. I’ll make sure I eat just one.

Other dinner ideas: We eat a lot of fish - salmon with greens (broccoli, asparagus, bok choy) or halibut burgers in lettuce wraps or chicken pot pie with an almond crust, lasagne (the kids and Nadir love it but me not so much), shrimp tacos. On the weekends, Nadir BBQs (burgers (no bun for me please), chicken drumsticks, steaks, ahi tuna. If we’re ordering in, we often get sushi and I prefer sashimi. If I do eat a sushi roll I limit it to 6 pieces. Or salads from my kids’ favorite place, Blue Barn or a veggie burger for me from Roam.

Dinner is followed by at least two pieces of dark chocolate for me on most nights or a small bowl of gelato, at least, once a week (Kayak Greek Frozen Yogurt’s Peanut Butter & Caramelised Peanuts or Talenti’s Sicilian Pistachio Gelato are my go-tos ) And, decaf. jasmine tea on most nights.

Late night snack, since I sleep pretty late - Dates or an almond flour chocolate chip cookie. Sometimes a glass of milk. Or a couple of Jordan Almonds. Or another piece of dark chocolate! Can you tell I have a sweet tooth?

Foods I avoid: I eat very little red meat, no white bread (unless it’s in the form of a croissant), pasta, which I mostly never eat at home, so only at some of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco (Cotogna and Sorrel) or when I’m traveling but always in moderation. I’ll definitely share my exercise regime with you soon too. However, in the meanwhile, here’s one of my favorite photo shoots that I did with Ricci Cande of Rust and Flourish. As I end this post, I’d like to add that being judged sooo often on my physical appearance is not fun at all but so be it. But, the fact that people jump to conclusions about my eating habits has now become a source of amusement to my family and I. I never feel the need to justify who I am or what I do or for that matter what I eat or not eat. I decided to share this with you because many of you have asked me about it in the last year, so here it is with all my love (and sarcasm;) for your reading and viewing pleasure!

Thank you for visiting & reading my blog post! Lots and lots of love from the stirrer;) AND Thank you to my favorite San Francisco boutique, HeidiSays (2426 Fillmore Street) for lending me this beautiful dress!!! Last but not least, MANY Thanks to my sweetheart, Sophia Nawabi for my make-up:)) Hugs, Sobia