Today we’d like to introduce you to Lina Elhajj.
Hi Lina, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’m Lina of Lebanese Cooking with Lina. I offer cooking classes at the Brushy Creek Community Center. Born and raised in Lebanon, I moved to Texas about 31 years ago after marrying my husband, Nabil. When I was a child my favorite subjects were art and culture. I’m the youngest of seven in my family, and all of us are involved in music and art in various forms. I particularly loved piano and cooking, both of which I now teach professionally.
My mom was, and still is, an amazing cook. I remember watching her work in the kitchen every day rolling out the dough on special counter, mixing Zaatar and olive oil and spreading them before baking it in the oven. I would help her make Kibbeh balls and spinach fatayer. The whole kitchen would smell deliciously scrumptious Mediterranean flavors. Eventually, I learned how to make all of the traditional Lebanese dishes she made.
When I first came to Texas, I missed being surrounded by all of my family and my culture in Lebanon. There wasn’t a large Lebanese community here, so it was hard, but we were fortunate to have moved into a community here that is welcoming and diverse. I was able to learn from other cultures and share my own culture through food. Any chance I had, I would make sure to share my cooking with neighbors and friends. I also enjoyed being involved in my kids’ international events at school and shared my recipes with the families there so they could pass them down to future generations. Slowly but surely, I became known for my Mediterranean cooking.
When we built our house, I planted a fig tree in my backyard as a reminder of home and my childhood in Lebanon. Our fig tree was thriving and so successful, I would share its bounty with the neighbors and the community. For many, it was their first taste of fresh figs, and I converted quite a few into fig lovers. Subsequently, every February it became a tradition to bring fig cuttings to the Brushy Creek Community Center for everyone to take home and plant. It gives me such joy when I hear success stories of neighbors’ trees flourishing, producing, and thankfully bouncing back after the deep freeze earlier this year.
After my kids got older and started their own lives, I knew I wanted to take my love for cooking to another level. My friends were continually asking me for the recipes to many of the classic Lebanese dishes I would share with them such as tabouli, hummus, and baklava. Seeing how much my friends loved these foods, I thought the greater community would, too, so that’s how Lebanese Cooking with Lina got started at the Brushy Creek Community Center. Now, every Thursday, I have the joy of bringing new and delicious Lebanese dishes to the wider community through my cooking classes live and on Zoom. We also do Mother/ daughter and father / son cooking on special events in addition to group cooking parties. Not only does this provide an opportunity to meet new people and get together every week, but it gives participants a chance to make the recipes together before trying them with their families at home. It’s so rewarding to see them bustling about the kitchen, learning all the steps my mother taught me and more, then enjoying the dishes together family-style at the end. My classes really are my way of sharing my love of my culture with all my new friends and helping them add healthy Mediterranean food to the legacy they will pass on to their children.
Contact Info:
- Email: lnomeis@yahoo.com
- Instagram: linael_hajj
- Other: Bcmud.org
Image Credits
Colleen Blackard
