Al Hiraki Community Kitchen

Malaak transformed one the classroom into the magical community kitchen. Named after its donor, The Al Hiraki community kitchen is now actively running, equipped and set up ready to feed the entire community.  This kitchen was supervised and guided by "The food heritage foundation." FHF believes that local food heritage is a potent tool for economic development. It aims to increase consumers’ awareness and demand for healthy home-cooked local cuisine and produce by establishing permanent linkages between urban and rural communities through which small farmers and producers can inform about their culinary and agricultural traditions and directly sell their products.

The foundation works closely with the Environment and Sustainable Development Unit at the American University of Beirut.  FHF trained all interested Syrian woman at our center and created applicable recipe's for the kids in the center and for the community as a whole to come and eat. Our aim is to keep women busy indulging in cooking and slowly empowering themselves to serve their communities. These ladies will be working through their traditional food and cuisine to develop expertise. This kitchen will soon be able to become self sustainable, as they will be learning how to benefit from all the rich agricultural land that they are blessed to be surrounded by. 

In the context of unfortunate events taking place in Syria, this Kitchen attempts to look beyond the damaging reality, bringing hope to the women!