The Holy month of Ramadan is 2 weeks from now & I can’t wait for my favorite 30 days to start :) The month of unbelievable spirituals, gatherings & food!

Unlucky me, I am one of those people who finishes Ramadan with 3-4 extra kilos on my waist line. I don’t know whether it’s the fasting or the amazing gatherings that make my appetite go crazy or the delicious food that makes me think of nothing but food!

But lately, I have been making some changes that proved to be working! For me, Ramadan is not the month of healthy food; I eat, I indulge & never deprive myself but with 3 new rules:

1. MODERATION! I eat everything I want but in moderation; no more endless amounts of 2atayef but I can still enjoy 2 everyday.
2. CUT DOWN THE FATS (whenever possible); I will never eat oven baked 2ataeyf yukkk but there are many recipes that can be cooked with much less fat & still taste delicious.
3. Sohour is always barley thins, light cheese & yoghurt.

Speaking about cutting down fats, bechamel sauce is one of those sauces that can still taste delicious & creamy without tons of cream, butter & full fat milk.

I will be sharing with you more recipes for Ramadan; some light to maintain our expansion hahaha & some 100% sugary, creamy & fried because come on, it’s Ramadan :)

May god bless us all in this holy month!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups skimmed milk
• 2 heaped tbsp all purpose flour (heaped = malyana mesh mamsoo7a)
• 1 heaped tsp oat flour (see notes)
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg (gozet el teeb)
• 1/2 tsp mustard
• 3 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• salt & pepper

Directions:

• In a small pot, OFF heat, whisk the milk, flour & oat flour together until the flours are totally dissolved.
• Place the pot on medium heat, whisking frequently until the sauce boils & thickens.
• Turn off the heat, add the nutmeg, mustard & cheese; whisk to combine.
• Season with salt & pepper.
• Use in any gratin or pasta dish.

Notes:

1. To make oat flour, simply place some oats (rolled or instant) in a food processor & process until the oats become like flour.
2. If you don’t have oats, you can make the recipe with flour only; just replace the 1 tsp oat flour with all purpose flour.
3. If you prefer your sauce creamier, whisk in 2 tbsp cream or  1 tbsp cream cheese & it will still be lighter than the regular bechamel recipe.
4. This recipe can be doubled, tripled or quadrupled.
5. The sauce will thicken as it cools; to return it back to its original consistency, simply whisk in little milk & reheat.