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Home » Podcast Episodes » African Heritage

044 The Art of Forging Bonds Through Culinary Diplomacy with Nermine Mansour

Last Modified: Jul 26, 2023 · This post may contain affiliate links

Today’s guests’s name is Nermine, but by the time you finish this episode, you may just think of her as Wonder Woman. At the age of 22, Nermine, born, raised, and educated first in Alexandria, Egypt, then in Cairo, achieved the rare honor of being appointed a female Egyptian diplomat.

10 years into her service, she fell in love with an American diplomat. When she chose to marry him, she gave up her post, but not her position in the diplomatic corp. Rather, Nermine now travels the world with her husband and two daughters perfecting and practicing the art of forging bonds, in large part through “culinary diplomacy”.

She’s sharing with us her recipe for Pecan Date Molasses bars, which she created “to declare a state of harmony and self-reconciliation that [she] reached as an immigrant and citizen of the world.” ALSO! Friday, Nermine will share with us how she leveraged her Arabic, knowledge of Middle Eastern culture, diplomatic skills, and empathy as a woman to embark on an incredible project of empowerment for Syrian refuge women.

This project brought Nermine a profound appreciation for the power of food stories and reconnected her personally to her Egyptian roots. You will absolutely want to hear this, so if you haven’t yet - take a second right now to subscribe. Thank you and here’s my personal heroine, Nermine.

Highlights

  • Growing up in Alexandria/Cairo, Egypt
  • Being appointed a female diplomat at 22
  • "American food tells the history of the nation"
  • "The art of forging bonds"
  • One family's American dream
  • The key to regular, high-stakes, low-stress hosting
  • The recipe that "declared a state of self-harmony as an immigrant and citizen of the world"

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Pecan Date Bars

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How to Contact Nermine

Website/Blog: www.cheznermine.com

Facebook: facebook.com/cheznermine/

Instagram: @cheznermine

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Before You Go... Try One of These?

More Guests of African Heritage

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Reader Interactions

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  1. Wagdy Ziada says

    January 24, 2024 at 9:27 am

    The best interview ever I listened as Egyptian from a very talented *cosmopolitan* lady from my country. 🇪🇬
    I'm usually followed her over the social media without knowing all this tons of humiliation sense. ❤️
    Thank you Becky Hadeed for this so interesting and human valuable interview 🙏

    Reply
    • admin says

      January 24, 2024 at 5:34 pm

      Oh wow, thank you so much for taking the time to comment, Wagdy! I am honored to call Nermine a friend! And she's always an inspiration.

      Reply

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Welcome, Friend!

I’m Becky Hadeed, a mother to 4, curious home cook, lover of extraordinary light, and host of The Storied Recipe Podcast. I consider it a great honor that my guests entrust me with their stories and allow me photograph and share their most treasured family recipes.

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dark and moody photo of Becky Hadeed kneading arepas dough

Welcome, Friend!

I’m Becky Hadeed, a mother to 4, curious home cook, lover of extraordinary light, and host of The Storied Recipe Podcast. I consider it a great honor that my guests entrust me with their stories and allow me photograph and share their most treasured family recipes.

More About Me ->

Most Popular Recipes

  • two slices of chewy golden nian gao on pink plate
    Baked Nian Gao: Glutinous Rice Cake (with Sticky Rice Flour)
  • hand holds flaky spiraled roti paratha (aka roti canai in malaysia) above lush green foliage.
    How to Make Flaky Roti Paratha (Malaysian Roti Canai)
  • pollo frito puerto rican fried chicken with no flour in basket lined with red checked napkin
    Pollo Frito: Puerto Rican Fried Chicken (Without Flour)
  • delicate white dish holds fish cooked in tomato sauce, topped with gently caramelized onons, dill and parsley
    Ukrainian Red Fish in Tomato Sauce

Follow in Your Favorite Player

Apple PodcastsSpotifyGoogle Podcasts

Listen to the Latest

Featured Episodes

  • 058 "I Wanted Something Different" with Juan Salazar of La Coop Coffee
  • 022 "I am Piotr's Granddaughter" with Lydia Cottrell
  • 019 "We Were Not Leprosy" with Suwanee Lennon
  • 077 Arabic Feasts with My Husband, John Hadeed
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