Bring in Ramadan this year with your loved ones with various healthy and balanced home cooked meals with great recipes to choose from. Joumana Dabbagh, Nestlé Middle East’s nutritionist provides you with six important tips as to how you could prepare a meal for your family with simplified ingredients.

Ramadan falls at the peak of summer this year. With the summer heat and a daily fasting period of about 15 hours, the changes in eating habits will affect different people in different ways, with the initial days posing a great challenge. However, eating right will give your body the nourishment it needs as well as instill a sense of discipline to adapt to the sudden change in routine and sustain it through the fasting period.

This Ramadan, prepare healthy and delicious dishes for Iftar using MAGGI’s Kitchen Cupboard products made only with familiar ingredients present in each and everyone’s kitchen cupboard . Give preference to products with an intrinsic goodness such as whole grains, legumes and vegetables and to products that have a balanced salt content so you could offer your family and loved ones healthier and tastier home-made dishes throughout the month. Two examples are the new Chicken Stock with Natural Herbs and the new Oats Harira and Mushroom Soups and the full range of mixes.

Below are also important tips provided by Joumana, to help you better enjoy a healthier Ramadan along with your family:

l Break your fast in a healthy way: Have 3 dates then a glass of laban or water to replenish your body reserves of fluids and minerals. Then have a warm bowl of fiber filled soup, preferably with vegetables to provide you 1 of your 5 a day recommended servings; a fresh vegetable salad, followed by a main meal providing the carbohydrates (around 1 cup of cooked rice) and protein portions (palm size piece of chicken breast of lean meat or fish).

l Cook lighter dishes: Adapt to a better lifestyle with healthy cooking methods such as grilling, boiling, simmering and roasting and add taste to the food you prepare by adding a wealth of colorful vegetables, herbs such as rosemary, zaatar and basil and spices such as cardamom, turmeric and cinnamon.

l Add color to your plate: Make sure to eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables to provide your body with all essential vitamins and minerals during this holy month. This can be done easily by including a variety of vegetables when having Iftar such as broccoli, spinach, peas and green beans not only in the main course but also as part of the soup and the salad.

l Stay Hydrated: Don’t forget to drink plenty of water following Iftar till Suhoor every day. Aim to drink at least 8 glasses distributed in small quantities so not to feel bloated. And to prevent getting thirsty, don’t forget to avoid foods that are too spicy or salty, and consume fruits and vegetables for further hydration such as Watermelon, plum, cucumbers and peppers!

l Be creative and plan ahead: Keep things simple and build a collection of daily recipes for quick and easy family favorites. Choose ingredients that you can use for more than one meal. Don’t forget to involve your kids in the cooking process by asking them to make a salad, set the table or other simple tasks, research has proved that allowing children participate in food preparation encourages them more to complete their meals

l Move more: Participate in some kind of physical activity by going for a walk every day for at least 2 hours after having Iftar which allows you time to digest your meal.

Ramadan is that time of the year when families get together; so don’t worry about your iftar menu because all you have to do is visit www.maggime.com/en/ramadan-recipes for a full month’s worth of recipes.