Public Figures

Maureen Abboud

Maureen Abood is a Lebanese-American who hails from a large family (60 first cousins!) and who as a child used to watch her Sitto (grandmother) knead traditional Lebanese flatbread in the kitchen. Memories of food inextricably quilted with family left a lasting impression on Abood. So in a fit of carpe diem, she quit her office job in Chicago and moved west to San Francisco to attend culinary school. Upon graduating, Abood headed out to Harbor Springs in northern Michigan—the place of childhood summer retreats with family—where she started her blog Rose Water and Orange Blossoms.

Abood is a cook, photographer and avid writer (with a master’s in English and American Literature), and her cookbook, which shares the name of her blog, will be published in spring 2015. Beyond her wonderful Lebanese recipes, she engages her readers through beautifully-woven tales of family, friends and love.