How two Minnesota sisters became the Food Dolls – and an internet sensation

Watching videos of the Food Dolls preparing their dish of the moment is like opening a bag of your favorite chips: You can’t stop at one.

Minnesota sisters Alia and Radwa Elkaffas have been creating cooking videos for a decade, and after more than 2,000 of them, sharing recipes in 30-second bites has become second nature.

“We started seeing this craze on social media about people doing recipes online, and we’re like, oh my gosh, we need to share with the world our recipes,” said Radwa. “And we had no background of video editing or any culinary skill, nothing. We just started making videos.”

You could say it caught on. Radwa and Alia launched the Food Dolls Facebook page in 2015 — it was called Clean Eats at first — and now have 4.4 million followers. (Other social media platforms, including TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, account for another 5 million.) Now they’ve winnowed down their recipe catalog for their just-published debut cookbook, “Pretty Delicious: Simple, Modern Mediterranean, Served With Style” (Clarkson Potter, $32.99).

The sisters grew up in Eden Prairie, daughters of Egyptian immigrants, and were more fond of baking and desserts than cooking and planning meals. Getting married and starting families changed their focus.

“That’s when I think we started,” said Radwa, the younger of the two. “How can we make easy recipes and actually enjoy making them and not make it dreadful? We can make this fun and easy and quick and you don’t have to spend hours in the kitchen like our mom.”

The two would talk daily, with conversations eventually turning to the vexing “What are you making for dinner today?”

They grew up with Egyptian flavors — vegetables, tomato-based recipes, fresh herbs and spices like cumin, coriander, sumac, paprika and za’atar — and wanted to incorporate many of those flavors in their recipes.

“We’d call Mom and say, ‘Hey, Mom, can you tell us how to make’ whatever recipe, and all of a sudden, it’s this long recipe,” Alia said. “And we’re like no, Mom, we can’t do it like that. That’s just way too long. We want to get those same nostalgic flavors of a recipe, but with shortcuts.”

“So we started kind of just talking about our recipes, like, oh, take this out, or do this. And it was just a conversation that turned into recipes,” said Radwa. (The sisters often finish each other’s sentences.)

In the cookbook you’ll find dishes like Mama’s Beef Kofta, a version of Macarona Bechamel baked pasta and Egyptian Orzo Pasta, all results of their shortcuts.

“The one recipe that we did put in there that’s not necessarily a shortcut was our mom’s Kunafa recipe, which is a classic — everybody loves her Kunafa," Alia said of the traditional Middle Eastern dessert. “So we had to figure out how to make it because like most moms, she’d say ‘Oh, you just put a little bit of this, you put a little bit of that.’ And it’s like, no, really. We have to figure out how to put it in writing and test that recipe a million times to make sure that it turns out correct.”

But are all the recipes — shortcuts and all — mom-approved? The sisters laughed.

“Oh, my gosh, sometimes she says, ‘It cannot be done like that.’ But then there’s been some things where she’s like, OK, OK,” Alia said.

“She doesn’t love to admit it, but she knows that it’s good,” Radwa said.

Unlike many cookbook authors who start with a blog and then complement with videos, Alia and Radwa went all-in on video first.

“We didn’t do the traditional way,” Alia said.

“Because we said we would never blog,” Radwa continued. “And now we have a website where we’re blogging every day. So never say never.”

When they started — their first recipes were energy bites and butternut squash soup — the sisters produced daily videos fusing their Midwestern upbringing with their Egyptian roots. Now they post four or five a videos week, focusing more on quality than quantity.

The videos are around 30 seconds and look seamless, but can take hours to produce, especially when factoring in recipe development, shopping, prep work, cleanup, filming and editing. They do the work themselves, filming in one of their homes.

Growth came at a steady pace, with a boost during the pandemic as cooks turned to the internet for culinary inspiration.

“In August of 2021 we created an oven-baked spaghetti that went absolutely ballistic on social media,” Radwa said. “And that’s when we really blew up.” (It didn’t hurt that celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis mentioned the recipe on social media.)

Creating recipes has become so natural — “that’s the easy part,” Radwa said — that their daily conversations about what to have for dinner have turned to “What are we filming today?”

“I’d be lying if we tell you we’re the most organized people in the whole entire world, because we’re not,” Radwa said. “And you know what? We have decided that when we are creating recipes on a whim, it’s better than thinking about a recipe two weeks in advance.”

“And a lot of times we have this grand master plan that we’re going to make something, and we start playing around with ingredients and it turns into something totally different from where we initially started,” Alia said.

Despite a growing arsenal of recipes, a cookbook seemed far-fetched and wasn’t on their radar. But the process of creating it has become one of their favorite Food Dolls moments.

”Our followers kept asking if we had a cookbook. When we did an e-cookbook, they went crazy over it,“ Radwa said. ”So when we were approached to actually do a physical copy, it was an ‘aha’ moment for both of us.”

“I feel it’s kind of like our work all together in book form,” Alia said.

“From the design to the color to the recipes to us talking about our childhood, our experiences, everything that we have done together,” Radwa said.

From start to finish it took nearly three years to write the cookbook, a process they call “robust.”

The title “Pretty Delicious” was the first one their editor suggested — “she couldn’t have nailed it more,” Radwa said — and reflects the Food Dolls’ evolution into a lifestyle brand.

“Cooking is just one aspect of things that we do,” Radwa said. “And I think styling or organizing is also part of the cooking, if you think about it. It’s not just easy recipes, it’s also easy cleanup or easy organizing or making things super pretty.”

The sisters would like to have a line of kitchen or organizational products, and their book includes plenty of tips on both. They lean on each other to keep them thinking about what lies ahead.

“When one of us is down and is feeling blue, the other one has to pick her up and just be like, hey, we’ve got this, and it’s this up and down,” Radwa said. “We’ve definitely had moments where we’re like, What are we doing? Where are we headed?”

“Doing what we do sometimes is a lonely world, because you just work behind the screen and you just kind of forget that there’s a whole world out there,” Alia said.

Their followers help drive them, too, and those who’ve been clamoring for a cookbook are getting their wish with “Pretty Delicious.” But will there be a sequel?

“We talk about it all the time,” Alia said. “So, you never know.”

Radwa continued: “Never say never.”

What: Alia Eklaffas and Radwa Eklaffas will sign copies of their book, “Pretty Delicious” (Clarkson Potter, $32.99).

When: March 2, 3 to 5 p.m.

Where: Barnes & Noble, 3239 Galleria, Edina.

Tickets: Free; go to fooddolls.com for more info.

Serves 6.

In Arabic, the phrase lesan el asfour translates to “bird’s tongue,” a funny but not totally inaccurate comparison between the shape of orzo — a small, rice-shaped cut of pasta — and a bird’s tongue. This dish combines ground beef and spices with the orzo for a filling and comforting sort of Egyptian Hamburger Helper, which is why our mom would often make it for us. Plus it’s very simple to prepare and a budget-friendly way to feed a lot of people. It’s a great recipe for reheating throughout the week, too — or making a double batch and stashing in the freezer for a rainy day. From “Pretty Delicious: Simple, Modern Mediterranean, Served With Style” by Alia Elkaffas and Radwa Elkaffas (Clarkson Potter, 2025).

Directions

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic and sauté, stirring constantly, until the onion becomes translucent, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the beef, using your spoon to break it into fine crumbles as it cooks. Cook until all of the meat is browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Tilt the pan so the grease can accumulate on one side, then use a spoon or spatula to push the meat to the other. Very carefully use paper towels to soak up the excess grease.

Stir in the tomato paste, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, and the cinnamon so it evenly coats the meat, then cook until the tomato paste begins to caramelize, about 2 minutes. Pour in the broth or water, allow the mixture to come to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook until the liquid has reduced by about one-third, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

While the beef simmers, add a generous pinch of salt to the now-boiling liquid. Add the orzo and cook according to the package directions. Drain the orzo and fold into the beef mixture. Season with more salt and/or pepper, if needed, then drizzle everything with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and give it one final stir. Serve sprinkled with parsley.

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge before warming on the stove. This slow thawing process helps maintain the dish’s texture and flavor.

Serves 6 to 8.

Chocolate isn’t often in Egyptian desserts, so we started to wonder ... why not? It made us think about m’hanncha, a Moroccan dessert that reminds us of baklava with coiled layers of flaky phyllo and nuts. The biggest difference is that it doesn’t include a honey soak/syrup (something we’re not so sad about) and it does include chocolate (bingo!). We swapped the traditional almonds for walnuts as a nod to baklava, but otherwise left everything else as is because it’s perfection. We especially love serving this at parties because you can either let guests break off bits to enjoy or add a just-right dose of drama with ice cream or whipped cream mounded on top. From “Pretty Delicious,” by Alia Elkaffas and Radwa Elkaffas (Clarkson Potter, 2025).

Simple syrup:

Phyllo roll:

Directions

Make the simple syrup: In a small saucepan, combine the granulated sugar, lemon juice, and water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool while you assemble the roll.

Make the phyllo roll: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, combine the walnuts, powdered sugar, softened butter, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Pulse until a chunky (not super-fine) paste begins to form. Add the chocolate and pulse again until the chocolate is evenly distributed but not finely ground.

On a clean work surface, lay 3 sheets of phyllo dough with a short side facing you, side by side and overlapping the edges by ¼ inch. Brush the sheets all over with some of the melted butter. Layer 3 more sheets of phyllo over the first and brush with butter. Repeat twice more for a total of 4 layers.

Spoon the walnut mixture along the bottom edge of the phyllo. Carefully but tightly roll the phyllo up and over the filling to create a log. Brush the log with melted butter. Gently spiral the log into a coil, tucking the end underneath.

Carefully transfer the roll to a sheet pan or large ovenproof skillet. Brush the top with the remaining melted butter.

Bake until the phyllo is lightly golden, 18 to 22 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and immediately pour the syrup over the top of the roll. Allow the roll to cool at room temperature completely before serving, about 1 hour, or up to overnight covered with foil (it gets better as it sits!). Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Slice into 2-inch pieces and serve or let everyone break off their own pieces.

Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Serves 4.

This cozy dish has been handed down through the generations of our family, from our grandmother to our mother and then on to us. While tagine is a classic Middle Eastern preparation — named after the type of pot used to stew together an aromatic blend of vegetables, meats, and spices — it’s not as common to see seafood in the mix. But our grandma Aliyah, or Teita, which is what we called her (“grandma” in Arabic), was originally from Damietta, a city in northeast Egypt along the Mediterranean coast where fresh fish and shellfish were widely available. We love how light this meal is, yet the combination of jammy tomatoes and peppers—plus many, many memories of this simmering on the stove at Teita’s house — makes it feel like a warm hug. From “Pretty Delicious,” by Alia Elkaffas and Radwa Elkaffas (Clarkson Potter, 2025).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the shallots and sauté, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté, stirring frequently, just until fragrant, about another minute.

Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring often, until they start to break down, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the tomato sauce, salt, cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper, and 1 cup water and allow the mixture to come to a simmer. Add the bell peppers and jalapeño, if using, and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are tender and the sauce has reduced by one-third, about 10 minutes. Fold in the shrimp and about half of the parsley and remove the pan from the heat.

Transfer the mixture to a 2-quart tagine or large ovenproof dish (we use our 7- by 11-inch baking dish). Carefully transfer it to the oven and bake until the shrimp are pink and opaque, about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with the remaining parsley and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Be sure to gently reheat the stew to avoid overcooking the shrimp.