We're all about beauty in this issue and so this week's recipe is a perfect collection of what I call Beauty Food. Well, maybe not the gorgonzola cheese but the rest of it anyway. Arugula (or rocket as it is commonly known) is one of those things that you just know is good for you because children refuse to eat it. Yuk, they scream as soon as they see it - it has the same effect as spinach.
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Last Updated: June 19th, 2011 UAE
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I read somewhere that the fact that children refuse to eat anything green is not because they are trying to be difficult, but because there is some genetic predisposition they are born with not to eat anything green. I guess if you think about it, a lot of green stuff is actually off, so that makes sense.
Anyway, the other key Beauty Food in this recipe is walnuts. Walnuts have a high content of omega-3 fatty acids. Now you don't need to know what all that means, but just be happy that anything with the word omega in it is good for your skin. Added to which, walnuts were used to treat head ailments during the Renaissance, because they look like the brain. I guess in those days they were Brain Food as opposed to Beauty Food.
Figs, of course, were said to be the favourite fruit of one of the greatest beauties of all time, Cleopatra. They don't need any more of an endorsement than that. But if you do want to know more, they are perfect if you're on a diet because of the high natural fibre content, and they are also considered to be an aphrodisiac. What's not to like?
Everyone hates hearing that dull "You are what you eat", but it is so true. You look at people who live on fast food and you can just see the damage they are doing to themselves. The fact is, we all go on about beauty, but it is really health we are talking about. If you eat well and are healthy then it shows on your skin. I admit I am not a good example - I smoke so my skin suffers from that - but I do try to eat well and I notice the difference in how I look and feel when I do.
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So knock this salad up and give your skin a boost. Just go easy on the full-fat cheese.
MAKE IT YOURSELF
Arugula, gorgonzola, fig and walnut salad
INGREDIENTS
400g arugula (rocket) leaves
80g gorgonzola cheese, medium hard
80g dry figs (around 8)
40ml extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
40g shelled walnuts (around 20)
100g croutons (around 15), toasted
METHOD
1. Wash arugula leaves, dry with a salad dryer and set aside.
2. Cut the gorgonzola and figs into 1cm cubes.
3. Mix olive oil, salt and pepper in a blender (or hand whisk) until smooth.
4. Toss the arugula with the dressing and place in a salad bowl.
5. Top with gorgonzola, figs, walnuts and croutons and serve.
SERVES 8
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
