Since my last post, I’ve been edified on the matter of the farfahina that I found in the Wadi Nisnas market. My esteemed friend Mark Rubin, who is very wise on matters of local foods, informed me that it’s English name is purslane and it commonly grows on the East Coast of the US. Not … Read More »
galilee
Why Can’t We Cook Together?
These past weeks I’ve been feeling too disheartened to write, but the outings I had yesterday and today, investigating places for my culinary tours, did much to lift my spirits. I started Thursday morning at Lavona Grove, on an exceptionally beautiful slope overlooking the Sea of Galilee. That morning, missiles from Lebanon had hit sites … Read More »
Luf at Last
Last weekend Ron and I were guests at our very old friends’, Fatma and Abdullah, in the Bedouin village of Kaabiye. I told them about my interest in cooking luf, and their daughter Hal’la, who happened to be visiting, invited me to come to her home one day and she would show me how. This … Read More »
The Luf Challenge
This is Luf. Now that there have been several good rains, it seems like every day a new luf plant appears in my yard. Challenging me. In traditional Galilee Arab cooking, luf is not only a delicacy, but is considered to have powerful medicinal properties. A doctor I know told me of families bringing pots … Read More »
Pomegranates Waning
Pomegranates herald the new year – the Jewish new year that is – which means their bright red orbs suspended among the yellowing leaves on their bushes give us former East-coasters a feeling of autumn. Now with Hannuka just around the corner, the late-ripening pomegranate varieties are still in the stores and its a last … Read More »