melamed

This is a hilarious thread. I really don't know why metaphors and similes are being excommunicated from the food writer's repertoire.If used well it can add a bit of colloquial color to a piece of writing. Also don't understand the length some writers go to avoid words they feel are overused. Will this drag professional writing to the level of the common blogger? And how long does an overused word need to be quarantined before being allowed to circulate again?

I am more offended by stupid ideas than by word choice.

Some bloggers/writers are exhibitionists and cursing seems to be employed to grab a reader's attention, for others it is the natural part of their vocabulary. There are those who are sensitive to profanity because of their cultural upbringing and I think that a writer needs understand their audience to avoid offending them. Unless it is meant to illustrate voice and character, like in this case, cursing can quickly become cheap.

the stupidest gadget I have is a chopstick training set. How long does it take to learn to use chopsticks?

I was told to store the herbs in the freezer on a bed of coarse salt. I also read that it is possible to preserve basil layered in salt and stored in the refrigerator but I have yet to try that method.

I think the clean water act was a response to water contamination found in several schools, for example here and the general fear of drinking tap water (partly perpetuated by bottled water companies) I would hate to see more waste from bottles instead of developing stricter regulations for tap water and perhaps more fountains.

goodness, What have some of you been eating through childhood? What tasted gross while I was a kid never got better. The only thing I remember truly loving but now I like much less are Hershey chocolate bars. It was worse than I remember but not to the gag inducing level of oatmeal or velveta.

California has decided to give school children free clean water. This is good news, but what took so long? LINK While traveling in some of the poorer areas of Europe it was clear that many people had very little, but they did understand the importance of providing water to every visitor and citizen alike. The village fountain is one of the most welcoming symbols when entering any village or town. We saw these fountains all over Eastern Europe.

The Israeli mint tea, a culinary habit introduced by the Moroccans, is often made with black tea instead of the traditional green tea. This was simply because in the early days of Israel's existence green tea was not available. Although green tea can be obtained now, most people prefer their mint tea either plain (with only fresh spearmint leaves) or with black tea.

thanks for the answer, it makes sense to me. If freekah has a higher protein/starch ratio than regular wheat it would have a lower glycemic index and be better for those with diabetes. (However, proteins do not turn into starch). fresh chickpeas are in season here as well, very yummy roasted with salt

In general I know what farik is- green wheat that has been burnt to remove the tough outer covering creating a smoky flavored grain. My question is, what kind of wheat is used to make farik- spelt or duram? Second, why is the wheat burnt in the first place? Why isn't it left to mature and picked when the grain is dry? These are the answers and ideas I received so far: Burning releases nutrients which would not otherwise be bioavailable Burning kills the parasites on the grain and enables long term storage It is an easy way to remove the tough outer husk. Any ideas?

I used Claudia Roden's recipe for ma'amouls using white flour dough. Her recipe is very good except the butter content is high and the cookies tend to melt and don't hold their shape well. It is often made with a mix of semolina and white flour. Observant Muslims of course would never add rum, wine or any alcohol in theirs and I don't associate those flavors with ma'amouls. I have never tried mahlab (cherry pits) in ma'amouls and would love to try it like that. I love the addition of rosewater or orange blossom water, especially together with date filling (Medjools)

This sounds like an interesting course but for those who don't want to pay 145$ there are several extensive and informative English Israeli food blogs that discuss everything from recipes, outdoor markets, restaurants, vegetarian diets, history, culture and much more. Although Haim Cohen is a well known and respected celebrity chef in Israel, the food blogs available present much more than he can in a three part course. thanks lior for the link

I once smuggled a banana from Thailand into New Zealand by accident. I spent the night scrubbing my hiking boats to make sure I had nothing on them but had completely forgotten about the banana. At the airport I was sniffed out by a large German Shepard and surrounded by NZ police who told me to empty the contents of my carry-on, I felt like a drug smuggler. In another incident, had a major delay when the scans detected what looked like a bomb- a bottle of maple syrup.

I like dayglo cheetos, the kind made with 90% MSG. I googled (marshmallow) peeps as had no idea what they were. I try to avoid recipes that tell me to brunoise, don't have the patience for that (and don't have any cookbooks by Julia Childs). I threw my foodmill out and mash my potatoes the old fashioned way. I never ate kraft mac and cheese, am I missing something? and....... am a bit perplexed when reading descriptions of gourmet wine, have no idea what they are talking about