eG Foodblog: Lior - Spend a week in sunny Ashkelon.

[Peter Green]

Oh, fresh artichokes! The last time I was out west to Cairo I packed my suitcase with fresh artichokes, brought them home, and we ate them with garlic and butter.

That was too long ago.......

[racheld]

"Fresh from the morning!" What a wonderful way to express the goodness of the food---those fancypants menu writers with all their high-flown adjectives and descriptions would do well to use just that one, enticing phrase.

I thought for a moment the vendor was bending over a Decker melon, a local delicacy which sings its siren call only during July, and beckons with yearnings all the rest of the year. They're almost that big, and you'd laugh to see me bending over into the box, trying to one-hand one of those heavy basketballs out whilst I grip the box grimly for balance.

I'd LOVE to stroll that market, to smell the fresh green of it, and the spices, the tickle of mint and the musk of rolled rugs too long unsold. I'd take every one of those yard-long onions, gathering the sheaves up like Kim's nap-cats, just for the having of them.

And I love that there's shade in places---it's sad to see the midday or the afternoon vegetables, languishing their morning-fresh away in the sun. What a day this must be, with all the activity and calling and the gathering of good things to eat.

Thank you for this glimpse, from the greenness and the lush fruit to the sassy boy and the jarring SpongeBob underpants---a whole world set out on tables, waiting for you to come and buy.

Edited February 21, 2008 by racheld (log)

[Lior]

Rachel! Do you write!! You bring tears to my eyes! You see things in such a beautiful way!! It is breathtaking to read your descriptions !! Yes! I also love that glorious morning sun-it seems to scream to me" another beautiful God given day to those below!! Eat and partake! The moments pass so fast! I forgot to mention other noises. While hearing them Iwished I could record it to play along with the shuk part! But try to imagine- above the shouts and enthusiam, music plays- most often wailing type of "eastern music" With words to a young man's love "you are the flower in my garden... or- I am nothing without you, only half a man...!

And Peter- I LOVE artichokes. I make a butter, lemon,sumac, garlic and salt sauce and we dip each leaf until we get to the heart! I understand your desire!! Yes the smell is devine. Often the turkish coffee aroma mingles in with the herbs!

Let's go back to shuk!

"bikes " used by eoderly toget around. They also drive them on the street. The cover can become a convertable!

This is what I meant to post instead of the previous! This is the "don;t touch the cardboard"

arguing over goods

a minute from the shuk- itis a 700 year old building and hencethe name ofthis neighborhood: Tower- or as wecallit- Migdal. In arabic- majdal. note the satelite!

[Rehovot]

Ah, that pile of strawberries looks incredible!

Did you buy anything at the shuk? Do you have a big weekend meal planned?

Gorgeous photos... Thanks for blogging!

[racheld]

I meant to ask---of course everyone wants the best price, the most perfect produce---but is that altered or increased by the import of the Shabbat meal? I know that all care is taken, and all things are done reverently and by ritual, but do people increase their demand for the "best" on this special occasion, because of the religious nature of the meal?

[suzilightning]

Lior - have been lurking for awhile and I must have to say ...

please send ALL imperfect chocolates my way. Your chocolates are awesome! I could just imagine popping one in my mouth and letting it melt slowly on my tongue. MMmmMMmm

←

no, no....

please send them my way.

what beautiful food you have access to. i could dive into that cheese selection. as it is i'm salivating on the keyboard here at work.

thank you for this tour

[Lior]

I meant to ask---of course everyone wants the best price, the most perfect produce---but is that altered or increased by the import of the Shabbat meal?  I know that all care is taken, and all things are done reverently and by ritual, but do people increase their demand for the "best" on this special occasion, because of the religious nature of the meal?

←

Well shuk is on Wed and Thurs only in prep for the sabbath so thereis not much bargaining on food. I think if you come and buy a lot you ask for a discount. If something is not round and you ask- no discount for me?? He will lower a bit to the lower round number. With clothes it is a whole other story.

[Lior]

Lior - have been lurking for awhile and I must have to say ...

please send ALL imperfect chocolates my way. Your chocolates are awesome! I could just imagine popping one in my mouth and letting it melt slowly on my tongue. MMmmMMmm

←

no, no....

please send them my way.

what beautiful food you have access to. i could dive into that cheese selection. as it is i'm salivating on the keyboard here at work.

thank you for this tour

←

well I wish I could! You are, however, welcome to come get some!!!

[Pam R]

Todah rabah! I love the pictures from the shouk. They reminded me of wonderful afternoons spent at Macheneh Yehuda, trying to get the best prices for dates and fruit. Your pictures are so vivid I swear I can smell everything (smell is a powerful memory, isn't it?).

I'd love to try to gluten-free pita -- do they hold up to falafel well?

Kosher chicken legs (that's the thigh & the drum) sell on average for $2.50 here, or just under $8/lb. They'd be less expensive in the US and a couple of cities in Canada. I think the main difference in Israel and North America when it comes to (kosher) meat, is that more cuts are available in Israel because of the demand.

So the gluten free pita has corn starch, potato starch, rice flour, gluten free stabilizer, salt, sugar and yeast. A basic yellow cheese here costs appr. 10$ for a kilo (2.2pounds) A fancier one is 14$ a kilo. I just bought 10 thighs and legs of chicken (the leg with the triangle part) for about 20$. Is this expensive or not?

While the pomegranate in your pavement is more appropriate for a foodblog, I do have a thing for hamsas.

[Lior]

Peanut snack chips= Bamba, soup almonds and tehina ready spiced or actually herbed!

1. Bamba is the national snack from age8 months I think!! It is allnatural, from peanuts, is crunchy but quickly softens in the mouth and youkeep taking another one even aftersaying "enough!"

2. Soup almonds- also all natural, are tiny little delicious crunchy squares that you put in a bowl of thin soup. Like chicken soup or thin vegetable soup-not a thick soup.

3. herbed Tehina takes two mins to make and is delicious. It comes like a paste with the sesame oil floating on top, so one must mix it up a bit first. For one to two people 6 tablespoons of Tehina paste is enough. You add two TBS of water at a time and mix to incorporate it, then another 2until the right color and consistency is attained. SOme like it thicker, some thinner. Then over chopped cukes, tomatoes and other salads. On a sandwich like butter or mayonnaise. My kids love to take a roll to go, with tehina, humous and an omelette. Even cold is okay. Add some french fries- great!! Typical sandwich. Today Lior had one for lunch- on a short baguette and finished the whole thing!

Bamba:

soup almonds:

Tehina paste:

Add 2 tbl water:

add some more water:

some more and walla! You have tehina:

[Smithy]

Oh, where to start on my comments and compliments?

The shuk photos are so lively, I can almost hear the hubbub and smell the produce as the sun warms my skin. The glorious disarray of an open market is such fun, and there's little to match the luxury of the greens and the fruits and the garlic, artichokes, eggplant, tomatoes - all in piles of plenty, properly shaded. That is wealth of the best kind.

The weather - well, our sky is almost as blue today, but it's a dry born of cold. It does me good to see palm trees and signs of a warmer clime.

Thank you specifically for the tehina sauce instructions and pictures. I've been trying and failing to make it properly for a couple of years. It either seizes up (like chocolate with water) or tastes funny. Your photos will give me a guide. Maybe I need to start with another brand of tahina paste...

Do you make baba ghanoush in some form? What about chatzilim? I'd love to see some of that, if you've a mind. Chatzilim is something I can't find very often out here, and I don't know how to make it. Actually, I'm loving whatever you post. You're giving us a marvelous tour!

[kbjesq]

Peanut snack chips= Bamba, soup almonds and tehina ready spiced or actually herbed!

1. Bamba is the national snack from age8 months I think!! It is allnatural, from peanuts, is crunchy but quickly softens in the mouth and youkeep taking another one even aftersaying "enough!"

Bamba:

←

I know what you mean about the peanut snack chips! They are hard to stop eating. To me (an American) they are like a peanut-flavored version of a popular snack here - Cheetos (cheese-flavored puffs). But I have not seen them for sale in the U.S. I took this picture of the Bulgarian "bamba" last summer (the product inside looks exactly like that shown in your bowl, above):

I continue to enjoy your blog. I am surprised at how many things we have in common, although we live 6,000 miles apart.

[cakewalk]

Thank you specifically for the tehina sauce instructions and pictures.  I've been trying and failing to make it properly for a couple of years.  It either seizes up (like chocolate with water) or tastes funny.  Your photos will give me a guide.  Maybe I need to start with another brand of tahina paste...

←

Just FYI -- tehina will seize up when you first add water. You then have to add more water, just a little bit at a time, keep stirring, and it will start to smooth out. Then add water until you reach whatever consistency you like best. Many people think it is ruined when it seizes up in the beginning. It will also thicken as it rests, so if you have left over and refrigerate it, you might need to add water (or lemon juice) when you take it out of the fridge to use with your next meal. (Tehina is my favorite food. )

Lior -- what kind of tehina paste was that? I've never seen it with herbs already added, it looks good.

[Lior]

Okay. From last to first-sorry!

Yes, it is like chocolate and water! That is why you add in increments and mix in between. It took me under 2 minutes to make- all gone by now! It is Elite "m'tubelet" meaning including herbs and all. So it is perfect.

How amusing that you have a picture of Bulgarian Bamba!! Never knwew they had it! I would love to know our common grounds... other than what I have discovered already, of course!

Smithy- you have a lovely way with words! And you know some hebrew!!! Hatzilim or eggplant. It is in the picture with my typical dinners. Yes, I often have baba ganush which is tehina made up and mixed with mashed eggplant, which has been grilled on the flame till blackened. Then you have to scoop out the pulp without any black skin dots!!! What is the temp by you? Snow??

And to those who complimented my chocolates- thank you sooooo much!!!

[Smithy]

Smithy- you have a lovely way with words! And you know some hebrew!!! Hatzilim or eggplant. It is in the picture with my typical dinners. Yes, I often have baba ganush which is tehina made up and mixed with mashed eggplant, which has been grilled on the flame till blackened.  Then you have to scoop out the pulp without any black skin dots!!! What is the temp by you? Snow??

←

Aha, finally I know why I haven't been able to find recipes for hatzilim, under any spelling! There's a market in Minneapolis that makes and sells a salad they call "chatzilim". It has finely chopped cooked eggplant and a ton of garlic and I don't know what else. It doesn't have tehina. It's delicious and garlicky, to the point that you really need to warn someone if you've been eating it and they haven't. I thought it was a special salad, instead of just the Hebrew word for "eggplant". Thanks for the lesson!

This morning it was -25C when I got up. Yesterday it warmed up to -18C before it started cooling down again. We've had a very long string of very cold nights, unusual for this time of year, although February usually is cold. There's quite a bit of snow on the ground, too. No palm trees here!

Edited: spelling

Edited February 21, 2008 by Smithy (log)

[Lior]

Smithy! OMG!!! "warmed up" to -18C ?? Brrrrr- how long can one be outside? Hmmmm, you don't need a freezer! Yes! Chatzilim is eggplant!! Buy that and mix it in with your Tehina- when you make it! Cute about the garlic warning!!

[hummingbirdkiss]

your photos are amazing the sunshine...blue skies ...your everything ..it is a perfect time of year to share your blog for us who are in the midst of winter especially

the pile of artichokes looked like the Northern California harvests ... where I too pack a a suitcase full and take them back with me!!!

I have a long walk way and patio area ...am getting ready to pave..I would love to do something like you have only perhaps with ferns and trillium

thanks again it is just a joy to read through this

Edited February 22, 2008 by hummingbirdkiss (log)

[scubadoo97]

I have been really enjoying this blog. It is bring back recent memories from our trip to Israel this past summer. The shuk pictures are incredible. I wish I had more time to walk through the food markets in Israel. We did a little and shopped for things like nuts, seed, fruit and ka'ak. Things we could eat on the road. It was frustrating walking past all the produce, cheese, meat and fish and not be able to buy anything to cook.

Thanks for sharing a little slice of your life with us.

Shabbat Shalom to you are your family

[Lior]

Good morning- boker tov to all!! I am quite amazed how many people have visited Israel! Here we grumble about tourists not coming!! Humingbirdkiss! What a lovely idea to do in your pavement! I love it when people honor their area, heritage and surroundings! Ferns and trillium! Nice!

Here are those bakery pictures I promised from "Meshi" (silk) bakery:

Mideasternsweets:

Morrocan sweets:

the owner:

Pizza burekas:

Rogelach:

bringing outthe macaroons:

Bulgarian cheese burekas

bread like focaccia, with oliveoil,tomatoes and peppers:

last minute choices by the cashier

and now I am going tothe Yemenite store and later I am going over to my neighboe that lives kitty corner to my house. They are Moroccan originally and she is a real "Ballaboosta" which means a super duper housewife in very positive and proud terms - cleaning, cooking etc. She is amazing-you will see!

[Smithy]

I. ABSOLUTELY. MUST. go to bed now. But darn, it's fun staying up late in my time zone and visiting your blog! Aside from the fact that reading your blog is more delicious than going to bed, I love the contrast in our time zones: my day must wind down, and yours is just beginning anew!

[Smithy]

←

OK, so I'm still up, marveling at your blog. Your house looks beautiful, inside and out. I especially like the counters. What kind of stone are they? Is your house a fairly typical house in terms of construction and design? Is it fairly new? It looks very comfortable and stylish, as though someone had designed it lovingly to last a good lifetime.

... Near the Life cereal box are two jars- concentrated fig syrup-no added sugar and likewise with pommegranates. ...

←

This fall I made pomegranate concentrate by juicing pomegranates and cooking the juice down to syrup. It was so beautifully, deeply colored that I couldn't resist, and it shines at me from the freezer, a warm garnet in the depths of winter white. Now it's sitting in my freezer waiting for me to use it. Pomegranate sorbet is a possibility. There are sauces that feature pomegranate juice and walnuts. Still, I think I'm missing something. What do you do with your pomegranate syrup that hasn't been sweetened?

Once you've answered that question, please tell me what you do with the fig syrup.

Finally, I'm lusting after the chocolates you've shown us, just like most of the other readers. They look lovely!

[Lior]

Smithy! I hope you are in bed! If not-go! Right now!! I also boil down pommegranatejuice but I sometimes get very laaaazy!! I use the unsweet always and it is naturally sweet and tart! On lots of stuff. On chicken.meat, in salad dressings for leafy salads with walnuts it is great and then if you have fresh poms you decorate with a few seeds. Figs - the same. I also you them in ganache for my chocolates.

My house is the usual construction. We use cement biggish bricks to build, not wood. All cement- poured in poured on for support and strength. Perhaps my house is a bit big but new houses now are getting bigger. But I do take great care in everything I choose and I do plan on living a lifetime here! The counters are granite stone. Iw ill photo my coffee table cause it also has those themes like the outside paving. Now I have to go take photos at my MIL and neighbors. Sleep tight!

[Chufi]

I'm enjoying this so much. Market pictures, always my favorite, and then all that lovely bread and those pastries! Rugelach! I want one of those right now!

I also love the mosaics in your pavement, especially the pomegranate. Beautiful.

[Lior]

Thank you Chufi! Now a sneak peak and then later the food pictures!

This is my coffee table. It is made by the carpenter whose wife taught all my kids first and second grade over the years! He also did all the carpentry work in the house. I chose natural stone tiles and tiles with the symbols mentioned before.

up close- the fish - kind of hard to see?:

the hamsa

and the pommegranate

[Lior]

I am back! So here are some pictures from the tiny Yemenite store I visited this morning.

First of all,most yemenite food is baked slowly in the oven, save a few delicious fried goodies! Here is one- it is called either Galuba or Zalabiyya. It is like a fried donut with Ketzach seeds- that is black cumin or Nigella seeds. It is eaten in the morning.

and cut just for you:

a bit about this group of people:

Operation Magic Carpet is the nickname for Operation On Wings of Eagles, which occurred between June 1949 and September 1950 that brought 49,000 Yemenite Jews to Israel. British and American transport planes made some 380 flights from Aden, in a secret operation that was not made public until several months after it was over. At some point, the operation was also called Operation Messiah's Coming. The nickname came about because most of the yemenites had never seen an aircraft before.

The operation's official name originated from two relevant biblical passages: Exodus 19:4 - "You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I bore you on wings of eagles, and brought you to Myself." And from the Book of Isaiah 40:31 - "But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

Since they had never seen aircraft before, many of the immigrants were extremely scared and refused to board the plane, but were convinced when reminded of these verses by their rabbi!! To them the plane was like a magic carpet. Interesting!

The next pic is one of a dish called Kubaneh. It is baked in the same pot as Jachknun- mention earlier in another entry. You can see the pot under the Kubaneh. It is also cooked slowly for hours and is eaten with clariefied butter- see 2nd pic for this. The woman said that regualr butter has a lot of dirt in it and so claried butter is better.

Hilbeh: The lighter green is not hot-as in spicy - whereas the darker is. Both are green due to parsley and coriander leaves. My MIL does not use leaves- it is a matter of choice.

Sabiyyeh: layers and layers of thin sheets in groups. I couldnot get agood photo of the thin sheets-only the groups-sorry:

Pita and Lackhuckh(lots of guttural noises here!!)

up close of the pita which is made in an outside stone oven and stuck on the walls of the oven:

Lachuch- a soft pita a bit chewy, almost like a pancake but not really:

Another type of pita- smaller and called Salaf:

Tomorrow we will have Jachnun for breakfast with the eggs and grated tomatoes so that photo will come later!

Keep checking in cause soon I will post the Morrocan kitchen!