Safta Marcee's Fd "I have never tasted anything like it ……"
Safta Marcee's Fd “I have never tasted anything like it ……” 3
The idea for the book was raised during the Shiva period. Writing and preparing the recipes: Bilha Shamir Editing recipes: Moshe Shamir Food photography: Matti Ben Moshe Cover photography: Moshe Shamir Digital development of photos from Iraq: Michael Katz Design and graphic editing: Netta Ben Moshe, Erez Ben Moshe Proofreading: Aviram Gang Language consultant: Yotam Ben Moshe English translation: Sonia Slonim, Keren Jontof-Hutter, Shaul Jontof-Hutter English proofreading: Matti Ben Moshe, Ori Ben Moshe, Meirav Ben Moshe, Yotam Ben Moshe Design and graphic editing of English text: Lauren Kessel 4
Moth, Grth, G-grth Marcee You established a family tribe with the culinary heritage that you brought with you from Iraq. While you were a trail blazer and married Saba Aharon from Poland, the culinary heritage at home was predominantly yours, and you passed it on to the whole tribe. Family values were important to you, and in preparing this book, cooperation played a central role. We cooked, took photographs, edited, scanned, reminisced together and published a recipe book that is filled with a sense of nostalgia. Every day during the Shiva, together we cooked and ate the dishes that we had learned from you, Safta. This book is dedicated to you, as a memoir for current and future generations who will enjoy eating your delicious food, like those who were privileged to eat the food that you cooked. 5
Marcee B-Mhe of the Haika family 1925-2020 Safta Marcelle immigrated to Israel in the middle of high school and she was forced to leave behind her studies and dreams of further education. In the sewing mill where she worked, she met Saba Aharon, a Holocaust survivor from Poland, the lone survivor of his family. After their marriage, he was adopted and assimilated into the Haika family that included six siblings, parents and many aunts and uncles. The family had fled penniless to the Holy Land during “Operation Ezra & Nehemiah”. The family values were their guiding light, and they created the dedicated tightknit unit that we are all a part of, with happiness and gratitude. Her dream of further education, which she mourned again and again, guided her in ensuring that her children would follow it without compromise. Her stubbornness paid off, and she too “succeeded” in her own way. She did not give up on her ascetic lifestyle and her little home, 45m2, on Hahistadrut Street, Holon, where she raised her children, even when she could no longer use the stairs. That is how she lived, and this is how she passed away; in her own way, without anyone being able to alter her course or change her. 6
Cs VEGETARIAN DISHES 8 OKRA 10 KICHRI - RICE WITH RED LENTILS 12 KUGEL - SWEET NOODLE PIE 14 OMELETTE WITH CHEESE 16 EGGPLANT SALAD 18 MEKHALLALA 20 FISH 28 GEFILTE FISH - SWEET FISH 30 SALONA - SWEET AND SOUR FISH 32 MEAT DISHES 41 BEETROOT KUBBA/PUMPKIN KUBBA/OKRA KUBBA 42 MEATBALLS WITH DRIED FRUIT 48 KUBBA POTETA 50 MEATBALLS 52 INGRIYI - MEAT AND EGGPLANT CASSEROLE 54 MAHASHI MAKHLUTA - STUFFED VEGETABLES 56 PLAU B’JEEJ - RED RICE WITH CHICKEN 58 SHORBA 60 TBEET - IRAQI-STYLE CHOLENT 62 MAFRUM - LYBIAN STUFFED POTATOES 64 DESSERT AND SWEETS 70 BA’ABA WITH DATES/NUTS 72 BA’ABA WITH CHEESE 74 HUMMUS SAMBUSAK 76 KA’AKAT 78 RED PLUM/PEACH/APRICOT/QUINCE JAM 80 CANDIED CITRUS PEEL 82 COMPOTE 84 SWEET CARROT SALAD 86 9
Veg Vegtarian arian D Dshhs
OKRA Preparation time: 60 minutes Serves 6 Ingredients ½ kg okra 6 tbsp lemon juice 2 small, grated tomatoes A little oil 1 chopped onion ½ tsp salt Pinch of black pepper 2-3 tsp sugar Hot paprika Sweet paprika Ground garlic or one crushed garlic clove Method 1. Fry onions till golden brown, add tomatoes and bring to a boil. 2. Once boiled, add okra. 3. Cook on very low heat until you get a very light colour. 4.Add the lemon, sugar and salt. 5. Add water and adjust flavours as needed. 6. After boiling, you can add fried meat balls. 12
KICHRI – RICE WITH RED LENTILS Preparation time: 30 minutes Serves 4-6 Ingredients 1 cup washed basmati rice 1 cup washed red lentils 1 small onion chopped 5 crushed cloves of garlic 2-4 grated tomatoes 1 tsp tomato puree (optional) 2 cups water Oil 2 tsp salt Black pepper ¼ tsp hot paprika or ground paprika 1 tsp cumin Method 1. Fry the onions until golden brown, add black pepper, paprika and 1 clove of garlic. 2. Once the onions caramelize, add the tomatoes and cook for five minutes. Add 1 ½ cups of water and the salt. Bring the mix to a boil and then reduce the heat and let it simmer for ten minutes. Note: the additional ½ cup water depends on the thickness of the cooked tomatoes. You add the water, if needed, towards the end of the cooking. 3. Add the rice and lentils. Cook for an additional 5 minutes on low heat. 4.Cook with a lid covered with a towel. Stir once from the bottom up, so as to not break the rice. 5. At the same time, in a separate frying pan, heat the oil and add 4 cloves of garlic and fry until light brown, turn the heat off and then add the cumin. Overcooking the garlic makes it bitter. 6. Once the rice is almost cooked (when most of the water in the pot has evaporated), add the browned garlic with 2 tbsp of oil or butter. Note: Can be served with a fried egg on top of the rice with yoghurt or sour cream and vegetable salad. Nana (Safta), Hela, used to cook kichri with fried fish saturated in oil. I loved it. The younger siblings don’t remember it. Bilha Kichri was my favorite dish. You just can’t stop eating it. Yoav 14
KUGEL – SWEET NOODLE PIE Preparation time: 80 minutes Serves 8-10 Ingredients 1 packet (no. 10) thin or medium noodles 2-3 eggs 2-3 tbsp sugar Salt Black pepper 1 tsp cinnamon ¼ cup raisins (optional) One large apple cubed (optional) Method 1. Boil water with salt, partly cook the noodles – not too much so that they remain partly solid and not too soft (al dente). 2. Rinse the noodles in cold water to immediately stop the cooking. 3. In a bowl whisk 3 eggs with cinnamon, salt and pepper. 4.Add the noodles and mix. 5. Heat oil in a frypan or wide pot. 6. Place noodle mixture and flatten with a spoon. 7. Fry on each side for about 2-3 minutes. Attention – don’t burn (it dries out). Note: Safta Marcelle used to make kugel on a kerosene burner. Instead, place in the oven in a Pyrex dish or wide pot covered in aluminum foil. Heat oven to 90-1200C and bake for approximately 4 hours. Safta Marcelle received this recipe from Lipsha Mayerovitch, the mother of the family that adopted Saba when he came to Israel. We used to eat the kugel in the early hours of the evening and in winter when it was already dark. Israel 16
OMELETTE WITH CHEESE Preparation time: 10 minutes Serves 4 Ingredients 4-6 eggs 50 grams grated cheese 50 grams hard Tzfat cheese or Iraqi jibn Method 1. Beat eggs. 2. Add cheeses and mix. 3. Fry in generously greased frypan until golden brown and firm. Flip and cook the other side and fry it as well. Notes: No need to add salt since the cheese already contains salt. Recommended to serve with salad, cottage cheese with a pita charred on a gas stove. Dad used to fry a sausage and use its fat. Sometimes, if it was a whole wurst, he would slice it thinly, pour the eggs on it and fry them. Sometimes he would use pork and then would tell me: “You are not allowed to eat this!” Bilha Dad would make us the omelette and leave it for us on the kitchen bench before he left early in the morning for work. We would take out a pita from the packet of 25, which he had received from the bakery staff. He used to sew covers for their machines, and they would give him pitot in exchange. I remember on Fridays, we would drive in Eddie’s (Marcelle’s brother) or Moshe’s car and help him. We would put the omelette in a whole pita that we would heat up over the gas stove. I would eat it for lunch on my way back to the army wherever I was. Yoav Saturday morning, the bed becomes a couch again. I look at Safta and take a comb out of the small bamboo drawer and comb my hair. Soon we will make an omelette for breakfast, generously oiled, obviously in a pita. Safta takes a deck of cards out of the cutlery drawer and teaches me how to play solitaire. We would look at old photo albums and stamp collections and I would listen to these stories from the past that I probably heard before. A granddaughter spending time with her grandmother. Soon dad will arrive, I will return to my home, she will stay in hers. Another experience that has become a memory. Noga 18
EGGPLANT SALAD Preparation time: 30 minutes Serves 6-10 Ingredients 2 medium eggplants 1-2 tbsp raw tahini 4 stalks of parsley 1-2 crushed cloves of garlic ¼ tsp black pepper 1 small hot pepper finely chopped 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tsp salt Method 1. Preheat the oven to 2000C and roast eggplants. 2. When the eggplants are soft, peel and place in colander to drain liquid, about 10 minutes. 3. Add the other ingredients. 20
MEKHALLALA Preparation time: 10 minutes Ingredients 2 kg turnips without leaves 1 peeled red beetroot 1 tbsp salt for every cup water 4-6 cups water depending on the size of the jar 3 tbsp citrus vinegar ½ tsp lemon salt 1 tsp sugar 8-10 grains peppercorns Hot pepper (optional) 2 sliced carrots (optional) Method 1. Slice the turnips into pieces about 5mm thick. 2. Slice the beetroot into pieces about 5mm thick. 3. Mix the salt and water in a jar (for a small beetroot, a 1 litre jar will do). 4.Add other ingredients and mix well. 5. Arrange layers in the jar of turnip-carrot-beetroot and repeat. 6. Press tightly and add liquids and spices. 7. Close jar tightly and leave in a shaded place for 6-10 days. Open the jar carefully due to fermentation. 22
Aharon, Shoshana, Morris and Marcelle Marcelle and Eddie Marcelle in a Purim costume Shaul, Tikvah, Hela, Marcelle, Leah and Aharon in the transit camp Marcelle in Iraq Lili, Osnat, Yoav and Marcelle 24
Eddie, Hela, Morris, Tzion, Tikvah and Marcelle Leah, Aharon, Matti, Israel, Yoav, Bilha and Marcelle at Israel’s Bar Mitzvah Marcelle and Aharon on their wedding day Marcelle in Iraq Marcelle on the train in Iraq 25
Meri Lggs Mom, there are things that are with me and will stay with me for life and they are all related to the values that you held. First and foremost, studies (you invested a lot in us – extra lessons and anything required for success). “First class” dental care at Dr Achiron in Tel Aviv. One does not compromise on shoes, only “PIL” shoes (corner of Allenby and Nachalat Binyamin), clean and neat house and you also demanded that I prepare lunch for my older sister, Leah. And most of all you asked me to take care of my younger siblings – Israel, Yoav and Matti, something I did with a lot of love! Even when I went to study in the Carmit boarding school in Jerusalem, when I would come home for the weekends (once or twice a month), the first thing you would ask me to do, before I even had a chance to put my bag down, was to clean the apartment and tidy up the house. Despite all the obstacles in the way, and there were certainly many, everything was done with pleasure and created a very special bond with my brothers throughout the years. You did not like baking, and I gladly became the home’s baker. I would enjoy watching everyone eating my baked goods. (Dad used to say that the cake wasn’t tasty but with his famous Swiss knife he would finish the whole cake). But your love of cooking and the kitchen’s aromas accompany me and I assume the other members of the family too. After I got married, I returned from time to time for lunch on Saturdays with my brothers and often with Dov, dad’s friend. “Mom’s cooking” became a phrase that is still used by the whole family to this day. After a while, when we developed our own recipes and we asked you to taste the food, you responded by saying “I have never tasted anything like it.” A phrase that you would use for any dish you did not know, and if it reminded you of a familiar dish you would add “but in Iraq it was different.” Visions of the past, memories, scents, and flavors remind us of your love of the kitchen and delicacies you were so proud of, as well as the pleasure you derived from watching people enjoy your food - our family, aunt, uncles and relatives, friends, and acquaintances. Even if someone just passed by to say hello you would say: “Why didn’t tell me you were coming, I would have made something, there is nothing at home…!”. We were privileged to taste rich, varied, colorful and delicious flavours that you enjoyed preparing with much love, even when requesting that you make food for vegetarian family members – you enjoyed watching us all eating and enjoying your food (one cannot ignore your phrase “there should be no food left on the plate!”) All of this has influenced me greatly. In fact, in my own way, I do, and have over the years done, quite a lot of what I had seen happen with my own children and grandchildren. With your love for Iraqi cooking, you managed to strengthen the bond between us siblings. We chose this special recipe book for your glorious and delicious recipes. A book that will enable all of us, at any place and any time, to cook, taste and praise your amazing dishes. Your children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren were privileged to experience the heritage of Iraqi food “From Marcelle’s Kitchen”, that we are proud of. Bilha, your daughter 26
Bilha & Marcelle at Bilha’s 60th birthday Marcelle & Shlomit Noga & Yoav, Bilha, Aviram, Marcelle, Israel & Noa at Aviram’s officer graduation ceremony Marcelle, Noa, Ronnie & Bilha holding Harel Marcelle reading the newspaper with Christie Ronnie baked a challah for Safta Marcelle 27
Marcelle & Lian Marcelle, Eli, Harel, Ronnie, Noa, Bilha & Adar Elianna & Marcelle Marcelle, Moshe & Bilha Yanai, Marcelle, Shlomit & Imri Eli, Marcelle, Noa, ---, Moshe, Rachel, Bilha, Mariam, Shlomit, Aviram, Robert, Ronnie 28
Marcelle, Aviram, Rami & Mariam Marcelle & Imri Nurit, Noga, Yotam, Matti, Meirav, Yoav, Tamar, Marcelle, Moshe, Shlomit (on video call), Noa having a ‘l’chaim’ for Moshe’s promotion to rank of Brigadier General (in the IDF) In year 11, I lived with Safta. At the end of the first day of school, when I arrived home to the last house on Hahistadrut Street in Holon, there was a scornful conversation awaiting me “in my home, you do not leave the house without eating breakfast!”. A conversation that can be summarised in one sentence. Grandmotherly love. One thing that comes from Safta’s home is that it is all about EATING. From that day on, for a whole year, and regardless of being hungry or not (being full was not a feeling that received much understanding), every morning at 5:00am there was an omelette waiting for me with two pitot toasted on the gas stove along with cut vegetables. At Safta’s, the cupboards also did not go to sleep on an empty stomach. Every piece of furniture was like a storeroom. There was no room for any piece of furniture that had not three purposes and four functions. As a child, I was enchanted by the secret spaces found around every corner. The entrance, the large white bookcase in the living/sleeping/dining room, the cupboards in the small room, that to this day I find hard to believe had a back panel. From an elastic band, a toothpick, to a dinner set, there was no object that could not fit into this apartment. Safta’s flat was a place of resilience. Physical resilience, the place of all objects, a storage place. But also emotional resilience. The objects will be emptied out but the other type of resilience, the strength of the food will stay with us. Aviram 29
FFshh
GEFILTE FISH – SWEET FISH Preparation time: 60 minutes Serves 6-8 Ingredients 2 carps 2-3 sliced onions 2-3 carrots slices 1 tbsp sugar Pinch salt Ground black pepper Method 1. Soak the fish for half an hour in lemon and salt. Rinse. 2. Place the onion in a pot and pour one cup of water and bring it to boil. 3. Add sugar. 4.Once it comes to boil place the fish in the pot. 5. Bring it once again to boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for an hour and a half. Once the cooking is done, put the fish, vegetables and onion into separate dishes and cool. This recipe too was given to Safta by Lipsha Mayerovitch, the mother of the family that adopted Saba Aharon when he made Aliyah to Israel. The fish was served as entrée on Jewish holidays and special occasions. Dad’s favourite part was the fish head. He enjoyed the eyes. We did not like watching him eat them, so he would say to us: “Your faces, you don’t understand anything” Bilha 32
SALONA - SWEET AND SOUR FISH Preparation time: 180 minutes – prepare a day in advance Serves 10 Ingredients 1 kg Nile perch (carp can be used) Canola oil for frying ¼ cup of flour 8-10 onions sliced 8-10 ripe tomatoes sliced Salt Pepper Sweet paprika Hot paprika Garlic powder (alternatively 2-3 cloves of crushed garlic) 2 tbsp pomegranate concentrate 16 tbsp fresh lemon juice 4-6 tbsp sugar 25 by 25 cm Pyrex baking dish Method 1. Salt the fish, squeeze fresh lemon juice and let it rest for half an hour. 2. Dip fish in flour on all sides and fry in oil. Put aside. 3. Using the same pan, fry the onions. Add the sweet paprika, hot paprika, pepper and garlic. 4.In the Pyrex dish arrange a layer of tomato slices, then a layer of fried onions, then the fish, then another layer of onions and tomatoes. Ensure that it will cover all the fish. 5. In a bowl mix lemon juice, sugar and pomegranate concentrate (do not add water-there is plenty from the tomatoes and onions). 6. Cover in baking sheet and place in the oven. Set the oven to 180⁰C and bake for half an hour. Then turn the heat down to 120-140⁰C and bake for an additional 90-120 minutes. Note: It is recommended to serve the dish with white rice. We will continue to eat: Kichri and red rice. Kubba and Salona that will keep you with us at the Rosh Hashanah table forever. It will never taste like Safta’s but it will keep something of her in this world. Orly 34
Leah, Marcelle, Israel, Aharon, Bilha, Matti & Yoav Marcelle picking blueberries in Norway Limor, Eddi & Marcelle 36
Marcelle Aharon & Marcelle on Passover Eve Marcelle & Yoav on a hike Yoav & Matti Matti, Marcelle, Yoav, Leah & Israel on Passover Eve Matti, Moshe & Yoav 37
Mom was born on Shavu’ot and she is even older than the state (of Israel). Like all of our parents, the history of both goes hand in hand. When I dug through photo albums, I found myself staring at photos from the last century and imagining a world functioning in terms that can be found in history books and connecting mom’s stories which were told time and again. Suddenly all the stories connect to one very clear picture. In the picture, the adults look so young and smooth skinned, mom as a baby and even her mother as a baby. Another photo and there she is twelve years later. And from afar, the Euphrates and Tigris rivers a re-flowing “and on the mountain grows a palm tree”- Bialik’s song is playing in my head and I shoo it away, because it is not from there. Longing for the scents of the market and home arise when envisioning the bridge above the river on the way to school. After a one hour walk on the Shara el-Rashid (Baghdad’s main street) to the loving Uncle Nagi and Aunty Georgia, who generously give of their best and the scents of Shabbat food and the Arab neighbors, el Alussi and the friend from school. At school, learning by rote, no writing (!). Idyllic. So full of longings. I remember getting together on Friday night and the holiness of the day. And in the background, very softly, are the stories of the land of Israel and mom is already around 20 years old. And I come back to myself and I have a family tree to create. This is not a family – it is a city! And the photo of Aunt Guja is missing, I don’t remember her. I do remember Aunt Chnini, but I don’t remember Guja! But I know she is Saba’s sister and I grasp the dynasty of the brothers. It can’t be that I don’t remember what she looks like. Tamar is breathing down my neck saying: “Dad, who is this beautiful person in this photo?” And I point my finger and go through my memory and count one by one recounting who is who. Suddenly, there is no doubt in my mind that this is Aunty Guja. I remember her and how we came back from a visit to Rehovot, there in her apartment, after a visit to Uncle Ephraim, in a house surrounded by a garden, going by taxi booked by Uncle Zion. Don’t ask me how I got to these memories, but they sit in my head. And if you insist on asking, I will explain what Daud’s head is doing inside the window frame in Dad’s room, there in Kerem HaTeimanim. I always thought that he was a family member. And here is beautiful Sa’ida, before she left to the USA, and Tikva, the little girl before the uncle’s wedding and Eddie the Golan’chik (Golani is an Israeli military infantry brigade) as a fresh recruit (for that, as you know I have special sentiments) and Morris, the little boy. I’m overwhelmed. Confused with all the characters and memories and here is Meirav in the transit camp? I instantly realise that I am in trouble and rush to place the photos in the correct place. ‘Ish ushuf’ - (Live and See). Hela, Tikvah & Marcelle at the train Marcelle, Eddie, Shaul, Tikvah & Hela next to the tent in the Holon transit camp station in Iraq 38 فوشو شیع
Mom arrived in Israel before her entire family, together with her brother Eddie. They waited for the arrival of the family for two months in Tel Aviv. “Oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem” (again, Safta’s expression). I imagine as if they are in a sort of summer camp, sleeping in tents and not doing much. Holidaying. What do you do for two months doing nothing, with no language, surrounded by people from different cultures? From Babylon to the Tower of Babel! Now my imagination feels almost at home. I skip from tent to tent in the mud, wind, heat waves on a bumpy road. The food plates are floating in a “Euphrates” of rain, and “we” are all with our feet on the beds, waiting for the storm to pass. A holy land - we knew that. But so poor. ‘Tzena’ (austerity). No money. We must work. From now mom has buttons running past her eyes, someone winks at her and she thinks that he is not Jewish. But he seems nice to her. He came to the Ma’abara (immigrant and refugee absorption camps established in Israel in the 1950s) twice and went to Saba to ask for mom’s hand. And they fuel the fire of the ‘Shevet’ (Tribe – here I mean “the family” as a tribe), so that he will continue to sit around the fire they lit. And in their lives “no rams horn has blown before them; their heads were not caressed in winter.” (“Around the Fire” – legendary Poem written by Nathan Alterman in 1948 for the Palmach - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmach). The smell of the tent, the annoying mud. They call it Ma’abara. Not sure what longings there can be to Ma’abara. The family is already scattered, and their motif is survival. In the photos everyone is smiling. There is certainly love of life around. So much optimism and I note to ask mom how was it possible? How is that everyone appears happy and smiling? From the sand dunes of the Ma’abara – 50 years after and what has happened after? Children enter the photo album and it is us. And I no longer need to imagine, rather I need to bring the stories to life. In these stories, there is a household to run, and mom does this with determination and setting a goal for us all. A goal that we had to say repeatedly as we approached her: EDUCATION! A recurring value that mom was so proud of and we are so grateful for. This value was so entrenched that we read anything that “moves” around the house. Even columns in the “Al Hamishmar” newspaper, that were never intended to be read. This obsession must have affected our genes as she has grandchildren that even read the useless information that is on the cereal boxes and milk cartons and happily share that information with those around. “MAY YOU BE SUCCESSFUL!” Tzion, Shaul, Ephraim (Shaul’s brother), Aharon, Naim, David, Yaakov, Eddie, Tikvah, Tzion from Rishom Le’Tzion (son of Ephraim), Etti, Morris, Sigalit, Hela, Frieda, Tina, Bilha, Leah, Marcelle, Israel Israel and Marcelle 39
A confession: through the years you thought that when you spoke Iraqi Arabic next to me, I wouldn’t understand a word. So just to let you know that something did sink in even though I cannot put one coherent sentence in Iraqi Arabic together – I just can’t. So sometimes I utter some phrases such as: “Esh sar?” “Ashlon remad!” “Sarsari”, “Gawad”, I long for their sound and meaning but I never say them in the correct context. Therefore, I found a way to connect the generations and we had Yotam and Arabic found Yotam and Safta found both. And Yotam already corrects Safta and translates what is hidden from us. And as if from nowhere, mom pulls out a photo of real roots, a photo from 1906. It is easy for me to connect to it now, so much that even the scents of Baghdad fill my nostrils. In the photo are mom’s parents, good looking and young and full of vitality. And this vitality goes far and reaches here, with a healthy whisper. And out of the photo roll out connections and stories and the names connect to one stormy event that reaches today and bursts out to light the whole family. Marcelle on her mom’s lap, her father, Shaul, and two cousins, 1928 Marcelle & Yotam at the Marcelle “Common Language” ceremony in 2010 Tzion, Lili, Bilha, Shlomo, Israel, Marcelle, Aharon, Hela, Shaul and Eddie 40
Yoav, Leah, Israel, Bilha and Matti And we, the children, thank mom that miraculously reached these heights with fortitude with that “lad” from Kerem Hateimanim. And we pray that there will be more stories. See the glory of the family that shines from the photo albums and is here now, in the same fire that was lit by mom and dad together. “FARRAHTU ALBI ULFRAH BIKUM” (meaning – you cheered my heart, may joy be with you) Israel And mom filled the home with those Iraqi dishes. With recipes that repeat themselves throughout the years with the same scents and flavours. And they are all made with the same ingredients. (Assis lemon juice and garlic powder from Norway). As an observer, you will never understand the quantities that need to be mixed up. In later years, when she was too weak to cook, she was exposed to the kitchens of her daughters-in-law and although she had tasted different flavours she would say: “I HAVE NEVER TASTED ANYTHING LIKE THIS.” 41
Me Met D Dshhs
BEETROOT KUBBA/PUMPKIN KUBBA/OKRA KUBBA Preparation time: 120 minutes 70 units Beetroot/pumpkin gravy ingredients 1 medium onion chopped 6-8 beetroots, cut and in 3cm cubes OR Pumpkin cut in 4cm cubes 400 grams grated tomatoes 1 tbsp tomato paste 2 stalks celery Liquid left from grated onion 4-6 cups water 12 tbsp lemon juice 1 tbsp pomegranate concentrate 2 tbsp sugar 1 tbsp salt 2 tsp paprika ¼ tsp hot paprika 1 tsp garlic powder Method 1. In a wide saucepan sauté chopped onion, salt, black pepper, paprika, hot paprika and garlic powder. 2. Add beetroot/pumpkin and mix with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes. 3. Add grated tomato, tomato paste, celery and onion water. 4.When golden add water, salt, lemon juice, sugar and pomegranate concentrate. 5. Taste and season, it is important the salt is dominant. 6. Bring to the boil – important that the pot is boiling when you add the kubbas otherwise they will fall apart. Okra gravy ingredients 1 large onion finely chopped 1 tbsp pomegranate concentrate 1 kg okra, washed and cleaned 1 tbsp salt 10 tbsp grated tomatoes Black pepper 1 tbsp tomato paste 2 tsp paprika 2 stalks celery ¼ tsp hot paprika 6 cups water 1 tsp garlic powder 7-8 tbsp lemon juice Method 1. In a wide saucepan sauté chopped onion, salt, black pepper, paprika, hot paprika and garlic powder. 2. Add okra, and sauté until its colour is lighter. 3. When golden add water, salt, lemon juice, sugar and pomegranate concentrate. 4.Bring to the boil – important that the pot is boiling when you add the kubbas otherwise they will fall apart. 5. Cook for an hour. When you are a teenage girl, the earliest you would wake up on a Saturday morning was mid-day. You come down to the loungeroom barefoot to say good morning and Safta nods her head and says she will step on your feet. The kubba is cooked on the gas stove. Mom asks: “Would you like breakfast or join us for lunch?” Of course you say lunch because who can refuse Safta’s kubba. Shani 44
Continued Beef filling ingredients ½ kg light chicken mince ½ kg beef mince Bunch parsley - chopped 2 stalks celery - chopped 3 onions chopped (squeeze and keep the juice for cooking) Salt Black pepper Paprika Hot paprika Garlic powder or 3-4 cloves of garlic Vegetarian filling ingredients ½ cup walnuts or almonds coarsely chopped Bunch parsley – chopped 2 cloves of garlic- chopped 1-2 stalks celery – chopped 2 tbsp olive oil 1 onion finely chopped in food processor 250 grams fresh mushrooms 1 pkt Tivol mince or ½ cup soy pieces soaked and squeezed or grated tofu. 1 tsp turmeric Salt Black pepper Paprika 2-3 chick pea flour or red lentil flour Mix all filling ingredients Option A: The day before mix the beef mixture and make balls the size of a hazelnut and freeze. Defrost ten minutes before preparing the kubbas OR Option B: Make the same day without freezing Over the past few years mom (Orly) used to prepare all the ingredients for beetroot kubba before Safta would come to us. Every time Safta would ask “which is your favourite food?” and of course I answered beetroot kubba. And she would say: “OK, so I will make you some.” There was no option for her to make something else because we had to buy the ingredients in advance, she just wanted the compliments. Erez We were eating kubba at Safta’s house (when we visited Israel in 2012). I did not finish the food on my plate as this is what I normally do. Safta looks at me and points with her finger on my plate and said: “You must finish your food.” I had no choice but to eat the food. It’s one of my few memories of Safta. Davita 46
Continued Ingredients for semolina balls 3 cups semolina 1 cup corn flour or ½ cup ground rice and ½ cup corn flour 2-3 cups water, start with 2 and gradually add the third 2-3 tsp salt Method 1. Mix the dough ingredients until you have a firm dough that easy and comfortable to work with. Leave for ten minutes. It is important to gradually add the water and not all at once. 2. Divide up the dough into 70 balls. 3. Prepare a bowl of water. Wet your hands, take a ball of dough and roll out flat with your fingers. 4.Take the meat filling prepared the day before (defrost if was frozen) put in the centre (about a teaspoon for each kubba) and gently close while making a ball in your hand. 5. Ensure a thin and sealed semolina case. Note: it is important to work with wet hands. 6. When all the kubba balls are ready, place them in the pot while it is boiling (if the sauce is not boiling then the kubbas fall apart). 7. Boil for about 20 minutes to half an hour. Turn the heat down and simmer for another half an hour to an hour, depending on the heat (Continuous boiling causes softening of the kubbas and a light colour). Note: Ensure the kubbas don’t stick to the sides of the pot. Stir from time to time with a spoon and be careful not to break the kubbas. 8. Taste the gravy and add spice if necessary. Note: If there is any mixture left over it can be used for meat balls in tomato sauce. See recipe on page 52. The kubba always had a slight sour flavour that I could not replicate. She would taste, but I don’t taste while I cook. Israel 48
MEATBALLS WITH DRIED FRUIT Preparation time: 60 minutes 8-10 portions Meatballs ingredients ½ kg chicken mince ½ kg beef mince 1 tbsp breadcrumbs Bunch parsley chopped 2 stalks celery chopped 1-2 tbsp potato flour Salt Black pepper Paprika Hot paprika 2 cloves of garlic chopped 2-4 onions finely chopped 1. Mix all ingredients 2. Make flat patties Sauce ingredients ½ cup water 8-20 tbsp grated tomatoes Salt Black pepper Paprika Hot paprika 4-6 tbsp fresh lemon juice 1-1½ tbsp sugar 1 tbsp pomegranate concentrate Method 1. In a wide pot – bring water to the boil. Add tomatoes and onion. 2. Cook well for approximately ten minutes while stirring. Add lemon juice, sugar, pomegranate concentrate. 3. Add the patties. 4.Add approximately 10 prunes and 10 dried apricots and mix gently. 5. Cook for about half an hour. Note: Best served with white rice. When we went to visit Safta in Holon, she would always cook us a big meal. As we sat down at the table, she would look at us and say “you must eat!” Shaul “They love my food too much” Tore-David quoting Safta 50