Thank you all for following us on this amazing one year journey around the world! We have spent the last six months transforming this experience into a book filled with over 150 recipes from the 52 countries we studied. It is available now on Amazon.com.
http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Globe-Children-Exploring-Cultures/dp/1511758678/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434672339&sr=8-1&keywords=cooking+the+globe+dina+siracusa+tupper
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Sunday, October 26, 2014
ZIMBABWE-Our Final Destination!!!
I cannot believe we are in our final week of this amazing 13 month journey! It is actually a little bittersweet that this has come to an end. I have had such a wonderful time learning about these 52 cultures with my children. It has truly incorporated 3 of my favorite things in the world-My Girls, Cooking Diverse Cuisines, and Learning about Cultures of the World.
Zimbabwe is a land locked country that lies in Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia. It is slightly larger than the state of Montana and has a population of about
13 million people.
Zimbabwe is a beautiful country, rich in resources and hardworking people. It is home to the magnificent Victoria Falls , the mighty Zambezi River and Hwange National Park, one of Africa's best safari destinations . But political mismanagement in the past decade has plunged the country into economic catastrophe, turning a once rich country into a desperate one.
More than two-thirds of the population speaks Shona as their first language. Shona-speaking people (made up of the Karanga, Korekore, Manyika, Ndau, Rozwi and Zezuru, groups) live mainly in the eastern two-thirds of the country, including the capital of Harare.
Other ethnic groups in the southeast, representing around one percent of the population each, are the Tonga in the Zambezi Valley, the Shangaan or Hlengwe in the Low Veld, and the Venda on the border with South Africa.
About two percent of the population is of non-African ethnic origin, mainly European and Asian.
Art and music are highly regarded. Much of the music is still influenced by traditional rhythms and sounds, which are created using local instruments such as the mbira and marimba (a type of wooden xylophone).
The mbira is a small hand-held instrument (belonging to a family known as lamellophones). Commonly referred to as a 'thumb piano', it is actually played using both thumbs and forefingers.
Mbiras have been played for over a 1,000 years in Zimbabwe. They come in different sizes and normally have between 22 to 28 metal keys. These keys or iron prongs are mounted on a hardwood soundboard which is often placed inside a large gourd/calabash skin. The calabash shell acts as the resonator (or deze).
Christianity (of many different denominations, including Catholic, Anglican, Presbyterian, Baptist and Dutch Reformed Churches) is practised widely across Zimbabwe. But many people also hold traditional beliefs in ancestors, as well as in prophecy and divination, where divine inspiration is sought through communication with the spirits. The Shona have been monotheistic (holding a belief in one supreme deity) for centuries, calling their deity Mwari.
We decided to cook three very traditional dishes of Zimbabwe. Our First was a Braised Oxtail in a spicy sauce. This dish was by far the hardest and took the most time. Oxtails are very tough, so they require lots of slow cooking time to break down the muscle and make the meat tender. We coated the oxtails in egg and then dipped each piece in spiced flour. We used Black Pepper, Coriander, Garam Masala, Turmeric, and Allspice. After we sautéed in pan to sear the meat. Then added onions, carrots, tomatoes, apple cider vinegar, beef stock, and wine. We lowered the heat and let it cook for about 4 hours. The result was fall of the bone tender and juicy meat in the most amazing sauce ever! It was spicy, savory, and slightly sour. So delicious!
Our second dish Nhopi Nanga which is Roasted and Mashed Spiced Pumpkin. This was absolutely delicious! We purchased a small pumpkin from our local grocery store which was perfect given this is Pumpkin Season. We cut it into small chunks and cooked it with brown sugar, water, and milk. Finished it off with some fresh cream and this was a sweet and satisfying treat! It was like pumpkin pie in a bowl. So yummy!
Our Final Dish is called Mabhanzi, which are basically sweet rolls. They were perfect with our oxtails! The soft pillowy buttered rolls sopped up all the meaty sauce from the oxtails beautifully!
Friday, October 24, 2014
ZAMBIA-Country of Copper
This week we are learning about the peaceful picturesque country, Zambia. Located in south-central Africa, Zambia is the continent's
biggest copper producer and home to the Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural
Wonders of the World. The Victoria Falls - also known locally as the ''Smoke that Thunders'' - are located along the Zambezi River and have UNESCO World Heritage status. They are one of the country's many natural features which have been enticing
a growing number of tourists, along with the wide variety of wildlife to be
found in large game parks.
English is the official language. However, Zambia is home to many different groups, speaking more than 72 local languages/ dialects. Bemba is the most widely-spoken, spoken by more than two million Zambians in Lusaka and across the Copperbelt.
Following the arrival of missionaries in the 1800s, Zambia became predominantly Christian, so Easter and Christmas holidays are celebrated. But many people also retain some traditional beliefs and customs. Traditional ceremonies are held annually in various regions. Some mark when children become adults or commemorate a season, for example Shimuenga gives thanks for the safe delivery of crops and livestock. Others mark an historical event – Umutomboko celebrates the Lunda's conquering of the west.
The most famous traditional ceremony is the Kuomboka, when the Lozi people make their way in boats along the Zambezi for a ceremonial trip away from the annual floods. Kuomboka literally means ‘to get out of the water onto dry ground’. The Litunga (king) and his family lead the procession in a barge with white-dressed paddlers. This ceremony dates back more than 300 years when the Lozi people first settled in the upper regions of the Zambezi.
In 1993, Zambia lost 18 national football players in an plane crash. The squad were headed to a World Cup qualifier in Senegal and were expected to do well. The captain, Kalusha Bwalya, was not on the ill-fated flight and held the Africa Cup trophy high with the winning 2012 team.
As in many countries, sports are very important. Football is the main passion and Zambians were euphoric when their team won the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. The win was significant and moving because of a tragedy which occurred in 1993.
Traditional arts and crafts, such as wood carving, basket-weaving and pottery, are valued. But these crafts are under threat because of migration away from rural areas and the arrival of modern manufactured goods. National museums and craft organisations in Zambia aim to promote craftwork to keep traditional skills alive.
Zambia draws a lot of visitors because of their peaceful and
generally trouble-free culture, especially compared to most of the eight neighbours with
which it shares a border.
The area was colonized in the 1800s and ruled by Britain as Northern Rhodesia
until 1964, when it made a peaceful transition to independence.
Zambia was also made to suffer for its support of liberation movements
trying to remove white rule in South Africa and what is now Zimbabwe.
The country's economic fortunes began to change in the late 1990s when the
privatization of the mining sector began to draw in foreign investment and
improve output. Government support for agriculture is also said to have
contributed to economic growth, averaging around 6% a year in recent years.
China in particular has invested heavily in Zambia, creating jobs and new
infrastructure. Census date suggests about 100,000 Chinese live in the country,
and about 500 firms are active in sectors across the economy.
Zambia has a reputation for political stability and a relatively efficient,
transparent government. However, social conditions are tough. Poverty is widespread. Life expectancy
is among the lowest in the world and the death rate is one of the highest -
largely due to the prevalence of HIV/Aids.
We cooked three very traditional dishes to Zambia. The first is called Nshima. It is a sort of porridge made from white corn flour and water. Zambians eat Nshima as a staple in their diet as the west uses bread or rolls and the east uses rice. I thought it would be terribly bland, but with a little salt, pepper, and butter, it was quite tasty. We made a very delicious greens dish called Fisashi. It is traditionally made with pumpkin leaves, tomatoes, onions, seasoning, and peanut butter. Since we were unable to find pumpkin leaves, we used mustard greens. They were delicious! The star of the show was the Griddled Tilapia. We used a mango habanero dry rub with a little curry powder to season it and then pan fried it in the griddle with a little oil. It was so moist and delicious. Not a bit fishy, very flavorful. The heat from the spice rub was tempered beautifully by the spongy Nshima. Everything was a symphony of flavors. The entire family agreed, the food of Zambia is delicious!
Recipes used this week:
Saturday, October 18, 2014
YEMEN-Arabia Felix(Happy Arabia)
Formerly divided into two nations, the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen and the Yemen Arab Republic, the Republic of Yemen occupies the southwest tip of the Arabian Peninsula on the Red Sea opposite Ethiopia and extends along the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula on the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. Saudi Arabia is to the north and Oman is to the east. The country is about the size of France. Its culture is considered closer to the African countries on the horn of Africa such as Somalia and Djibouti than other Middle Eastern Countries.
The name of the country is derived from the legendary ancestor Yaman, the son of Qahtan, or from the Arabic root ymn ("the right") since Yemen is located to the right of the Meccan sanctuary of Kaaba. Some scholars compare the Arabic word yumna ("happy") with the Roman name for the southwest Arabia, Arabia Felix ("Happy Arabia").
Yemen is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable population, a feature recognized by the ancient Greek geographer Ptolemy, who described Yemen as Eudaimon Arabia (better known in its Latin translation, Arabia Felix) meaning "fortunate Arabia" or Happy Arabia.
The Nomadic Semites from the Yemeni desert regions migrated to the North, settling Akkad, later penetrating Mesopotamia, eventually conquering Sumer by 2300 BCE, and assimilating the Amorites of Syria.
Some scholars believe that Yemen remains the only region in the world that is exclusively Semitic, meaning that Yemen historically did not have any non–Semitic-speaking people. Yemeni Semites derived their Musnad script by the 12th to 8th centuries BCE, which explains why most historians date all of the ancient Yemeni kingdoms to the 12th to 8th centuries BCE.
Yemen is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable population, a feature recognized by the ancient Greek geographer Ptolemy, who described Yemen as Eudaimon Arabia (better known in its Latin translation, Arabia Felix) meaning "fortunate Arabia" or Happy Arabia.
The Nomadic Semites from the Yemeni desert regions migrated to the North, settling Akkad, later penetrating Mesopotamia, eventually conquering Sumer by 2300 BCE, and assimilating the Amorites of Syria.
Some scholars believe that Yemen remains the only region in the world that is exclusively Semitic, meaning that Yemen historically did not have any non–Semitic-speaking people. Yemeni Semites derived their Musnad script by the 12th to 8th centuries BCE, which explains why most historians date all of the ancient Yemeni kingdoms to the 12th to 8th centuries BCE.
North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990.
Medieval Arab geographers thought of Yemen as covering the entire southern strip of the Arabian peninsula, from the mountainous southwest, including Najran and Asir, to Hadhramaut and Oman on the east. The capital is Sana'a, and Aden is referred to as the country's economic capital.
The population is ethnically Arab, divided between Sunni Muslims of the Shafi'i school and Shi'a Muslims of the Zaydi school. There are small groups of Jews, Hindus, and Christians. In 1949 and 1950, about fifty thousand Yemeni Jews left for Israel. In 1998, the population was 17,071,000. The annual growth rate is limited by migration and a high infant mortality rate. The birthrate is high, and almost half the population is under fifteen years of age.
The coffee tree, the state eagle, the national colors, and the Marib Dam are shown in the new national emblem. The colors of the national flag (horizontal bands of red, white, and black) reflect pan-Arab symbolism, being similar to the flags of Syria, Iraq, and Egypt.
The ancient walled city Sana'a is said to be the oldest city in the world, founded by Noah's eldest son, Shem, the forefather of Qahtan. Bilqis, the Queen of Sheba (Saba), is mentioned in the Bible and the Koran.
The principal exports are livestock and food, cigarettes, leather, and petroleum products, which are shipped mainly to Saudi Arabia, Japan, and Italy. Yemen traditionally exports labor to the Arab world, East Africa, the Indian Ocean area, and the United States. All manner of staples from food to consumer goods are imported.
Yemenis usually eat three times a day at home. The traditional diet varies locally and socially and is open to innovations. Generally, there is an early breakfast of sweet strong tea with bread made of sorghum, wheat, or barley; dinner includes a porridge prepared from fenugreek with meat, eggs, vegetables, herbs, and spices, which is served hot in a stone or clay bowl; a light supper consists of vegetables and/or dates. One can drink a glass of tea or a brew of coffee husks outdoors in the daytime. Lentils and peas are traditional staples in addition to sorghum.
This week we decided to cook a traditional Yemeni breakfast made of Adeni Tea or Yemeni Shai which consists of very strong Black tea infused with sweetened condensed milk and Clove, Cardamom, and Cinnamon. It is very sweet and very creamy. Our main dish we cooked is called Susi or Fattah(which is bread mixed with something). This most closely resembled a Yemeni version of French Toast Casserole. We took Flatbread, in our case Naan Bread, and broke it up into small pieces. We then covered an baking dish with the Naan bread. We then covered it with a mixture of eggs, milk, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. We let it soak for a few minutes, then sprinkled black sesame seeds on top. We baked it in the oven for 20 minutes at 425 degrees. The last 2 minutes we put some butter on top and placed it under the broiler to get crispy on top. It was absolutely delicious! More savory than the American version of French toast, but very tasty!
Recipes used this week:
http://www.shebayemenifood.com/content/susi-fattah
http://www.shebayemenifood.com/content/adeni-tea-or-arabic-shai
Friday, October 17, 2014
WEST BANK-Navigating an Occupied Land
I will never forget the bumper sticker on my dear mother's maroon 1985 Toyota Corolla. It was a quote from Pope John Paul VI that said, "If you want Peace, Work for Justice." Every night since I was a young girl, I have prayed for Peace in the Middle East. I also pray for justice. I do hope to see that day come in my lifetime.
I learned of the Middle East conflict when I was 12 years old, it was December 1987. My family was sitting in our living room watching the BBC world News. The reporter was interviewing a Palestinian woman in the Jabalia Refugee Camp who was crying over the death of her 8 year old son. An IDF truck struck a civilian car, killing four Palestinians. Thus sparked the tension that escalated into the Intifada, or Palestinian uprising which lasted over 20 years.
Palestine is the name the Romans gave in the second century C.E. to a region of the present-day Middle East situated on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea west of Jordan. The name is derived from the Greek Palaestina, or "Land of the Philistines," a seafaring people who settled a small coastal area northeast of Egypt, near present-day Gaza, around the twelfth century B.C.E. Also known as the Holy Land, Palestine is held sacred by Christians, Jews, and Muslims, some of the most important events in each religion having taken place there, especially in the city of Jerusalem.
The Population of the West Bank currently is estimated at roughly 2,020,298, with approximately 83 percent Palestinian Arab and 17 percent Jewish. About half of the population of the West Bank is under age fifteen.
Like Jews, Palestinians are a Semitic people, and the languages of the two groups are similar. Palestinians speak primarily Arabic and Jews speak a Hebrew derived from that of the Bible. The two languages have some of the same words and sound similar to people unfamiliar with the languages.
The Palestinian flag, consisting of three bands of (top to bottom) black, white, and green with a red triangle on the flagstaff side pointing to the center of the white band, is a symbol of Arab unity.
Another popular symbol in Palestine and the rest of the Arab world is the eagle of Saladin, named for a twelfth-century warrior who united Arabs to defend Islamic territories against the Crusaders. It was depicted on Egypt's 1954 Liberation Flag, which was a variation of the Arab Revolt Flag of 1917.
Because of its location at the crossroads of Africa, Asia, and Europe, Palestine has been the battleground of the great powers in the region throughout its history. Conquerors of the region included Egypt, Assyria, Macedonia, Rome, Byzantium, Arabia, and Turkey. Settlement in the area is believed to date back to about 8000 B.C.E. , to the village of Jericho in the West Bank.
By about 1000 B.C.E. the Hebrews had established the kingdom of Israel, which later split into two kingdoms, Judah and Israel. The area later changed hands among Assyrians, Babylonians, and Greeks. In the first century B.C.E. the Romans conquered the region and drove out most of the Jews.
Around 640 C.E. as the Islamic religion spread across the Middle East, the area fell to Arab Muslim armies. Many historians believe that modern-day
Palestinians are descended from these Arabs. Except for brief periods during the Crusades, Palestine remained in Muslim hands almost continuously, becoming part of the Ottoman Empire in the sixteenth century.
With the World War I defeat of the Ottoman Empire, Britain was mandated by the League of Nations to govern Palestine. During the war, both Jews and Arabs had been given conflicting assurances regarding control of Palestine. The British had given their support for Arab control over a region that the Arabs believed included Palestine. Britain had also pledged to support a Jewish homeland in Palestine, however.
Also, during the late nineteenth century, Jewish immigrants had been returning to Palestine in increasing numbers as they fled European and Russian persecution and sought to return to their homeland. Jewish immigration steadily increased after World War I, increasing tensions between the Jews and the Arabs and often resulting in violence.
With the coming of World War II and the Holocaust, there was a surge in Jewish immigration, exacerbating the problem and forcing Britain to relinquish its mandate and turn the problem over to the United Nations in 1947.
That same year, the UN voted to partition Palestine into separate Arab and Jewish states, a plan the Arabs did not accept because they wanted all of the territory. The Jews did accept the proposal. Naming their state Israel, they declared its independence on 15 May 1948. Five Arab armies immediately attacked Israel. After the war, the West Bank was controlled by Jordan, and the Gaza Strip came under Egyptian rule, but Israel controlled the rest of Palestine.
That same year, the UN voted to partition Palestine into separate Arab and Jewish states, a plan the Arabs did not accept because they wanted all of the territory. The Jews did accept the proposal. Naming their state Israel, they declared its independence on 15 May 1948. Five Arab armies immediately attacked Israel. After the war, the West Bank was controlled by Jordan, and the Gaza Strip came under Egyptian rule, but Israel controlled the rest of Palestine.
More than half a million Palestinians were displaced from their homes during the turmoil, many fleeing to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and other Arab countries. Nineteen forty-eight thus marks the beginning of an ongoing struggle to build a Palestinian nation, as those displaced by the war have since that time agitated to return to a Palestinian homeland. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), formed in 1964 under Egyptian leadership and led by Palestinian politician Yasser Arafat beginning in 1969, emerged as the main voice of the Palestinian people.
Israel and its Arab neighbors have endured many wars since 1948. In the 1967 Six Day War, Israel captured the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, among other areas. The West Bank and the Gaza Strip are often called the Occupied Territories, and most of the residents are Palestinian Arabs. Many have been refugees in the Occupied Territories since the 1948 war.
Israel also annexed East Jerusalem, a revered holy site of Jews, Muslims, and Christians, in 1967. In 1980, Israel officially annexed East Jerusalem and considers the whole of Jerusalem to be its capital. The annexation was condemned internationally and declared "null and void" by the United Nations Security Council. The Palestinian National Authority, the United Nations, the international legal and humanitarian bodies and the international community regard East Jerusalem as part of the West Bank, and consequently a part of the Palestinian territories. Israel disengaged from the Gaza strip in 2005. However, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are still considered to be occupied by Israel according to the international community.
Conflicts with Arab residents there grew in the late 1970s as Israeli Jewish settlers, encouraged by the Begin administration, began a series of large-scale housing developments.
Israel also annexed East Jerusalem, a revered holy site of Jews, Muslims, and Christians, in 1967. In 1980, Israel officially annexed East Jerusalem and considers the whole of Jerusalem to be its capital. The annexation was condemned internationally and declared "null and void" by the United Nations Security Council. The Palestinian National Authority, the United Nations, the international legal and humanitarian bodies and the international community regard East Jerusalem as part of the West Bank, and consequently a part of the Palestinian territories. Israel disengaged from the Gaza strip in 2005. However, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are still considered to be occupied by Israel according to the international community.
Although the Camp David accords (1978) incorporated plans for Arab self-rule in the West Bank, this goal remained elusive.
Israel's incursion into Lebanon in 1982 to destroy Palestinian armed bases which later became known as the Massacre at Sabra and Shatila exacerbated rioting and political turmoil in the West Bank. As Ariel Sharon led the Massacre as Israel's Defense Minister at the time, it is estimated between 700 and 800 unarmed Palestinian civilian refugees-men, women, and children died that day. Israel responded with military curfews and increased Israeli troop presence. The development of the Intifada (Palestinian uprising), which began in the Gaza Strip in 1987, embroiled the West Bank in outbreaks of stone-throwing, protests, and violent attacks and led to Israeli reprisals, resulting in hundreds of Palestinian deaths, property damage, high unemployment, and reduced living standards.
The intifada intensified peace talks, and in 1993 Arafat and Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin signed a historic peace accord calling for eventual Palestinian self-rule in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank town of Jericho. The Palestinian National Authority (PNA), a new governing body created to assist in self-rule for Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, began administering these areas in 1994, achieving yet another breakthrough in the creation of a Palestinian state. Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank reached another milestone in 1996 when Israel withdrew its troops from most of the area and they elected Arafat as president of the Palestinian National Authority.
Unfortunately Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by an ultra right wing Jewish Terrorist named Yigal Amir. Amir opposed Rabin's Peace initiative particularly the signing of the Oslo Accords. The assassination of Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin was the culmination of Israeli right-wing dissent over the Oslo peace process. Rabin, despite his extensive service in the Israeli military, was disparaged personally by right-wing conservatives and Likud leaders who perceived the Oslo peace process as an attempt to forfeit the occupied territories.
Any chance of further progress was stymied by a new cycle of violence that began in the fall after Ariel Sharon visited the Haram esh-Sherif (or Temple Mount) in Jerusalem, one of the Holiest sites for Arabs. The biggest problem for the Palestinians at the beginning of the twenty-first century was the ongoing struggle for a homeland in Palestine and the right to self-determination. Unemployment and poverty are also huge problems. Many young Palestinians—who constitute a majority of the population of Gaza and the West Bank—have never experienced life outside a refugee camp. Their lives have been shaped by conflict and violence, rampant unemployment, and continual unrest. With ongoing violence continually shattering hard-won peace accords, however, a Palestinian state—and peace and stability in the Middle East—still seemed elusive at the beginning of the twenty-first century.
The food of the West Bank centers on Olives, Figs, Raisins, Lemons, Bread, Rice, and Meat. This week we decided to cook a very traditional feast that is close to the hearts of the people of the West Bank. The recipe we used is from Nisreen Ghanem's kitchen in the village of Burqin in Palestine's northern West Bank. It is called M'sakhan. M'sakhan is juicy, bone-in chicken glistening with olive oil, tinted maroon by tart sumac and piled high on just-baked flatbread smothered in caramelized onion. It is quintessential Palestinian feast food, present at all manner of celebrations. Ghanem and a small army of other women make thousands of portions for their community to mark the end of the olive harvest.
The chicken was absolutely delicious! The Olive Oil made it so juicy and the Sumac(which was very challenging to find in Houston) provided a lovely tartness to the chicken which balanced lovely with the sweet onions and savory meat. My daughter and her friend were playing in the yard as our meal was cooking away in the oven. As soon as they walked inside the house, they came running in to sample the M'sakhan and devoured half of it within minutes.
For Dessert, we cooked a very traditional Jewish Pastry, Rugelach. I remember watching our dear friend, Susan Granoff, or "Aunt Susan" as we called her, make this one Holiday in Queens, New York. I recall watching her add the chocolate and nut filling to the pastry dough and roll it up before placing it in the oven. They were so good! This dessert is dedicated to my Aunt Susan.
Eating this meal with my family was very special. Very spiritual. We will definitely cook this scrumptious meal again.
Unfortunately Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by an ultra right wing Jewish Terrorist named Yigal Amir. Amir opposed Rabin's Peace initiative particularly the signing of the Oslo Accords. The assassination of Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin was the culmination of Israeli right-wing dissent over the Oslo peace process. Rabin, despite his extensive service in the Israeli military, was disparaged personally by right-wing conservatives and Likud leaders who perceived the Oslo peace process as an attempt to forfeit the occupied territories.
Any chance of further progress was stymied by a new cycle of violence that began in the fall after Ariel Sharon visited the Haram esh-Sherif (or Temple Mount) in Jerusalem, one of the Holiest sites for Arabs. The biggest problem for the Palestinians at the beginning of the twenty-first century was the ongoing struggle for a homeland in Palestine and the right to self-determination. Unemployment and poverty are also huge problems. Many young Palestinians—who constitute a majority of the population of Gaza and the West Bank—have never experienced life outside a refugee camp. Their lives have been shaped by conflict and violence, rampant unemployment, and continual unrest. With ongoing violence continually shattering hard-won peace accords, however, a Palestinian state—and peace and stability in the Middle East—still seemed elusive at the beginning of the twenty-first century.
The food of the West Bank centers on Olives, Figs, Raisins, Lemons, Bread, Rice, and Meat. This week we decided to cook a very traditional feast that is close to the hearts of the people of the West Bank. The recipe we used is from Nisreen Ghanem's kitchen in the village of Burqin in Palestine's northern West Bank. It is called M'sakhan. M'sakhan is juicy, bone-in chicken glistening with olive oil, tinted maroon by tart sumac and piled high on just-baked flatbread smothered in caramelized onion. It is quintessential Palestinian feast food, present at all manner of celebrations. Ghanem and a small army of other women make thousands of portions for their community to mark the end of the olive harvest.
The chicken was absolutely delicious! The Olive Oil made it so juicy and the Sumac(which was very challenging to find in Houston) provided a lovely tartness to the chicken which balanced lovely with the sweet onions and savory meat. My daughter and her friend were playing in the yard as our meal was cooking away in the oven. As soon as they walked inside the house, they came running in to sample the M'sakhan and devoured half of it within minutes.
For Dessert, we cooked a very traditional Jewish Pastry, Rugelach. I remember watching our dear friend, Susan Granoff, or "Aunt Susan" as we called her, make this one Holiday in Queens, New York. I recall watching her add the chocolate and nut filling to the pastry dough and roll it up before placing it in the oven. They were so good! This dessert is dedicated to my Aunt Susan.
Eating this meal with my family was very special. Very spiritual. We will definitely cook this scrumptious meal again.
Recipe:
Interesting Facts
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1 in 3 refugees world wide is Palestinian, totaling approximately 6.5 million. More than 3.8 million Palestinian refugees and their descendants displaced in 1948 are registered for humanitarian assistance with the United Nations.
Four million Palestinians in the Occupied Territories lack the right to vote for the government that controls their lives through a military occupation. In addition to controlling the borders, air space, water, tax revenues, and other vital matters pertaining to the Occupied Territories, Israel alone issues the identity cards that determine the ability of Palestinians to work and their freedom of movement.
About 1.2 million Palestinian Israelis, who make up 20 percent, or one-fifth, of Israel’s population, have second-class citizenship within Israel, which defines itself as a Jewish state rather than a state for all its citizens. More than 20 provisions of Israel’s principal laws discriminate, either directly or indirectly, against non-Jews, according to Adalah: The Legal Center for Minority Rights in Israel.
Millions of Palestinians remain refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and elsewhere, unable to return to their former homes and land in present-day Israel, even though the right of return for refugees is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Israel launched the most recent phase of its war against Hamas in Gaza on July 8th. More than 1,400 Palestinians have been killed since, and thousands more have been injured. So many of the dead are civilians (according to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, civilian casualties account for 85% of all Palestinian deaths) and an astounding number of them (almost 25%) are children whose lives were cut short, many in places where they should have been able to find sanctuary such as schools and Mosques.
In 2008, the South African government commissioned a study by leading legal scholars and human rights experts to determine if Israel was practicing apartheid in the Occupied Palestinian Territories according to the parameters of international law. After a 15-month investigation, the study concluded that “Israel, since 1967, is the belligerent Occupying Power in occupied Palestinian territory, and that its occupation of these territories has become a colonial enterprise which implements a system of apartheid.”
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who received a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end apartheid in South Africa, said of Israeli government policies, “I've been very deeply distressed in my visit to the Holy Land; it reminded me so much of what happened to us black people in South Africa. I have seen the humiliation of the Palestinians at checkpoints and roadblocks, suffering like us when young white police officers prevented us from moving about.”
In the Occupied Territories, 66% of Palestinians live in absolute poverty, defined as income of $2 or less per day. By contrast, Israelis enjoy an average per capita income of nearly $60 per day. Worse yet, 80 percent of Palestinians in Gaza are dependent on international food aid for day-to-day survival, and 33 percent of all Palestinians in the Occupied Territories are dependent on international food aid for survival.
Within Israel, Palestinian and Jewish children attend separate and unequal school systems from kindergarten through high school. The Israeli government invests more than 3 times as much in a Jewish student than it does a Palestinian student, according to government statistics released in 2004. Also within Israel the government designates certain communities for “high-priority status” for improving the local educational system. In recent years Israel has designated 553 Jewish communities for high-priority status, compared with 4 Palestinian communities. In East Jerusalem, Palestinian territory illegally annexed by Israel after the 1967 war, the Israeli government spends an average of 2,300 New Israeli Shekels (about U.S. $600) per Jewish student, compared with an average of 577 shekels (U.S. $150) per Palestinian student, according to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.
Palestinian schools are under funded compared with the generous subsidies given to Jewish schools in the illegal settlements. Israeli military authorities frequently close Palestinian schools or subject them to curfews. Many Palestinian students must pass through Israeli military checkpoints just to get to school, and the military uses these checkpoints to harass and delay students.
In response to Palestinian uprisings, the Israeli military often takes reprisals against Palestinian schools and students in the Occupied Territories. From 2003 to 2005, there were more than 180 assaults on Palestinian schools, resulting in the deaths of 180 students and teachers. During that period more than 1,500 school days were lost due to Israeli closures. A study by the United Nations agency, UNESCO, found that the Israeli military caused $5 million in damages to Palestinian schools.
According to Human Rights Watch, extensive evidence indicates that whether or not a Palestinian is allowed to pass through a checkpoint is often arbitrary. Journalists and other eyewitnesses report that Palestinians have been denied access because they are smiling, or are deemed ugly, or simply because the soldiers don’t feel like letting them pass.
Human Rights workers have documented cases where Palestinian men and boys are detained at checkpoints without food, water, or protection from the elements for hours. In some cases, they are held in metal cages or required to strip to their underwear, in many cases, they are blindfolded and their hands are tied with plastic ties that cut deeply into their wrists.
There is a great deal of documentary evidence showing that ambulances carrying sick or injured Palestinians frequently are prevented from traveling through checkpoints, sometimes leading to deaths. In addition numerous pregnant women have not been allowed to pass through checkpoints – in many cases the mother or baby has died as a result. Between June 2003 and February 2004, 46 women delivered their babies at checkpoints – 24 of the women and 27 newborns died as a result.
According to the Palestine Monitor, “[m]ore than 991 incidents of denial of access to Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) and Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees’ (UPMRC) ambulances have been reported,” and at least 83 deaths have resulted from the prevention of access to medical services.
The Israeli government also refuses to recognize hundreds of Palestinian towns and villages that existed prior to Israel’s formation in 1948. Because they are not officially recognized, almost all of the housing in these towns is subject to demolition, and none receive services from the state, such as schools, roads, or sewer systems. More than 100,000 Palestinians or about 10 percent of Palestinian Israelis live “off the grid” as a result.
In the Occupied Territories, from 2000 to 2006 Israel’s Ministry of Construction and Housing “funded 53 percent of housing starts and 42 percent of all residential construction costs” in Israel’s illegal settlements, according to a report by Human Rights Watch. The report, titled “Separate and Unequal,” noted that Israel provided absolutely no funding for Palestinian housing in the occupied West Bank.
Water is a scarce resource in Israel and the Occupied Territories. Israel has controlled water resources in the West Bank and Gaza since its occupation began in 1967. The World Bank estimates that Palestinians have lost more than 100,000 agricultural jobs because Israel has denied Palestinians access to water resources that were diverted to illegal Jewish settlements. The World Health Organization (WHO) found that Israelis consume 4 times more water than Palestinians in the Occupied Territories.
According to the World Bank, the combination of checkpoints, the separation barrier through the West Bank, and other closures – all of which greatly limit the movement of workers and goods – has caused the Palestinian people to suffer “one of the worst recessions in modern history,” with approximately 50% of the Palestinian population now living in poverty. Illness and malnutrition have risen with this economic devastation.
According to a June 2004 World Bank press release, the Palestinians economy is set up for failure because of the checkpoints, closures, and blockades. Just as their parents have trouble getting to their workplaces, children and young adults are frequently denied their right to education. They are forced to take dangerous routes to their schools and universities. Hundreds of students have been detained, shot or injured on their way to school. In addition, Israeli forces sometimes order schools to be temporarily closed – occasionally these closures have lasted for a year or longer.
According to UN Expert Richard Falk and his June 3, 2013 article:
"Israel continues to annex Palestinian territory; Israel persists in demolishing Palestinians’ homes and populating Palestine with Israeli citizens; Israel maintains a policy of collectively punishing 1.75 million Palestinians through its imposition of a blockade on the Gaza Strip; and Israel prosecutes its occupation with impunity, refusing to accept the world’s calls to respect international law,” he said.
Israel has detained approximately 750,000 Palestinians since the occupation began 46 years ago, equalling nearly 20 per cent of the entire Palestinian population, Mr. Falk said.
“At the end of May Israel had 4,979 Palestinians, including 236 children, in its prisons. Another fact is that Israel constantly holds around 200 Palestinians in so-called administrative detention, which is a euphemism Israel uses for detention without charges.”
Turning to the situation in Gaza, Mr. Falk recalled that, in mid-June, Palestinians in Gaza will enter the seventh year of living under Israel’s blockade.
“Israel’s blockade is suffocating Palestinians in Gaza, with an incredible 70 per cent of the population dependent on international aid for survival and 90 per cent of the water unfit for human consumption,” he said. “These violations deprive Palestinians of hope and make a mockery of revived peace negotiations.”
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"You can't separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom" Malcom X
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