Travel to Zichron Yaakov and review of Nili Restaurant

My mother is visiting from Florida for 10 days - yay! Yesterday we had a lovely day trip to the scenic and relaxing Zichron Yaakov and Ramat Hanadiv. If you are staying in Tel Aviv, or anywhere along Israel's train route, Zichron Yaakov is easy to get to. The train ride is surprisingly pleasant and the system is easy to use without any of the hassles of air travel or the uncertainty of buses. From the Binyamina train station, cross the street and take the #70 bus to the last stop.

In Zichron Moshe, we went to the First Aliya Museum, about the Jewish immigrants of the 1880's, and we walked along the pedestrian mall section of Hameyasdim Street. We had an outstanding lunch at Nili (kosher mehadrin). The presentation, atmosphere, food, and service was all excellent. I wasn't terribly excited by the sushi menu until my mom brought my attention to the Special Vegetarian - tamago, shitake, kampyo takuan wrapped in sweet potato and avocado. It turned out to be the surprise highlight of the meal - sweet, soft, and fresh. We also ordered the portobello mushroom appetizer with roasted pepper and goat cheese. I loved the gentle crispness formed around the circles of lightly roasted goat cheese. I splurged on tagliattele alfredo with fresh salmon.

Food Rescue in Israel

This Saturday is Tu B'Shvat, the birthday of the trees. On Tu B'Shvat we eat fruits and nuts, plant trees, discuss mitzvot (Jewish laws or good deeds) related to trees, and other environmental issues.

A Mitzva Primer:
There are several Jewish laws prohibiting food waste, for instance you can not simply throw food away because something got in it that you think would make it un-kosher. A rabbi must be consulted, and in most cases, the food is permitted. (This applies after the fact; it does not make it permissible to purposely add something not kosher.) 

It is generally prohibited to throw away or ruin good food. This can include rendering food inedible by doing craft projects from food (bread, pasta, seeds) that would otherwise be edible.

There are also agricultural laws that relate to helping the needy. Farmers in Israel must leave the corners of their fields unharvested, and any produce that drops or is missed in the process of harvesting must be left for the needy. 

There is a wonderful organization that takes care of these important mitzvot while protecting the dignity of the needy. Leket Israel, Israel's National Food Bank, is an exceptional organization. Unlike other food banks and charities, it provides nutritional food like fresh produce (not canned and packaged foods) and it helps other businesses fulfill the mitzvah of avoiding food waste. Win-win! Leket Israel also has some new projects that use their organizational scale to help other non-profits improve efficiency.

Buying Falafel PLUS Hebrew Lesson

I thought my son and I were unique, occasionally ordering a pita sandwich with all the fixings, but no falafel.  However, on my last trip, a man ordered "chips" (French fries, for you Americans) on a hoagie bun.  That's it, a roll full of deep fried potatoes.  This shop, Shawarma Hacohanim, seems to have unusually sweet chips, but what really makes it my favorite is the fried eggplant, bell peppers, and friendly service.  The falafel is tasty and never under cooked, and the pita is VERY fresh - soft, springy, and delicious.  And another perk - I order and wait inside where there's no smoking!

my favorite take-homes: peppers,
eggplant, & sauerkraut

Most falafel shops begin serving falafel around 10 or 11 in the morning and are open late.  Most have some kosher supervision and are closed on Shabbat and holidays.  Hacohanim has some indoor seating and has a sukkah outside during Sukkot, so diners can fulfil the mitzvah of dwelling in the sukkah.  There seems to be a little price war between Hacohanim and the falafel shop on the other side of the small street.  Mimi of Israeli Kitchen wrote a post featuring the other shop with exterior photos of both.

A falafel sandwich is a delicate balance of ingredients and if one is off or missing, my falafel experience feels incomplete.  In the coming weeks I plan to teach you how to make many of the ingredients necessary to create you own falafel dinner.  First, we'll see how the experts put together a great falafel pita.

Buying Beef in Israel - Guest Post

Sign behind the meat counter at my grocery chain
showing meat cuts by number.

I don't eat much beef and I can't remember the last time I did a cow justice in the kitchen.  To help, I invited professional caterer Rochelle Shalet to share her expertise.  Rochelle runs Tastes of the World catering and produces a free newsletter publication, with interesting and useful information and recipes.  The information and chart below are from a previous Tastes of the World Newsletter.  If this interests you, I strongly recommend you email Rochelle to subscribe to her monthly newsletter.  

Meat may take a long time to cook, but in the winter you have the dual benefit of heating the house and cooking dinner at the same time.  My first meat shopping experience in Israel was quite bewildering. If you have recently made Aliyah or been here for years but never quite got to grips with all the cuts and names, this newsletter aims to provide a guide for when you are next standing at the meat counter.

Israeli Treats: Crembo, Sufganiot, and lots of chocolate

Think you have a hard time staying away from some office Christmas cookies?  The Israeli junk food season begins in October!  In Israel "the holidays" generally refers to the "High Holidays" (Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Simchat Torah).  As soon as they are over around the end of October, the Chanuka goodies go on the shelf.

While the fall holidays come with their fair share of non-stop feasting, winter is full of sweets.  Unlike most mass produced candies which are available year round, these Israeli treats have a season. As the autumn pomegranates, dates, peaches, and plums go out of season, oranges, persimmons, and jelly donuts come in!

Stinging Nettle Soup - Picking Edible Weeds

The second time I met Hannah K. of Cooking Manager, we were walking home from a class last winter and she started pointing out all these edible weeds along the side of the road.  I wasn't sure what to think.  Was she a new-age hippie?  Did everyone in Israel eat weeds?  Miriam Kresh of Israeli Kitchen had just taught Hannah about edible weeds and her eyes were peeled for the species she learned to pick.  Now I've known Hannah a little over a year and I've come to learn that she is quite balanced, most Israeli's buy their produce in a store, and weeds taste great!

For the last few weeks I've been noticing many edible-looking weeds as I walked around town, and I kept meaning to look at Hannah's old post on Green Prophet "Five Edible Wild Plants You Can Pick Yourself".  The last time she came by, I mentioned it to her, and she showed me lots of edible mallows, nettle, chick weed, and one "chamtzitz" flower, right around our building!