On a recent, short visit to the US East Coast, I was treated to the first signs of another brilliant autumn. Now that I’m home, my feet are comfortably back in flip flops and the main indication that summer is behind us is the supplement of a jacket and another blanket at the end … Read More »
Sweet as Carob Syrup
For years I’ve wanted to observe how carob syrup is made. Like many of the highly labor-intensive, traditional Palestinian foodways, carob syrup production is barely practiced anymore. But several weeks ago, on a visit to Abu Malek in Kufar Manda, I saw an enormous pile of carob pods on the front porch. Fall is carob season … Read More »
Back to the Batof
Last June, and seemingly a decade ago, I visited the cities of Sakhnin and Arrabe, for meetings with two NGOs. At the time, I learned about the work being done by the Towns Association for Environmental Quality on behalf of the Arab farmers of the Bet Netufa Valley. I was also treated to the wonderful … Read More »
Common Roots
Among all the countless tragedies and losses of this current war is the blow that has been dealt to the already fragile relationships between Jews and Arabs in Israel. Even in the best of times, suspicion and distrust have been the default sentiments among most Israeli citizens about their “other” counterparts. And it is against … Read More »
Back from Oxford
I just returned from my first time participating in the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery – an annual conference of food historians and other professionals and non-professionals who are engaged in food inquiry. It was an extraordinary experience to be in the company of so many like-minded individuals from all over the globe, in … Read More »