Jerusalem Day: Israeli Recipe Roundup

Today is the 28th of Iyar. Also known as Yom Yerushalyim or Jerusalem Day. Have you heard of this special day? We celebrate Yom Yerushalayim or Jerusalem Day to commemorate the reunification of Jerusalem after the Six Day War. So today, we honor the soldiers who lost their lives in the war and spend the day talking about Jerusalem and what it means to us. We share memories, we sing and we dance.

Chummus

For those of us not in Israel today, we can also celebrate with food. Israeli food. What’s your favorite Israeli food? Falafel or Sabich? Shakshuka or maybe some Sachlab? When you think of Jerusalem, what food comes to mind?

In honor of Jerusalem Day, I want to share with you a roundup of Israeli recipes and restaurant reviews from both my site, and from around the blog world.

Do you have a favorite recipe that makes you think of Jerusalem? Post them to the comment box or send them to me at hindyg@confident-cook.com.

Thanks to The Jewish Federations of North America for sparking the idea for this blog post; they’ll be featuring it on their Jerusalem Day website as a way to build buzz for their annual General Assembly, a major gathering of leaders from Jewish organizations in North America and Israel which will be in Jerusalem this November.

Hummus, Tahini and Other Dips
Babaganoush
Homemade Hummus
Hummus with Zaatar
Lemony Hummus
Matbucha
Matbucha Madness
Roasted Eggplant Dip
Schug
Tahini
White Bean HummusOther Vegetarian Treats
Malawach Cheese Pastries
Roasted Eggplant with Israeli Salad
Sabich
Israeli Couscous with Cinnamon Roasted Sweet PotatoSalad
Cabbage Salad
Israeli Salad
Tabouli
Beet SaladMeat Recipes
Lamb Kebabs
Turkey Shawarma

 

Breads
Pita

 

Desserts
Chocolate Falafel
Halva
Halva and Pistachio Ice Cream
Limonana Bars
Limonana MarshmallowsShakshuka Recipes
Green Shakshuka
Matbucha Shakshuka
ShakshukaJerusalem Restaurants
Dining on Emek Refaim in Jerusalem
Kosher Vegetarian Restaurants
Kosher Sushi in Jerusalem

Garlic Scapes and White Bean Hummus with Pita Chips

I had some scapes leftover from the pesto I made the other day. As I ate the pesto with the pasta and white beans, I thought about how this flavor combo would make a good hummus. I had some leftover pita sitting in the freezer from a few weeks ago that was begging to be turned in to some pita chips. I figured it would be a good after-school snack for the kids when they got home from school.

I was right – it turned out to be perfect.


Garlic Scapes and White Bean Hummus
Ingredients:

5-6 garlic scapes
1 can white beans
1-2 tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. thyme
ground pepper
1.5 tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil

Place everything in a food processor and go to town! It’s that easy! Seriously!

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Pita Chips
Ingredients:

Pita (I used around 10)
1/2 cup olive oil (approx.  – depends on amount of pita)
1 tsp. sea salt
fresh ground pepper
assorted herbs (half of mine were zaatar, half had a garlic/thyme mixture)

Preaheat oven to 400.

Cut pita in to wedges.

In a small bowl, mix the olive oil with the spices of your choosing.

Brush the pita triangles with the oil mixture. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet

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Bake for around 7-8 minutes or so.

Cool pita chips for a few minutes and serve. Enjoy!

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Call it Hummus or Call it Sauce

I regret not making more of this tasty dish. Today was another day where I came home later than expected. Rainy day, bad traffic, made for Late Mom. When I got home, I needed to come up with someone fast for dinner. Those dinner alarm bells were ringing in my kids heads, smoke pouring out their ears. I had to come up with something that would take mere minutes. I had to restrain myself from running to the nearest pizza store on the way home.

I put some water on to boil…I literally threw it on the stove, water puddling on the floor. I always have some type of pasta in the pantry. What to serve with the pasta to up the healthy factor. Chopped up salad veggies are fine on the side. What to put on the pasta though. I wanted some protein for them, and had no time to cook up some chicken.

As I was eyeing my mini cuisinart, I decided on a white bean puree. This puree would also be good turned into a Hummus. Just omit the vegetable broth if you want to serve it as a dip.


White Bean Puree or Hummus

1 can of white beans
2 tablespoons basil, chopped
5 cloves of garlic

salt
pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1/4 cup shredded parmesean (optional)


Process the entire mixture in a food processor. Toss with warm pasta.

Enjoy!

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