I simply could not have this baby goat killed for the rennet demonstration
Life as a goat, simply wonderful!
Ezzat Majed, a dedicated goat herder
Over 500 hundred goats
Today in the Shouf, I visited Abla and Ezzat Majed to shoot my weekly program. We had discussed with Majed a full demonstration on the making of rennet, naturally using the stomach of a milking calf. As soon as he came with the kid, I grabbed the goat and decided that no way would I be part of this. I took the goat and felt that feeling, like one has when a mother gives birth—an indescribable feeling of love for this animal. I almost took it home, but I pictured the miserable goat in an apartment in Beirut, longing for his mother. The feeling you get in nature with this herd of goats, away from man's pollution is incredible. I felt at peace during the whole day, as if I had taken a long vacation. I'm sharing this with you to let you know that "heaven"— or the likes is not very far. It can be a few kilometers (miles) away. You just need to disconnect and remember how our forefathers lived, perhaps by visiting your local shepherd. I intend to put these wonderful people on a pedestal with my next book.
Green Hand is taking initiatives to create very exciting tourism that I can certainly identify with. Here enclosed is their next journey. Join them if you can, it sounds like great fun.
Green Responsible Tourism Program
Launching of the Aacoub Trail on Sunday, June 19th, 2011
Aacoub Trail Program: (Aacoub Latin name: Gundelia Tournefortii)
8:00 Departure from Beirut meeting point in-front of AL-NAHAR building, Down Town.
8:40 Departure from Aley meeting point in-front of Green Hand Main office, Old Souk.
Ain Hercha (~ 100 km trip) expected arrival 10:00 am
-Lebanese traditional breakfast delivered by the families of Ain Hercha (45 min time).
-Soft to Medium round trip hike to Ain Hercha Romanian Temple (90 min time).
-Spiritual visit to the nassek of Ain Hercha “Brother Naseeb” (60 min time).
Rachaya Al Wadi (~7 km trip)
-Independence fortress (30 min time).
-Old souks (30 min time).
-Craftsman – traditional and artistic stoves (30 min time).
Aiha (~ 5 km trip)
-Environmental Green Lunch. (90 min time).
-Exhibition of traditional home made food items of the women’s cooperate in Aiha.
Estimated time for arrival, Aley: 6:00 pm and Beirut: 6:45 pm.
The Aacoub Trail Needs:
1-Walking Shoes, Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Extra Jacket or Flees.
Deadline, Monday – June 13, 2011 by SMS on 03716344 or e-mail: info@greenhand.org.lb
Payment is requested to be delivered in cash to Green Hand Main Office in Aley by Wednesday, June 15, 2011 maximum, or by Western Union to Mrs Abir Kassis & through sending the code by sms to 03716344.
N.B.:
1-Kids are allowed on parents own responsibility via the same donation cost. I spoke to Zaher to lower the price, he agreed for $30.
2-Pets are not allowed.
3-Friends that like to follow with their cars are welcomed via the same donation cost.
4-Booking without payment will not be counted.
5-Our trip does not include medical insurance.
Please Feel Free to Contact Us for any Further Inquiry:
I'm always a sucker for trying new breads. Today I ordered through BioBox, the Lebanese organic e-market, a loaf of whole wheat bread from Lebanon's first organic bakery (to my knowledge). I have the loaf in front of me. It comes in a neat bag with a lot of information printed on the package. The bread is certified by IMC to be 100% organic. I open the bag and it smells great. . The loaf is medium - small, but for me...it's looks too perfect. I wanted something more rustic, but that's just me. It smells very sweet, according to the label the bread is sugar free - instead of sugar the bread recipe is produced with agave syrup (how much?). The price of the loaf is 6,500 LL. This is good option for those looking for an organic alternative. I, for one, cannot imagine not baking my weekly bread. It's part of who I am, what I want to be...what I want my children to remember when they leave the nest. I hope to find an organic wheat one day with a reasonable price so I can use it to make my loaves of bread.
This report is special because it deals with foreign Chef Brody White, from Canada, coming and working in Lebanon after training in Paris - the result, delicious food and fine cuisine in a fine setting called Burgundy. The segment starts at the fish market at the port of Beirut where Brody and I meet early morning. It's exciting to watch the fishmongers sell their fish and display the wide array available. I appreciated the fact that Brody goes out of his way to learn about local products and recipes and integrates them in his cuisine when possible. His plates are beautifully presented and I was really amazed with the taste and different flavors. Many TV viewers have asked for the recipes mentioned in the segment. Chef Brody will send them to me very soon, therefore I shall post them asap for you to experiment.
Here it is, sent today ....can't wait to try my batch! Thanks Brody...
Pickled Market Vegetables
This recipe was developed in order to have a regular stock of great tasting vegetables year round. I have been very fortunate to find some passionate people here in Lebanon producing and foraging fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, due to strict guidelines when using or abstaining completely from growth aids and pest control in vegetable production, the seasons become very short. Pickling, as we know is a great way to extend the time frame a little bit, thus we can enjoy certain products in one form or another almost year round. While staying true to our health strategies, we are adding flavor with a few “NO FAT” ingredients such as vinegar and time.
Pickled Organic Baby Beets
250ml White wine or champagne vinegar
250ml Regular white vinegar
500g White sugar
2L Filtered water
50g Pickling spice mix
2kg Cooked and peeled organic baby beets
(in the report, he mentions salt too - let's say about a tablespoon of sea salt)
2 Clean and sterilized large glass jars and appropriate sized lid
•Combine vinegars, sugar, salt and water and bring to a boil.
•Divide beets and spice mix into the two jars and cover with hot vinegar solution.
•Cover jars with lid and submerge entirely in boiling water for 30 minutes.
•Cool jars to room temperature then store in a cool dark place for at least one week before serving.
This recipe can be used for any vegetable and even some unripe fruits by simply adapting to the required cooking times for each variety.
Wayne Parry spent a month in Beirut. He is an Australian polyglot, meaning he can speak several languages. I think he told me he can get by with eight - not bad! Wayne is on a global quest to write his book dealing with learning languages, essentially the 12 most important ones. He usually stays for about a week in different parts of the world, but with Lebanon it was different. He settled for a month and became very well accustomed to our Lebanese "way of life". He contacted me through my website. I responded, and the start of a beautiful friendship started. The best way to show Wayne Lebanon, I believe, was to take him on a FOOD tour. He has written some of his experiences on his travel blog. Check it out! As I write this, Wayne is on his way to Turkey, then he is heading to Russia, later to China and Japan. He is certainly a globe-trotter. I look forward to reading his amazing adventures when he publishes his book. I'll let you know when that happens. Here are a few pics I took of him.
Wayne amidst the goats of the Shouf
We have our theory on goats, the gray ones are so friendly!
Hisham, Nawal and their two boys really went out of their way to make this day special. I organized the next week, with a group of friends, a picnic with Cuisinette - Arsoun. It was a hit! Everyone was so delighted by their hospitality, their good food, and this sensational scenery. I invite you to join their fan page on facebook.
I absolutely love Suzanne, why? because she flows with positive energy all the time. You can't help but squeeze her to death - she's so cute!!! Anyway, I've learned through all this experience that rarely do you find people who cook that are not sympatico! I say rarely because unfortunately a few exist. I won't go into that now. The goat herders and their family I met during this trip really touched me. Barbara, the little girl is very smart but unfortunately her and her siblings cannot go to school because they are not declared legally. They need our help. They are growing up without an education and I think that is a real shame. I will try to do my best to do something to help with the help of my friends Sarkis and Suzanne. I'll let you in on a little secret, "this is the best kebbeh nayeh in the world!" I'm sure you can tell how much I enjoyed it. I really love my job!
Here are the ingredients for Suzanne's kebbeh recipes:
Ingredients for the Kebbeh bi Sanniyeh:
for a 60 cm cooking tray
1 1/2 kg of meat (cow) - ask the butcher for "habra" ground twice! If you ground the meat at home, add 1/4 cup of ice cubes when turning the food processor.
4 1/2 cups of burgul (1 kg)
1 tsp of salt
for the filling:
1 large ground onion
1 1/2 tsp of 7-Spice mixture
2 tsp of salt
Ingredients for the Kebbeh Nayeh:
1 kg goat meat
1 cup of burghul
1 1/2 white pepper
1 ground onion
This is the chef's spice box at Abdel Wahab, the restaurant where I got a training in Lebanon.
Lebanese spices are important to flavor our local dishes, but do you know exactly what they are? I went to visit a local spice merchant last week and discussed the local varieties with him.
Of course we use bay leaves, basil, and many other aromatic herbs too ... Now you must be wondering which spice for which recipe. This entails Lebanese cuisine 101, soon!
With graceful motion of the hands, paper-thin bread is made in Lebanon
Bread and anything that has to do with the subject is very important to me. I am making bread on a weekly basis for my family, not only because I think it tastes better but because the essential food of my children needs to be baked by their mother, I believe ... Their is a certain engergy that transcends into the dough making it nourishing both to the body and to the soul.
During the last Terra Madre, I met founder of the Bread Movement Nadezhda Savova. Bread Movement was founded in Bulgaria in 2009. It is associated with the Slow Food International Movement and Terra Madre Network.I highly suggest you visit the link provided above and read all about it. The great thing about all this is that Nadezhda will be visiting Lebanon in June. Bread and bread-making in Lebanon is indeed quintessential, we will have to celebrate its existence, somehow...Does anyone have any ideas to propose to Nadezhda? Ideas are welcomed. Let's open a Bread House in Lebanon.
I quote from the website:
"The movement inspires people from around the world to join and make the first step toward sustainable, responsible lifestyle: making one’s own bread, and making it collectively as a leisure entertainment!"
"Workshops with different religious groups and immigrant communities, as in Cape Town with Muslims, Catholics, Protestants, African animists, and atheists, showed the unifying and peace-building power, not in inter-religious “dialogue” but inter-religious “making” the most basic and universal human sustenance for life! Bread as a symbol and as a tactile experience also embraces spiritual and religious values, and communities within the BREAD Movement are encouraged to think how to inter-weave the community ecology with local spiritual practices, so sustainability would have strong roots in people’s hearts and minds as much as in their local soil."
The site goes on to say, Why BREAD?
I quote ...
Bread is universally present and loved around the world (even rice and corn-based cultures have rice and corn breads), consumed by people without division of economic status, age, gender, ethnicity, religion, education,etc: therefore, bread is a universal experience and a universal language to unite and educate
Can be made by anyone, from child to grandparent, and is at the same time the most entertaining cooking activity
When people share food, they are very much likely to establish peace and cooperation
Creating, not passively consuming, bread and art inspires the confidence that there are creative solutions to any problem, and that problems are not as grave as imagined
Tactile and taste experiences (bread-making stimulates all five senses!) develop particular parts of the brain, as studied by psychologists, which makes one perceive the world differently and ask deeper, critical questions: “Where does food come from and why? How do I treat my body, and what other food – intellectual and spiritual – do I need for a meaningful life?”
Their motto is " grain by grain, one bread at a time"
Because I have been photographing this subject for years in Lebanon, here is a glimpse as to what bread means to us as Lebanese, it's the common denominator in our diversified country ...
I was browsing through the Commerce du Levant which I think everyone should purchase this month because they have a special on Beirut restaurants, cafes and bars prepared by Hodema, a hospitality consulting service firm based in Beirut and in major Arab cities. I am dying to go and see this place, especially now that I am working on my new book dealing with dairy products—cheese included of course. Please if anyone has been to the shop and would like to comment, please do so! Here is the article, as written in the magazine (in French).
Lorsqu’on est épris de tome de brebis, de Saint-Nectaire ou, pire, d’un Munster fondant… les adresses de qualité à Beyrouth se comptent sur les doigts de la main. D’où notre chapeau bas à ce nouveau “comptoir” ouvert dans la descente de l’hôtel Alexandre, qui propose quelque 85 sortes de fromage à des prix raisonnables. Ce printemps, sa boutique s’étoffe d’une terrasse pour offrir à ses clients la possibilité de grignoter sur le pouce une assiette fromages et vins. « Il suffit de composer son assiette, de choisir sa boisson au comptoir. On pèse le tout. On ajoute cinq dollars pour le service, sans autre surcharge. »
