Call me Olivias de Maurico: This Syrian olive tree is loaded with fruit, most of which will fall to the ground, unpicked. The autumn olive harvest is still in full swing, and those of you who are now enjoying picking and preserving this ancient Middle Eastern fruit are surely aware that this year’s crop is […]
A traditional Arabic dish of ancient origins, mouth-watering Maklubah (maqlub, maqlube) is a gala menu all by itself. “Maklubah” means “upside-down” in Arabic, and this dish must be stood on its head to deserve the name. A Turkish translation of the 13th-century Baghdad Cookery Book has a recipe for Maklubah, but I’m sure that people knew […]
Smooth and heavy – a guide to choosing the best raw olives for pickling at home. There’s nothing like the sensation of running your fingers through a heap of smooth, heavy, fresh olives. And now is the season. Open markets of the Middle East display stands heaped with the green and purple fruit, perfect for […]
Rising meat demand, rising risks in the Middle East: antibiotics, meat glue and global warming. World meat consumption is on the rise and this is despite increase awareness of the health risks of eating refrozen meat sold as “freshly cut”, and the dangers of eating an enzyme called transglutaminase otherwise known as “meat glue”. A […]
Even though it seems like the earth couldn’t possibly handle 10 billion people, an article published in Nature shows that it is possible to feed them all. Read on for five handy tips. So, all this worrying about the burgeoning population was for nought? We don’t need to be concerned that we are rapidly reaching […]
A sustainable T.R.E.E. grows in Aspen, where children learn about real food. As a child, Israeli-born Eden Vardy wanted to know where his food came from. And since he grew up in Aspen, Colorado, his food generally came from a supermarket and was probably transported from far away. As he grew older and learned more […]
October offers a variety of short-season delicacies. Look for olives, dates, and beans. Each month brings forward new fruit or vegetables to charm the eye and palate, while the previous month’s stars fade away. October’s specialties are plentiful, and good for locovores looking to make good on the harvest. Read below for the best of […]
Miriam suggests dishes to suit meals before and after the Big Fast of Yom Kippur. This coming Friday night a Jewish Shabbat and Yom Kippur holiday occur together. While I look forward to a day of prayer and meditation, a day offline and a day of cleaner air, I confess I don’t relish the thought of […]
These big, savory meatballs satisfy big hungers. Certain dishes are considered working-man’s lunches in the Middle East. They’re foods you find in small shuk restaurants or roadside eateries. Eggy shakshoukah (recipe here), mulukhiyah soup (recipe here), the classic lentil/rice combination, majadra. The favored meat in the Middle East is lamb and it’s most often prepared […]
“If God allows, we will hold our baby in our arms”. 21-year-old Derya Sert (right) and her doctor Omer Ozkan pose for a photograph before her medical operation Derya Sert is the 21 year old who had the world’s first successful womb transplant at a Turkish hospital. On August 9th, 2011, doctors at Akdeniz University […]
The recent protests held across the Middle East demanding better and greener transport got me thinking about how we encourage the oldest form of transport- walking After the heat of the day fades, the streets of Middle East which are normally brimming with road-raged taxi drivers give way to the gentle patter of newly-wed couples […]
Pot can prevent PTSD, finds a new study from the University of Haifa. Another socially redeeming value in that evil old weed? Post-trauma stress disorder (PTSD) occurs in people exposed to life-threatening events or atrocities, like the arrest and torture of female activist and journalist Faranak Farid in Iran. The list of consequences after trauma […]
The Middle-Eastern pantry staple can be made at home easily. Pomegranates come into season now, just as summer fades and before the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. Fresh pomegranate seeds are one of the traditional Rosh HaShanah simanim (symbolic foods) on the holiday table. Downtown juice stands everywhere in the Middle East offer glasses of […]
In a bold move to stop food wastage, the Marmar Restaurant in Dammam, Saudi Arabia will charge you fines if you don’t finish your food. Super-sizing it is still really an American patent, even though large portions of food are still the norm in the Middle East. Now to curb food wastage even further, there […]
This mountain gazelle can be seriously injured or killed if it tries to reached fenced in vineyards in Israel’s Judean Hills. Wineries like Barkan are “open” to solutions, but not at their expense. Israeli wildlife are already threatened by illegal hunting and development projects that result in a lack of available land for animals to roam […]
Look for the exotic jujube fruit in Middle Eastern markets this month. Jujubes (photo above, Latin Ziziphus jujuba), called dumim in Hebrew and sadriah in Arabic, are in season right now. But their season is short. Eat them out of hand, papery peel and all, or cook up a compote flavored with a little orange-flower […]
Don’t freeze them! Use fresh herbs parsley and coriander packed into a Middle East omelet. In my native Canada, green herbs like parsley and dill are an afterthought; a sprig garnishes a dish, some chopped herbs are sprinkled on a soup. But here in the Middle East herbs take center stage. Parsley and coriander (or […]
How can you tell if a food is probiotic and good for your guts? Ruth gives a general guide. You may know all about the ecosystem of a pond or a woodland, but have you stopped to think about the ecosystem of your own gut? Sandor Katz did and wrote a whole book on fermented […]
Ashley Fruno of ‘People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals’ (PETA) speaks to Green Prophet about the difficulties of promoting animal rights in the Middle East When Ashley Fruno was seven she found a vein in her chicken nugget whilst eating at McDonald’s. Up until that point, she had no idea that the food on […]
Breast feeding moms have lower blood pressure and behave more aggressively compared to women who are bottle-feeding their children, suggesting that breast-feeding dampens the body’s typical stress response to fear, new research suggests. Women who breast-feed are far more likely to demonstrate a “mama bear” effect — aggressively protecting their infants and themselves — than […]
Zam Zam holy water in Mecca is contaminated with arsenic, but researchers in the US have discovered a ridiculously simple technology that can render contaminated water safe to drink. Millions of people in the developing world are frequently hapless victims of arsenic poisoning. This is not because they have angry spouses, but because arsenic is […]
Everyone hates needles, but don’t be a chicken if you want to vaccinate them against the new avian flu If you’ve been reading the news you’ll know that there is a deadly outbreak of the avian flu virus circling the globe again. This one appears to be deadlier than every, UN health authorities are reporting. […]
Preserve plenty peppers to produce a plethora of piquant pickles. The late-summer peppers are excellent right now, firm-fleshed and plump, with smooth skins and that robust flavor that marries so well with vinegar. Why not pickle some of them? Lemon season is just starting too, so try our recipe for preserved lemons while you’re in […]
Modern agriculture started in the Middle East. Can people here switch to the Paleo Lifestyle and eat like Cave Men? What should humans eat for optimal health? The key word here is optimal. Our bodies are remarkable machines, and we can manage, more or less, on a wide variety of foods. But what foods work […]
Expressions of affection, even from mother to child, are often the way herpes is spread from person to person. From private organizations to the World Health Organization (WHO), the experts agree: regardless of region, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are a pressing reality that stress individuals, families and communities, and call upon public health officials to […]
