Pasta-Chickpea Salad, Pre and Post-Fast Meal

One of the popular suggestions for pre-fast meals is to eat complex carbohydrates, which take longer to digest. The experts consider that a good idea before fasting. So, on Friday I decided to make a Pasta-Chickpea Salad. Of course I had to make sure I had enough time to soak and cook the chickpeas, which I did. You can "cheat" by getting a can of them.

Cooking Chickpeas
First I leave the chickpeas in a covered pot full of boiling water for a couple of hours. Then I pour out the water, add new boiling water and simmer on the stove until chewable. Leave covered for another hour or so.

Pasta-Chickpea Salad Ingredients

• cooked pasta, drained
• cooked or from a can chickpeas, drained
• cut tomatoes, large diced
• diced onion
• olive oil, coarse salt and coarse pepper
• optional other salad vegetables and leaves and/or grated cheese

Mix all of the ingredients together. Yes, it's that simple. It's a simple "one-pot" summer meal. Which additional ingredients do you add? I'd love to hear.

PS for the post fast, fast-breaking breakfast meal, I heated up the salad, since my husband prefers warm pasta.

New Kitchen Progress, Gd Willing, After 9th of Av

For months, I've been working on getting us a new kitchen, and for years I've been talking about it. Honestly, I had no idea how complicated it could be. Somehow even building our house seemed easier. Then there was nobody around  to tell us that we were doing it wrong. We didn't comparative shop in terms of architect and cablan, builder. We just chose professionals who made us feel comfortable, neighbors, then planned and trusted them.

We didn't do that awful a job. None of us were terribly experienced, not the architect, nor the builders and certainly not us. Davka, the house has held up rather well. But to be honest, the biggest mistakes were in the kitchen planning. That's one of the reasons we need a new kitchen, and the other is that the plumbing needs replacement. Actually I'm keeping an entire wall of closets from the old kitchen and not changing them at all. The planning of those closets was mine alone. At first I thought that I'd get new doors for them, but then to save money, we're not. The formica on the new part of the kitchen goes well with it. Wherever we can save money, we will try.

A few months ago I thought I had it all wrapped up with the right plan, builder, color scheme etc. Then at the last moment, I canceled. One of my daughters helped me find someone else to do the work, and I'm much happier with this one, even though it'll cost a bit more.

The new kitchen contractor "tweaked" the plan in a great way. He's not pushing, which is good.

I took a couple of trips to Jerusalem to look at ceramics, colors etc, and things have changed enormously since my first plan.

Now since the 9th of Av is so soon, nothing gets signed until afterwards.

Only in Israel, 9th of Av

As much as people like to kvetch that the State of Israel doesn't function as a truly "Jewish State," there still isn't any country in the world more Jewish than Israel. Today is the 9th of Av, called Tisha b'Av in Hebrew. And if you think it's hard to find a good choice of restaurants open during Passover or Shabbat, then you're in for a bad surprise if you want to eat out today. Besides in non-Jewish neighborhoods, there won't be much to choose from. Many stores are closed or open shorter hours, too.

It's not as quiet as Yom Kippur, but the 9th of Av National Day of Mourning and fasting has cast a pall and keeps people at home.

And some of you may have noticed that all of a sudden Israeli men in all walks of life, including media, politicians etc. suddenly look sort of scruffy. They haven't been shaving. You're not supposed to cut your hair (including shaving) during the three weeks (some only observe this the week) before the 9th of Av.

Yesterday, after the weather forecast on the radio, they announced when the fast was to begin in various locations. Do you get that in Monsey, Boca or Stamford Hill?

Oops! Or is this "all Greek" to you? Did I lose you when mentioning 9th of Av?

The 9th day of the Jewish Month of Av is the saddest day on the Jewish Calendar. It's the anniversary of the destruction of both Holy Temples and the total occupation of Jerusalem by foreign invaders. Yes, both Temples were destroyed in the same deadly season hundreds of years apart. The Jewish People have commemorated this for thousands of years.

Here we are in the Land of Israel with a Jewish State. Things may not be perfect yet, but we're only human. It's not so simple to evolve from exile to Redemption, but I have no doubt that we're on our way, Gd willing. Yes, I just wrote "Gd willing," but it's up to us. Each time we take the right step, Gd will step in with "matching funds" and help us to help ourselves.

Tzom Kal

Easy Fast to Those Fasting

Food Before and After a Fast

 Today is one of the most difficult fasts on the Jewish Calendar, Tisha B'Av, the 9th of Av. It's the same long 25 hour fast as Yom Kippur, but unlike Yom Kippur  it isn't preceded and ended by festive meals. And we don't keep busy in shul/synagogue which is frequently well air-conditioned. This year was even more complicated than most, because the fast began during the last hour of Shabbat. Actually Shabbat was the 9th of Av, but we don't fast on Shabbat except when Yom Kippur falls on Shabbat. And this year the days before the fast were among the hottest, if not THE HOTTEST OF THE YEAR.

So when I was cooking for Shabbat I had to make sure that I prepared something special for Seudat Shlishit the last meal of Shabbat. I needed something that would be good pre-fast food. The experts say that carbohydrates are best, and I discovered during recent fasts that oatmeal was a great pre-fast food. The problem is that it isn't an easy Shabbat food. So I decided to try a version of Majadara, which combines rice and lentils. I bought brown lentils and brown basmati rice. To that I added, onion, mushroom and oil.

 

Once they were slowly cooking I added more than double the volume of boiling water. It was cooked covered, of course. I also served a version of my baked vegetables and salmon, plus some salad.

And we drank lots of water. Gd willing we'll do fine over the fast.

For breaking the fast, I plan on making my original vegetable, or easy vegetable soup, like I usually do.

What are your customary foods for before and after fasts?

9th of Av and Summer Heat

The Jewish Calendar is linked to the seasons and the Land of Israel, so I guess the fact that our greatest tragedies have taken place during the hottest days of the year must mean something. It doesn't rain during the summer in the HolyLand.

Temple Mount Today

We have two fast days during the hottest and driest time of the year, the 17th of Tammuz and the 9th of Av, just three weeks apart. They both commemorate the invasion of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Holy Temple. If we're suffering now, with running water, fans and airconditioning, try to imagine how difficult it was thousands of years ago when the city and Temple were burning with real fire.

Our house doesn't have air-conditioning. Most of the summer I don't need it, but by yesterday the heatwave got to me, and I've been telling people:

"It's so hot I've been feeling young all of a sudden. It's like hot flashes from menopause!"