Matzo Ball Soup

Dried fruit cake recipe

The perfect cake for Tu-Bishvat and any other day.
The first time I had this cake was at my friends' Anat. Her friend made it for her after she had her baby, a perfect energy cake for any nursing mom. Shameless me, I was sitting next to her, slowly slicing the cake away, one sliver slice at a time.
Before we knew it was nearly gone.

I was waiting patiently to share this cake with you for Tu-Bishvat, so here it is - the recipe... via an Israeli site: the good life

The advantages of this cake:

• delicious
• very quick to make
• It lasts for a relatively long time (not that it would…in my house anyways)
• perfect with tea and/or espresso
• I consider it as a healthy cake I hope you will agree with me on that one

OK, now for the recipe:

You will need:
3/4 cup whole almonds
3/4 cup half walnuts
3/4 cup whole hazelnuts
1 cup black grapes
1 cup golden grapes
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup dates
optional: few pieces of dried ginger (will make it a little spicy)

10 spoons of whole wheat flour
8 spoons of brown sugar
3 eggs
2 spoons of squeezed lemon
2 spoons of almond extract or amaretto liquer

Note: when I was making the cake, I wasn't very precise about the dried fruit and nuts quantities. I did it according to what I had at home. and I also didn’t add any almond extract but used some vanilla extract instead.

How to:

• slice apricots, dates and ginger
• mix together with nuts and raisins
• add flour+sugar, stir using your hands
• add eggs, lemon juice and almond extract
• mix well till you can’t see any flour on the fruits and nuts
• pour into a pan (elongated rectangle pans are best for this cake)
• tighten the mixture into the pan

Bake for approximately 45 minutes at 320 ˚f  if the raisins start to burn a little, cover with aluminum foil

Let cool down before slicing.

When you serve the cake, slice it really thin.

enjoy.

tali

Planting trees – looking towards a future

yes yes, the hot topic is Tu Bishvat, and planting trees is the highlight. (besides the dried fruit cake recipe I will be posting in a few days)
I was reading a little about the history of the holiday, which through me into some deep thoughts (I do have them every once in a while…you know…)

I was thinking about how I used to want to own a house so I could plant a tree and watch it grow as I watch my family grow. In my thoughts I was actually more greedy in hoping for no less than an orchard with all the fruit trees I love. With the rate we are moving I will have to wait with that hope for just a little longer and settle with an herb garden...for now.

When I think of trees I think of past present and future.
I think of a sense of belonging, of something that is bigger than me and will last longer than me. I think of something that nurtures with fruit and cradles with shelter.

When I lived in New England I used to love the bare trees in the winter, I was fascinated with seeing their exposed structure. (I was an architecture student back then, I am sure that explains it)
Now, being a practical mom and living in a hot climate, I like trees that give lots of shade and relief from the hot sun.

I read a great little story that I wanted to share with you.
I found it on the Keren Keyemeth le- Israel the Jewish National Fund web site

What We Can Learn from the Carob Tree
“Over time, carobs became very identified with Tu Bishvat. To this day, Jews in the Diaspora eat carobs from Israel on Tu Bishvat as a means of experiencing their connection to the Land of Israel. Here is an interpretation of a Talmudic legend that teaches us what we can learn from the carob tree. In tractate Ta’anit, the Talmud tells us about Honi Hame’agel, who was befuddled all his days by the biblical verse: “When God returned the exiles to Zion, we were as dreamers.” Honi could not understand – this verse refers to the Babylonian exile, which lasted seventy years. Can a man dream for seventy years?
 
Once he was walking on the road, and he saw someone planting a carob tree. Honi said to him: This tree that you are planting, when will it bear fruit? The man answered: Seventy years from now. Honi retorted: Do you think you will be alive seventy years from now? The man responded: When I was born, I found a world full of carob trees. Just as my ancestors planted trees for me, so too, I plant for my children.”
 
Honi understood the biblical verse as referring to the exile. When we returned to Israel, the entire time of the exile seemed like a dream. This is what Honi could not understand: How could seventy years be like a dream? Life goes on, things happen both to individuals and to a people.
 
Honi received his answer from the man who was planting the carob tree. Since the carob tree bears fruit seventy years after it was planted, the planter will not eat of its fruit. Even so, he toils and cares for it. From his answer, Honi understood that the time of exile is not just a time of waiting. Just like the carob – from the time it is planted until its fruit is ripe, it is busy. Roots delve deep in to the earth, and branches reach for the skies. Complex botanical processes are taking place until it reaches the stage when it is ready to bear fruit. At that point, it becomes clear that everything that went on during the past 70 years was absolutely necessary. Honi learned from the carob tree that planting has intrinsic value, even for someone who will not eat of its fruit. The process that eventually leads to the fruit bearing time has great value in and of its own”.

 
How about planting a tree this Tu Bishvat, you can do it in your back yard, in Israel, in California or in other places too.

tali

Tu-Bishvat – a creativity book

I know I have promised Bialik’s activities, its coming and it is really good…I promise…a couple of more days.

In the mean time I started to feel the winds of Tu Bishvat blowing. If you are looking puzzled than I guess I will quickly say that Tu Bishvat is the Jewish new years for the trees, I always thought it was very special to celebrate the trees birth day. The name Tu Bishvat is derived from the Hebrew date of the holiday the 15th of the month of Shevat.

The holiday is 2 weeks away. In celebration of this holiday I will be posting different activities you can enjoy as a family. I will start by telling you about a Tu Bishvat creativity book I made last year, you can down load it from my blog, this is the link: TU BISHVAT ACTIVITY BOOK

^{Zoe drawing from the Tu-Bishvat activity book using water color travel compact set}

^{Zoe, Tali from the Tu-Bishvat activity book}

Please feel free to forward it to whom ever you think will enjoy it.

tali

Tu Bishvat - an activity book

It seems like the ‘new years’ celebrations are never ending…first we had Rosh Hashanah. Before we knew it came 2009, the Chinese New Year is this weekend and next week is the Jewish new years for the trees or as we call it – Tu-Bishvat (the name is derived from the Hebrew date of the holiday the 15th of the month of Shevat).  I am much exited to share this activity book that I have designed. Please forward it to whom ever you think will enjoy it.
If you have any comments or feedback I would love to hear. 

TU BISHVAT ACTIVITY BOOK (pdf)

Thanks to Jill Sulam from Transformations Editing for editing this Tu Bishvat activity book!

tali