Follow
Journey to Jerusalem 2010
Part Two ~ The Dinner
This part will be much less wordy than the previous one <g>.
Preparing for the dinner for 125 people, I prayed and made lists and made menus and calculated portions per person and made phone calls and cried and prayed and baked and got REALLY excited and then scared silly and then laid it all at Yeshua’s feet. WHEW! This was truly going to be an effort to glorify HIM and His Body or it would be a flop. I could quit worrying <well, I COULD> and let Him guide. And you know what? He did guide!
So, here’s the final menu (just finalized days before the dinner):
For each place setting at each table:
Tossed salad with dressings
100% whole wheat mini-Challah loaf
Butter
Cheesecake wedge
Buffet Line:
Multigrain pita breads made from freshly-ground whole wheat flour and organic 7-grains
Falafel
Traditional hummus
Israeli Salad
Black and green olives
Tahini sauce with roasted red pepper
Marinated grilled chicken breasts
Marinated grilled skewered vegetables
CousCous with sauteed vegetables, dried fruit and sliced almonds
Coffee and tea
Here’s what I wrote about the food offerings, a copy at each table:
FUN FOOD FACTS
(Better Known As, “What’s THAT you’re serving me?”)
FALAFEL – Yes, a falafel ball looks like the Hush Puppy we Southerners are used to, but no, it ain’t made with corn.
Falafel are fritters made with garbanzo beans, a staple in the Middle East. Ground up garbanzos and delicious, aromatic spices, flour (or matzah meal) make up this delectable part of your Israeli dining experience. Falafels are considered the “Israeli National Snack”, although there is a serious dispute over who created falafel, Arabs or Israelis.
Joan Nathan, the author of “The Foods of Israel Today,” said: “Falafel is a biblical food. The ingredients are as old as you’re going to get. These are the foods of the land, and the land goes back to the Bible. Both Jews and Arabs have lived in the Middle East for thousands of years.
Tonight we invite you to enjoy them as the those who live in the land, Jew and Arab, do -stuffed in a warm pita with Israeli salad, or marinated vegetables and drizzled with *tahini sauce. *(See entry for tahini sauce) My son Micah calls them Israeli Tacos 🙂 You will also see FRENCH FRIES on the menu. Seriously? YES!! When in Israel, you will be served French Fries with most meals, ESPECIALLY falafel!!
When you go to Israel with Pastor Jimmy, you WILL eat falafel every day because he loves them, so you might as well get your taste on now!! (Actually, he will give you a choice of falafel or other foods, but you’ll always see him eating and heartily enjoying his falafel and fries.)
TAHINI SAUCE – Well, it’s a sauce made from tahini. Does that help? Oh, what is tahini you ask? Check out the entry for Tahini. Tahini sauce is made with tahini, lemon juice water and spices. It is supposed to be thin (not thick like hummus – you know what hummus is, right? No? OK, check the entry for hummus. Anyway, Tahini sauce is drizzled over top of your falafel sandwich described under the entry for falafel.
TAHINI – is a butter (like peanut butter) made from sesame seeds. It is also a staple in Israeli and Middle East dishes. It is the basis of hummus. Oh, don’t ask about hummus, the entry is coming soon!
HUMMUS – (See? I told you I’d get to hummus!) Hummus is made with tahini (did I just tell you that?) But mainly hummus is a thick dip or spread made from garbanzo beans (there are those pesky garbanzo bean again!), lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, tahini, cumin and sometimes a dash of cayenne pepper. This is traditional, Israeli hummus.
Contemporary cooks have had fun playing with hummus and inventing new and exciting combinations! One of my favorites is Red Pepper Hummus. (But, don’t get all excited, you won’t see it at THIS dinner, Traditional only, thank you! )
PITA: This is a flat bread with a SURPRISE inside!! A pocket where you can snuggle warm falafel, veggies of your choice and hummus or Tahini sauce or even hot sauce and pickles.
Most store-bought pita breads are dry and have a taste reminiscent of white paper paste. Whole grain pita is better, but BETTER STILL is 100% whole grain, multigrain pitas made from freshly-ground flour, hand shaped, rolled and baked by a little, round Jewish lady who prayed for each one of you!! (True story!! S’rously!) Tonight’s pitas are soft, fluffy and slightly sweet and are a perfect host for the falafel, although my family likes the pitas all by themselves (a good sign!).
ISRAELI SALAD – This is not the tossed salad in your bowl, it is the “Official” salad of Israeli and you will find it on the buffet table in close proximity to the falafel, pita, and tahini sauce, for you see, they all like each other and like to join each other in your yummy pita!
CHALLAH – Challah is the braided bread at your table. It is the traditional bread of Jews all over the world to have on Shabbat (Sabbath). Challah is a rich egg bread with a hint of sweetness that goes well with whatever the Shabbat meal is. Jewish women have for centuries prayed as they mixed and kneaded the Challah, it is taught to little Jewish girls that this is part of making Challah, to pray for those who will receive its blessing!
At the table, the Poppa says the blessing over the Challah, and with freshly-washed hands, he tears a hunk off from the braided loaf and passes around that hunk so all his family (and guests at the table) may partake.
YESHUA – (Hebrew for Jesus) tells us in John 6:35… “Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
Also, 1 Corinthians 10: 17 the Word tells us….”Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.”
ENJOY in Yeshua (Jesus!)
Please continue to Part Three!
About Vickilynn Parnes
