Olive Time

Broken Green Syrian olives

photo by Eyal Warshavsky

I just love olives, especially green Syrian broken olives cured with salt, garlic and lemon. It takes a minimum of about three weeks from the time I close the jar until I start eating them, and some will say they are still too bitter at that point. But I love that bitter salty taste, with a hint of hot pepper.

 October and November are olive harvest time. Right after the first rain, I used to take Shira to the tree that grew under my grandmother’s home in Jerusalem and pick olives off the tree. Then we would crack each one with a rock or just use a knife to make a small incision.

Once at home, the olives go in a bowl with fresh water for about three days, changing the water every day. 

photo by Eyal Warshavsky

On the fourth day I take a clean jar and put the olives in it  for two kilos of olives I use  six to eight garlic cloves , one medium sliced lemon, and two or three chile peppers.  

Then I prepare a solution of water and salt.  Here I use a fresh egg as my measure: after mixing the solution in a bowl or pitcher, I place an egg in the water. If the egg remains roughly in the middle – not floating to the surface, but not sinking – I’ve got the right amount of salt for the process. Once the solution is balanced, I pour it on the olives, and top it off with some olive oil to prevent contact with air. Then I close the jar tightly, and wait.

photo by Eyal Warshavsky

After about three weeks I start tasting. Since I do not make more than three kilos of olives,  after two months I run out , and I go back to buying my olives in the market, and wait for next year’s olive harvest.

Do try this at home!!!!

Turkey Neck Soup

Turkey Neck Soup

Shira was sick, her stomach was killing her, or it was school.….! She stayed home and I, the devoted father tried to do everything that I could, to help her get back to her old self, as fast as I could. So.., lots of tea with Sage which is known for it medicinal qualities especially for the tummy, and since it was winter, what better then soup, with lots of good nutritious vegetables, Sage and the neck of a Turkey . It was Thanksgiving not too long ago…

Usually when I make a remedy soup I add some or all the veggies I can find into my pot, fry them together with some olive oil and spices add water and let it cook, and, since this soup was made to help tummy problems I made sure I added a nice bundle of Sage.

Here is the amazing and very easy recipe:

Take the Turkey neck and fry it in the pot; not too long just till it gets a brownish color, then take it out of the pot to be used later. Add to the pot some more olive oil and the vegetables, first the onion and then the rest. Mix all the veggies together for about two to three minutes.

Add the turkey neck which was left aside and mix together for another two minutes.

Then add the water, a basic and “must” ingredient for all soups!

My pot is a five liter one and I add about four liters of fresh tap water to it and my spices

And let it boil

When the soup has been boiling for a couple of minutes; lower the heat to a medium or small flame. Cover the pot and simmer for about an hour.

When the level of the soup is about half a liter below the initial amount, taste it to see if magic happened and the flavors are concentrated. If it did not reach that level of “deliciousness” then let it cook for a bit longer.

The result is absolutely amazing!

Do!

Try this at home !!!