Western Wall

August 9th: Tom was born in Israel, moving to the U.S. when he was 8. He was such a wonderful tour guide and Valerie an amazing hostess. He took us to Old Jerusalem where we saw the Wailing Wall, also the western wall, which is also part of King David's temple, the first temple. After going to the wall, placing my hands on it and praying, I understand why it is called the Wailing Wall. I was so overcome with emotions, I couldn't help becoming teary.

The Wailing Wall enforces gender separation. The women of the wall have asked for an area where couples and families are able to pray together.





As God would have it, there were SEVEN buses of special needs young men at the Wailing Wall.

Here are photos of temple ruins and Western Wall

Israel Museum in Jerusalem

August 9th: Today we went to the Museum. It was incredible.

First we went to see the Dead Sea Scrolls.

We went to see a replica of Old Jerusalem. It was beautiful. Tom explained how the city is now being uncovered and how parts of the city may not be as the replica, such as gates were in different places 

Then we went inside the artifact museum. We were able to see artifacts from the Egyptian, Persian, Greek and Roman time periods.

Valerie took a picture of me with an olive tree. The olives were small and green. This is a picture of my beautiful cousin, Valerie.

Caesarea Ruins

When I was growing up my father took us to every fort and historical site he could. I did the same thing to my boys. I thought of my dad as we walk through the ruins of Caesarea.. Caesarea was the main Roman port during the time of Paul the apostle. It was restored and fortified during the crusades. Below are pictures of the ruin pieces found in this area.

Raw French Dressing

We are always looking for good raw dressings and had a surplus of cherry tomatoes. This recipe is a keeper.

Raw French Dressing Ingredients:

• 1 cup grape tomatoes
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup pitted dates, may like it sweeter, so add more dates
• 2 tablespoon diced onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt

Raw French Dressing Instructions:
Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

My Israel Trip

What a blessing to receive a gifted trip to Israel! I leave for Israel today returning August 17th and will be meeting Valerie and Tom in Israel!!! We will add photos and keep a diary of our travels here.

August 7th: We made it to the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv after flying all night. The flight was amazing. I was seated next to a speech therapist at a school for children pre-k through 12th grade. She just took classes on how yoga benefits people with mental and physical disorders. We have exchanged information and plan to be in contact once we are back in the states.

The airport is so beautiful. Valerie was easy to find. She and I were able to catch up while Tom rented a car. On our way to Tom's grandmother's we stopped for dinner, typical Israeli food. I LOVE THE FOOD! There were about 20 vegetable bowls with the best hummus, rice and "chips" (French fries) I also ordered lamb kebobs, more like lamb patties. AMAZING and Tom said it was just ok.  We are staying in a studio apartment above Tom's grandmother. Off to bed, 20 hours of airports is about all I can handle for one day.

August 8th: I woke this morning to this view.

There is an orange tree off the front terrace.

Orange tree

View from the terrace off the bedroom

We had lunch at the beach on the Mediterranean Sea.

The beach is beautiful and the water so warm. Israel is experiencing one of the warmest summer's, so we stayed in the car for sightseeing. We did get out of the air conditioning to see the aquaduct in Caesarea. We also drove to see the Roman excavation area near the colosseum. We went back in the evening when it was cooler.

Inside the crusaders'fort

Floral design

We spent some time with Tom's Safta. She is experiencing the effects of Alzheimer.

August 2015 Potluck

This month's theme is "Your Favorite Summertime Foods". With all the fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables, here are some of our favorites. Our group was small today, vacations, family gatherings, and parents in the hospital.

One of the women loves corn and sprouts.

Sweet Corn and Sprouted Lentil Salad

Serves 4 as a main course, 6 as a side

2 C fresh corn kernels (from 3 medium ears)

1 TBS olive oil

2 C sprouted lentils

2 C cherry tomatoes, halved

2/3 C sliced scallions

¼ C toasted pistachios

¼ C fresh lime juice

2 TBLS honey

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp finely grated lime zest

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp ground cumin

Kosher or seas salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 oz frim goat cheese, crumbled (I used almond cheese)

½ C chopped cilantro leaves

In a 12-inch skillet, cook the corn in the oil over medium heat until it begins to sizzle, 1 minute.  Add 1 TBLS water, cover and steam until tender, about 2 minutes.  Transfer to a large bowl and let cool to room temperature, 15 minutes.

Add the lentils, tomatoes, scallions, pistachios, lime juice, honey, garlic, lime zest, turmeric, and cumin.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and mix gently.  Let sit stirring occasionally for 30 minutes.

Add the cheese and cilantro and mix gently.  Serve immediately.

Jicama is big at the farmers market. There was a Jicama Sprout salad

One of the women loves peaches and made Raw Blueberry Peach Cheezecake

Ice cream can be a summer time favorite. This Almond Vanilla Ice Cream recipe was made, serving it with cacao nibs, cacao sauce and a date caramel and/or on top of the cheezecake. We only made 2/3 the recipe due to it not freezing well.
Ice Cream Ingredients:
Almond milk:
2 cups of almonds soaked ~8 hours and drained
4 cups of water
4 dates

Blend in a high speed blender and drained through a nut milk bag. The leftover nut pulp can be saved for other recipes, such as garlic herb croutons, bagels, pretzels...

Ice Cream:
Almond milk from above
12 pitted dates
2 inches vanilla bean
pinch of salt

Blend in a high speed blender. Add to ice cream maker container and refrigerate overnight or 8 hours. The next day follow the ice cream maker instructions for soft serve ice cream

Curly Jicama Fries

This Curly Jicama Fries comes from Clean Eating Magazine. We are able to purchase jicama for less than a $1 at our Farmers' Market and looking for new ways to eat it.
We also roasted peppers last weekend and have jarred peppers on hand.

Serves: 6
Hands-on Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 large jicama, peeled
• 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
• 1 tsp garlic powder (TRY: Simply Organic Garlic Powder)
• 1/4 tsp each chile powder, ground cumin, dried oregano and dried thyme
  
  Dipping Sauce
• 1 15-oz jar roasted red bell peppers, drained
• 2/3 cup blanched unsalted almonds (used raw, but soaked)
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 2 large cloves garlic
• Pinch each sea salt and ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Secure jicama in a spiral slicer and turn the crank to create noodles. Using a sharp knife, cut jicama noodles into 2- to 3-inch pieces.
2. In a large bowl, toss jicama noodle pieces with 1 tbsp oil. Sprinkle with garlic powder, chile powder, cumin, oregano and thyme; toss to coat. Spread jicama pieces in an even layer on a large rimmed parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, turning halfway, until golden and crispy.
3. Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, place roasted bell peppers, almonds, remaining 3 tbsp oil, vinegar, paprika, garlic cloves, salt and black pepper; purée until smooth.
4. Transfer jicama fries to a serving platter. Sprinkle parsley over fries and serve with pepper sauce for dipping.

Nutrients per serving (2/3 cup fries and 1/6 of sauce): calories: 240, total fat: 15 g, sat. fat: 2 g, monounsaturated fat: 10 g, polyunsaturated fat: 3 g, carbs: 23 g, fiber: 12 g, sugars: 4 g, protein: 12 g, sugars: 4 g, protein: 4 g, sodium: 136 mg, cholesterol: 0 mg

We liked the dipping sauce so much, we may just use it to dip jicama sticks.