Milk and Honey for the Soul

May 26, 2014

In the pre-dawn darkness of Shavuot morning, thousands of people begin their annual pilgrimage through Jerusalem’s shadowy streets to the Western Wall (Kotel). Most of the people gathered at the Kotel have stayed up all night studying Torah (Gen.–Deut.) and reading the book of Ruth.

Shavuot means “weeks.” Seven weeks (49 days) are counted from the Feast of First Fruits (the second day of Passover), and on the 50th day, Shavuot begins. Christians refer to Shavuot as Pentecost, a Greek word meaning “fifty,” which celebrates the promised gift of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the Church (Acts 2:1).

Noam Armonn/Shutterstock.com This holiday is also called the Feast of Harvest, when the first fruits of the harvest were loaded on wagons bedecked with garlands of flowers, taken to the Temple and presented to the Lord in thanksgiving. When the Temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70 and the land left desolate, the focus of the Feast changed and became a celebration of God’s gift of the Torah to the Israelites on Mount Sinai.

Photo by Elion Paz Unlike other festivals on the Hebrew calendar, Shavuot has very few defining symbols—no sukkot to build, no shofars to blow, no hannukiah to light—only the Torah. With the beautiful imagery of a wedding, the rabbis say that, on Mount Sinai, God and the Israelites stood together under a chuppah like a bride and groom on their wedding day. God asked them, “Will you accept My Torah?” and the Israelites responded, “We do,” sealing God’s relationship with His people in intimacy and gladness.

Traditionally, foods made with dairy are eaten on Shavuot—especially cheesecake. This may be because Israel is the land “flowing with milk and honey” and reading Torah satisfies like milk and honey to the yearning soul.

We present a favorite recipe among Israelis for Shavuot called pashtida, a cheese-based version of quiche.

Mediterranean Pashtida (Quiche)

Photo by Elion Paz The Pastry Shell–Crust for two 10 in (24 cm) quiche pans

• 2½ cups (350 g) flour
• 1 level tsp salt
• 9 oz (250 g) chilled butter, cut into pieces
• 2½ fl oz (70 ml) cold water

The Filling                

• 1 eggplant, diced
• Olive oil for baking
• 1 onion, halved and sliced thinly
• 1 leek (white part only), sliced thinly
• 3 sweet red peppers
• 1 cup fresh parsley or coriander, chopped
• 1 lb 2 oz (500 g) feta cheese, diced
• 20 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2½ oz (70 g) shelled pumpkin seeds                                                                             

Sauce Royale

• 3 cups (750 ml) whipping cream
• 4 eggs
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed

Assembly

1. Pastry shell: Mix flour and salt in a food processor. Add chilled butter and pulse until mixture forms crumbs. Add water and pulse only until a ball of smooth dough is formed. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
2. Roll out a thin layer of dough on a well-floured surface and line quiche pans. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
3. Filling: Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
4. Roast peppers over an open flame until skin is charred. Cool in a sealed plastic bag (to make peeling easier). Peel, remove seeds and membranes and cut into strips.
5. Pour olive oil over eggplant and bake for about 20 minutes, until cubes are light brown and tender. Remove but don’t turn off oven.
6. Sauté onions and leeks in olive oil until translucent. Remove from pan and cool.
7. Sauce Royale: Combine all ingredients until smooth.
8. Assembly: Spread onion-leek mixture on pastry shell, add eggplant cubes and pepper strips, sprinkle with parsley or coriander and pour on sauce. Add cheese cubes, cherry tomatoes and pumpkin seeds.
9. Bake for about 25 minutes until golden-brown.

Source: From The Book of New Israeli Food by Janna Gur