Sauces, Spreads and Spices

Clarified Sage Butter (Samneh/Ghee)

Sage is an important local edible and medicinal plant, but in this recipe it plays a supporting role. The center is clarified butter: known in Indi...

Homemade Mustard

Homemade mustard is one of those small kitchen preparations that changes the way a meal tastes: sharp, bright, a little sweet, and full of the warm...

Almond Cheese

A recipe from the kitchen of Tami Tzori of CityTree. Tami makes cheeses and dairy-like foods without dairy. She calls this one cheese-without-bo...

Homemade Tomato Paste

In summer, there are plenty of tomatoes, and it is easier to find tomatoes at the market that are meant for sauces and paste. And in general, ju...

Making Vinegar – A Basic Recipe

Vinegar is essentially wine, or any other natural alcoholic drink, that has soured. The word vinegar comes from Old French vin aigre, meaning “sour...

Wine Vinegar

The process of making wine vinegar is very simple, but it requires patience. When I was in Italy, I once stayed with a local family. On their kitc...

Cucumber and Yogurt Tzatziki

Tzatziki is originally a Greek recipe, somewhere between a cold soup and a dip or spread, based on cucumbers and yogurt. You can make it with da...

Sicilian Tomato Concentrate

Every summer, an enormous quantity of tomatoes grow in our garden, from several different varieties. We eat plenty of them, but because there are s...

Local Miso

Making miso is a long process with several stages. First, koji is grown; then the koji is mixed with cooked grain, salt, and water, packed tightly,...

Fermented Mustard Seed Spread

To make this spread, ferment the mustard seeds ahead of time. The seed fermentation takes about 10 days, and once the seeds are ready, the spread i...

Pot Stew Spice

This spice is named for the huge pot that Uri cooks his stew and vegetables in on an open fire.   200 g coriander seeds 100 g sesame seeds ...

Cashew Yogurt

4.4 cups water 500 g whole cashews  20 g salt fermenting bacteria, which can come from the liquids of fermented cabbage or other fer...

Fermented Cashew-Almond Cheese

This plant-based cheese begins as a smooth cashew-almond cream and becomes tangy through a short, lively fermentation. It is useful anywhere you wa...

Fermented Lemon Paste

600 g fermented lemons 200 g whole almonds 80 g grape syrup/honey 10 g turmeric   Blend the ingredients together in a Vitamix, or your ...

Our Poyke stew spice mix

This spice is named for the huge pot that Uri cooks his stew and vegetables in on an open fire.   200 g coriander seeds 100 g sesame seeds ...

Maimonides’ Tea

The noted philosopher Maimonides, or the Rambam, lived in the 11th century; he was born in Cordova, Spain and is buried in Tiberias, Israel -- only...

Apple Cider Vinegar

The sugar in apples ferments easily, which makes apple cider vinegar the simplest homemade vinegar to prepare.This vinegar is excellent for seasoni...

Za’atar Spice Blend with Hyssop, Sumac, and Sesame

A local za'atar blend built around dried hyssop, bright sumac, toasted sesame, and sea salt. Use it as a finishing spice for cooked dishes, vegetab...

Avocado Paste

Ingredients 1 big avocado 1/2 preserved lemon 1/4 cup pickling liquid 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 teaspoons mustard (preferably home-made) A pi...

Mustard Spread

Recipe no. 1 Ingredients 2 cloves of garlic 1 freshly squeezed lemon 1 tablespoon of honey 2 tablespoons of olive oil 1 teaspoon of turmeric ...