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UPPSALA UNIVERSITY Department of Theology Master Programme in Religion in Peace and Conflict Master thesis, 30 credits Spring, 2019 Supervisor: Gabriella

Gastronomy as a tool for peace and resistance in the Holy Land

Ulrica Söderlind

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Acknowledgement I would like to thank the department of Theology at Uppsala University for having the international master program “Religion in Peace and Conflict”. It has been enlightening years for me, even if the study pace is intense with a lot of writing on a weekly basis I am very grateful for the growing I have made as a human during the of the program. I also would like to thank Nathan Söderbloms minnesfond for believing in my idea regarding making field studies in the Holy Land in search for as a tool for peace and resistance, and funded the field research. I am indebted to my informants for allowing me to interview them and that they shared their view of gastronomy and culinary arts in the Holy Land with me.

Abstract This thesis is a study within the international master program “Religion in Peace and Conflict” at the department of theology at Uppsala University. The study should be seen as a microstudy over the role gastronomy plays as a tool for peace and resistance in the Holy Land. represent and Tabye and represent in the study. The method used is the so-called abductive method or reasoning, where I am the one who is observing and analysing data from an ethnographical standpoint. The study is interdisciplinary in the way that cookbooks, interviews, personal observations and photographs are used as primary sources. The theory “The gastronomic man” are the theoretical framework. The theory deals with the factors that are of importance for the choices humans make when it comes to and beverage. The results of the study indicates that gastronomy is present at least on two levels in society in the Holy Land, on a high political level manifested via diplomatic gastronomy and on a more personal level where the informants works with gastronomy both as a tool for peace, and for the also a way to overcome the effects of the occupation. The results also indicates that education within the culinary arts are of great importance in order to understand other groups’ than one’s own. The cuisines that falls back on heritage, culture and nations. It is suggested that gastronomy can take the part of religion itself for its practitioners since themselves constructs what is sacred.

Key words: Gastronomy, The Holy Land, peace, conflict, religion, interfaith relations, resistance, food, beverage, education, sacred order

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Table of content Chapter 1 Introduction 4 1.1 Purpose and question 4 1.2 Theoretical framework (the gastronomic man) 4 1.3 Method 9 1.4 Source criticism 10 1.5 Dietary regulations in short 10 1.6 Previous research 12 Chapter 2 The Survey 2.1 Diplomatic gastronomy/Culinary diplomacy 12 2.2 Cookbooks 19 , Snacks, 19 /side dishes, /, / 20 21 Fish/shellfish/snails, Egg dishes, dairy, /sweets 22 Beverage 23 Mezze, , Soups, dishes, dishes 24 Stews, Mahashi, Meat dishes, Poultry 25 Fish and shellfish, Bread and , Sweets and deserts 26 Jams, Refreshments, Pickles and sauces, and 27 2.3 Chefs for peace 29 2.4 Education 31 2.5 Palm trees and alcoholic beverages 34 2.6 Hospitality and culinary arts 42 2.7 Two restaurants 44 2.8 Baked goods 48 Chapter 3 3.1 Closing discussion 51 3.2 Further research 56 References 57

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Chapter 1 Introduction are often described as an activity that is undertaken by humans in order to satisfy the physiological need of providing the human body with nourishment. However, that is not the whole truth about eating and drinking, regardless if it is done together or alone. The foodways of Israel has its origin in several cultures and if one asks an Israeli what is typical Israeli food they will tell you that there is no such thing as a typical Israeli food. The influences of the Israeli have been influenced by immigration by Jewish people from over 80 countries from the , North , the , Central and Eastern Europe to India. Of the 7 million persons, it is estimated that a little more than 76 % are of Jewish origin, approximately 19.5 % consider themselves as , mainly Muslim, however there is also a minor percentage that are Christians. The remaining little over 4 % comprise Druze, Circassians and other that do not classify themselves by religion. Food that are typically considered to be “Israeli” has its origin from a wider cuisine of the Middle East, falafel and the so called “Israeli ” consisting of and tomatoes cut in small pieces. In addition, Jewish traditions from East Europe have an important significant´s in Israeli with different dishes such as borsht and blinier (origin from ). Food custom in Israel also carry markers of the Mediterranean region where instead of dinner is the main of the day.1 1.1 Purpose and question The purpose of this microstudy is to investigate the role gastronomy plays for some of the inhabitants in Jerusalem and Palestine. For the latter the city of Bethlehem and the village of Tabye represents Palestine. Within the purpose itself, one finds the question for the study imbedded, namely: How is gastronomy used as a mean for peace and for residence in Jerusalem and Palestine? 1.2 Theoretical framework (the gastronomic man) The specific range of drink and food (gastronomy) is established very early in the history of a nation and its inhabitants. Some factors are of importance for the gastronomy to take form and manifest itself. Need is one, humans are by nature physical beings and their bodies are dependent on or food of a certain composition. The supply of nourishment to the body needs to be fairly regularly since the human body have limited store resources and are therefore limited. The human body’s working capabilities depend of both physique and the

1 Gila, Levine, T, Simply Israel- a collection of recipes from the people of Israel, 2016: introduction, Israel 4 supply of food. Edibility is another important factor and within edibility, one finds habits. Human habits in this context mean that certain foodstuff is so self- evident that people eat it continually, while rejecting that which they find foreign, or eating it with great caution. Some mean that gastronomy here related to natural science as well as physics and chemistry, due to its classification of nutritious substances, it composition and properties as well as the analyses and solutions it provides.2 Individual eating habits do not have much to do with the individual’s personal taste; they are shared with those of the members of the family and the people living in the neighbourhood. The repetitive element in human eating habits is not restricted to a person´s private life; it belongs to the cultural heritage of humankind and is remarkably steady. One example of that is that Scandinavian immigrants to the US shows that they are faithful to their Scandinavian fare even in the third and fourth generation, long after they have stopped speaking the native language. Within the framework of edibility, there is also technology in all different ways, in order to receive food and beverage. This includes hunting, fishing, cattle farming, agriculture, industry and so forth. If this broad term is applied to a more local level in the community, it becomes more limited, comprising food preparation techniques such as preserving, -making, -making, baking, brewing, distilling and so forth. These techniques are very ancient as well as being essential for life since many of nature´s resources will only keep for a limited time in their natural state. Here gastronomy is linked to culinary science and arts due to the preparing of food and beverage in order to make it enjoyable for the human taste, and by doing so, also preserving identity and culture.3 Ideology is yet another factor that affects the edibility of foodstuff or food items for humans. An ideology in itself is governed by various factors like religion, medical or moral concepts. In religion, it is the rites that are the visible or practical aspect of the ideology that govern to a great estate what is considered edible or not; such rites often originates in religious writings. That means that religion in this case stands for an ideology that controls the choice of food at mainly feast days. before festivals or feast days have taken and are taken place in many religions.4 Sacred order is a concept of sacredness that has been developed by several researcher. The sacred order does not exist in a social vacuum. It is invested, maintained and given texture via territorialism, tradition, bonding, honour, solidarity, law, membership, respect for role status

2 Bringéus, Nils-Arvid, Mat och måltid, 1988:13-16, Lund 3 Bringéus, 1988: 17-18 , Brilliant-Savarin, Anthelme, Smakens fysiologi,1958:15-16, Stockholm 4 Bringéus, 1988:12- 18

5 and other similar constraints and obligations. Bonding is of importance for every individual as a source of belonging, it can be bonding within the family, clan, ethnic linage, a church, a nation or in elective group affiliation. Within the mind set of sacred order tradition means a pattern that is repeated over and over and over again so in time things are done in the same way it always have been done. By doing so, the normativeness of linage- categories is maintained and tradition is created. Rituals can be a pattern or results of the traditions created by the ones who carry them out, and can therefore be seen as socially coded. However, it can also be seen as that something or someone can be made sacred by rituals. The framework of sacred order is larger and broader concept than religion. It is therefore not a unique religious category, even if religion is one of its primary and prototypical expressions. Therefore, the framework of sacred order points to productive areas for research and thematic study which combine the otherwise separate interests of the history of religion and the social sciences.5 Understanding sacred order in this way, means that gastronomy as such becomes the sacred order that holds the people within different groups, cultures, nations, faiths etc together, and the persons using gastronomy within the different groups of society creates by themselves what becomes sacred within the field of gastronomy and how gastronomy is used in order to claim the right to different dishes, foodstuff, cultures and nations. Religious fasting seldom involves total abstinence from food. Most common is that the believer eats lesser amount of than usual; the believer abstains from , sweets and meat, sometimes also dairy products. There is also a stricter form of religious fasting that practises abstention from all animal products, sometime called ascetic fasting. Very often, religion is more than only faith in God for the believer; it permeates their existence so that they conduct their life according to the rules of the religion. Most religions have rules about how the believers should and must deal with food and beverage. These rules regulate what are allowed to be eaten and drunk and what is prohibited. It also regulated how the food items should be handled and prepared as well as how the animals should be treaded both in life and at the slaughter. An interest in eating habits based on medical aspects existed even in antiquity. A similar interest based on moral aspects is found in the temperance movement, which classifies and spirits as poisons and not as a source of pleasure. 6 The availability of raw materials and foodstuff also plays an important role when humans choose what food to eat. In turn, availability is dependent on factors such as nearness, economic and regulations. The geographical location of different foodstuff is important for

5 Paden, William E, Sacred order, Method & Theory in the study of religion, vol 12, Nr 1 / 4 (2000), pp. 207-225 6 Bringéus, 1988:12- 18

6 what ends up on the plate. Foodstuff that have been transported over long distances are naturally more expensive than local products, which is where the economic factor comes in. Humans’ choice of foodstuff and raw materials is connected with our own financial state. Regulations also affect the availability of food; food ration system introduced during wars is one example of this factor. In the field of economy, gastronomy is also linked to commerce as well as pure economics due to its discovery of methods for purchasing the materials used as cheaply as possible and disposing of what is for sale and advantageously as possible as well sources for the income it provides for the state and the ways of exchanging goods that it opens up for people.7 Food appeals to at least four of the humans´ senses. The first thing that humans eat with is the eyes, therefore it is of importance that food look both good and appetising. The smell of food can arouse feelings of desire when one is hungry and feelings of displeasure when one is filled up of if the food in itself smells nasty. Beverages like wine can also be enjoyed via their bouquet at the beginning of a meal. The human sense of feeling tells us whether the food and beverages is hot, cold or tepid. When we chew food, we find out whether it is hard, soft, tough or tender. All of them play a part in the right context. Taste tells us about the inner qualities of the food; whether it is sweet, , bitter or sour, mild or strong. All of these variants are relevant but only in a certain order. Salt food must come first and sweet food last.8 Societies has for a very long time had at least two parallel cuisines, usually one belongs to the broad majority of the population. From an historical point of view, this cuisine only change marginally over the years until the arrival of refrigerating and freezing technology. The other cuisine used to belong to the elite of society. The upper classes living both in town and in the countryside. This cuisine has been more receptive to variations in what have been eaten and drunk and the influences have often come from abroad. The eating habits of the upper classes gradually seeped down to the cuisine of the broad majority, which in turn meant that the upper classes adopted new food habits since the previous ones were no longer reserved for them. It has not been enough with two parallel cuisines within a nation for different social classes, people have also divided the dishes that would be prepared and eaten either on feast days or on an everyday basis. Feast days or festivals, can be of both sad and happy characters, such as funerals or weddings. Food cultures may be poor or rich and consist of very few dishes or an abundance of them. Regardless of which there are very strict rules or norms in all cultures about what can be considered a dish or a food element, recipes are considered by some to be

7 Bringéus, 1988: 17-18 8 Bringéus, 1988: 30-31

7 the grammar of food. The fact that food forms part of a culture and is not only a part of nature is a specific feature for humans. Food acquires a cultural hallmark with the aid of various utensils like pots and pans and the like. Food is classified as staple food and supplementary food. Staple food is for example bread, potatoes, rice, and so forth, while supplementary food is for example various kind of animal , vegetables and dairy products. Making food and beverage is a cultural act in which a connection occurs between the food and the person or persons preparing it. In turn, a prepared meal is a dialogue between the one preparing the meal and the one who eats the meal. Meals or dishes are therefore a form of communication in which the eater eats more than what are is on the plate. Since a person’s relationship with and to food is formed early in life, still being an infant, tastes are peoples most conservative preferences.9 When a meal is shared with others, regardless of the setting, it is an event. However, event is interpret differently by different people. Regardless, there are certain factors that those who arrange a meal utilise in order to create an experience from and around a meal. The factors that are worked with are colour, light, sound and design. Colour is something that everyone perceive differently since the human eye sees light in different ways. Therefore, a colour that one person finds smooth, calming and warm can by others be experienced the opposite. It is not easy to work with colours so all the guest at a meal feel comfortable. Light is much more than, only decoration, it affects the way a room is used and how an atmosphere is created when there is no daylight. There is a belief that the best illumination or source of light is the one that cannot be noticed. It is important that the acoustics in a room is right, since poor acoustics will disturb the guest at a meal and effect poorly on the overall enjoyment of the meal. Even if the combination of form, colour ad lightning makes a whole that communicates feeling, the choice of materials, furniture, porcelain, glass and cutlery is important, as they are what govern how the guests perceive the room with their senses. If one attend a restaurant one is often given a menu where the dishes are listed. The arrangement of the dishes on the menu should be as simple as possible, clear, systematic and easy to read. The number of courses on a menu may vary, regardless of the number, they should come in the following order: 1, cold starters, 2, hot starters, 3, soups, 4, egg dishes, 5, fish dishes, 6, meat dishes, 7, poultry dishes, 8, pastry dishes, 9, vegetable dishes, 10, desserts. If there are several fish, meat or poultry

9 Halling, Björn, Måltider och matsedlar, 1994:74-75, 78-79, Värnamo

8 dishes on the menu, they should be listed as such; boiled before roast, whole before minced and light before dark.10 The description above shows that eating and drinking is complicate, what people should choose to eat and drink on different occasions is not at all simple or clear. In the text presented above, I have tried to point out the factors that I consider to be of great importance for the choice of food and beverage. It gets even more complicated when one takes into consideration that the factors presented above do not necessarily means the same for everyone within a limited geographical area, since human behaviour is never static. According to me, I believe that the complexity described above can med summed up in the following: that the eating and drinking man is in fact a gastronomic man.11 The factors that according to me comes together in the gastronomic man will be tested later in the text towards the results from the survey. 1.3 Method The method used for the study is the so-called abductive method or reasoning. The method allows the one making the study to go back and forth between the theory and the empirical material several times while analysing the data that has been collected. They way of working can (but does not have to) lead to new aspects of what is studied and that might mean that the theory needs to be modified and or developed. If that is the case, a new theoretical insight has emerged through the empirical data or material.12 In this study, I am the one who is observing and analysing the data collected from an ethnographical standpoint. In the study, different kind of sources has been used such as cookbooks regarding the food and beverage in the Holy Land that deals with gastronomy in Jerusalem and Palestine. Interviews has been made with Jews, Christians and in the Holy Land, both in February 2018 and in February 2019. In addition to the interviews during the field studies in the Holy Land, I also undertook personal observations and on several occasions I used my camera in order to document what I was observing. The different kind of sources used in the study can be seen as an interdisciplinary approach, in order to produce as broad a spectrum of response as possible to the question asked. I have received permission from the owners of the photographs that are used in the text that are not mine, to use them for the thesis.

10 Barnekow, Louise & Östberg, Jenny, Måltiden som upplevelse, unpublished bachelor thesis, Örebro University, , 2000:18-19, 21, 26-30, 34, 36, Örebro 11 Söderlind, Ulrica, Nobels middagar, 2005:47. Stockholm 12 Alvehus, Johan, Skriva uppsats med kvalitativ metod: en handbok, 2013: 75-79, 109, Kina

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1.4 Source criticism One can always have opinions about the cookbooks that I have chosen for the study. For the city of Jerusalem, I have chosen the cookbooks that indicates in the title that the focus of the books are on the gastronomy and culinary arts in Jerusalem. Regarding Palestine, it is more difficult since the titles of the cookbooks per se does not indicate by the titles where in Palestine the gastronomy takes place. I am well aware of that fact that gastronomy has its differences depending on where in Palestine it is carried out. One can also argue that cookbooks is a category of books that are written and published for a broader public, mainly tourists. Especially if they are in English when the subject of the gastronomy are in and Hebrew speaking areas. I would like to say, that I understand that criticism, however I add that for me, cookbooks are a source that are often step-motherly treated in research. To me they are bearers of knowledge regarding national and local gastronomy that are very difficult to find elsewhere, unless interviews are undertaken by those who stands for the gastronomy and culinary arts in Jerusalem and Palestine. Having said that, I also have made interviews with Jews, Christians and Muslims for this essay in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Tabey. It is always a risk when one is doing interviews that one cannot be 100 % sure that the informants are telling the truth. Therefore, it is important to create trust between oneself and the persons that are answering the question. The research ethic rules created by the Swedish research counsel have been followed during the interviews13, and the informants that has chosen to appear with their own names, have chosen to do so by free will, others are kept anonymous in the survey. 1.5 Dietary regulations in short It is important to state the general dietary regulations for Judaism, Christianity and Islam, which are studied in this thesis. The most extensive regulations regarding food and beverage among the mentioned religions can be found in Judaism. A common feature between Judaism and Islam regarding food regulation is that both religions have divided food and beverage into two groups, clean and unclean. Both religions also have rituals for slaughter where the name of God must be pronounced when the animal´s throat is cut. Which foodstuff are considered to be clean or unclean differs between the two religions and also between different groups of worshippers within the same religion. The Sunnites and Shiites does not live by the same

13 Vetenskapsrådet, Forskningsetiska principer inom humanistisk-samhällsvetenskaplig forskning, 2017, Stockholm

10 calendar and the feast days are therefore not the same for the two Muslim groups. This is also true for the Jewish Ashkenazi and Sephardim groups.14 There is a big difference regarding the regulation of beverages, since alcohol of any kind is forbidden in Islam, while wine is very important in Judaism, the wine has, however to be of kosher origin. The regulations of food and beverage in Judaism and Islam are not only related to the body, they are also considered to be a diet for the soul. A common feature for both Judaism and Islam is that meat and food made from pig´s blood is strictly forbidden. Neither Christianity nor Islam has any feast day or celebration that is similar to the Jewish Sabbath that is celebrated every week, if one considers that the Sabbath is both the meal at home and at the service of the Synagogue. Within the Christian tradition, Sunday has always been a day of feasting like Friday in Islam.15 Judaism, Christianity and Islam all use different kinds of calendars and this means that their feast days occur at different times throughout the year. The different use of calendars in the three religions is an example of sacred order, where the people within the groups decides what become sacred. Judaism and Christianity have in common that the celebration of /Passover has a unique position among the feast days, even if it is seldom celebrated at the same time, an even which occurs every seven years. Christianity and Islam on the other hand have in common the fact that fasting is very important at certain times of the year. The periods for fasting are not fixed due to the use of different calendars and how time is measured. One example of this that the major fasting period in Islam-- can occur in any month of the year. For the Orthodox Wednesday and Fridays are the common fasting days, while Catholics fast on Fridays. Apart from these times, there also exist some more extensive periods of fasting, the period before Easter being the most important one. Some of the fasting is ascetic and some not. Both Christianity and Islam have special regulations regarding diet during the fasting periods. Apart from the regulations for fasting periods the Catholic and Protestant churches, do not have any regulations concerning food or beverage. For the Orthodox and Catholic churches the fasting days for different saint are very important which is not the case in the Protestant Church.16

14 Westblom Jonsson, Helene, Mat, tro, tradition, 1999:83-87, 102-104, Falköping 15 Westblom, Jonsson, 1999:83-87, 103-104, 107-112, Hjärpe, Jan, ”Mat, hälsa och religion, mest om Islam”, Årsbok, Föreningen Lärare i religionskunskap, 1998:178, 180, Malmö 16 Westblom, Jonsson,16-18, 60-63, 107-122, Ware, Kallistos, Den ortodoxa kyrkan, 2003: 303-307, Malmö 11

1.6 Previous research A lot of research has been done regarding the conflict in Israel and Palestine, however what is of interest for this study is research done concerning gastronomy in the region and co- existents between Jews, Christians and Muslim in the area. In 2001, a book was published that has its focus on the importance of the meal as such in Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the city of Jerusalem. The author is of the opinion that the meal is the core of the three different religions that consider Jerusalem as their holy city. The book also describes different holidays and feast days among the three mentioned religions. 17 In the book “Shalom Inshallah”, it is stated that the city of Jerusalem is the only city in the world that has a double existence: one on earth and one in Heaven. The city is therefore the centre of Jewish, Christian and Muslim mental geography. Pilgrims has come to the city for thousands of years; it is the city of God. Due to that, the city has been in focus of many conflicts and battles. The conflicts has not only been between believers of the different religions but also conflict on a political international level. Regardless, families of the different religions live their lives in the city, both their ordinary life’s and their lives on feast days; they work and raise their children. The book is richly illustrated with photographs in full colour that speaks volumes. In the photographs the impact of the different conflicts are very clear for the daily life, but it also shows the respect that is showed on the different feast days in the different religions. The texts in the book is based on interviews, speaks of the conflict between Palestine and Israel and the situation in the valley. The informant’s are forerunners of peaceful co-existence and that non-violence is a tool or weapon that takes generations to learn how to master.18 Chapter 2 The Survey 2.1 Diplomatic gastronomy/Culinary diplomacy The importance of food and commensality goes far back in history and some mean it is deeply rooted in the tradition of diplomacy; one can find the connection between food and diplomacy in the and in ancient . Aristotle discussed the importance of common meals within a community in order to create bonds of solidarity, similar to the bonds created within a family, but on a grander scale. This was of great importance between ambassadors coming

17 Fornberg, Tord, Ödquist, Ingrid, Måltiden som mötesplats : tro och tradition i Jerusalem, u.o, 2001 18 Braw, Daniel, Nordqvist, Magnus. Ormestad, Catrin, Shalom inshallah: encountering jews, christians and muslims, 2013, Skellefteå

12 together from different rival cities, where they could discuss allegiances or ratify treaties, without feeling threatened. The Culinary diplomacy then continues throughout history into modern diplomacy.19 Public diplomacy or cultural diplomacy takes place both on an official level as well as on informal levels. When it takes place on the official level, it relies on a nation´s so called soft power. The soft power arises from the attractiveness of a country´s culture, politics and political ideals. Some mean that the intent of the public diplomacy is to exert influence on foreign governments. Others mean that public gastronomy uses the framework of the soft power in order to break away from traditional diplomacy in an attempt to extend it to the general public. Culinary diplomacy finds its place in the sphere of public and cultural diplomacy. It relies on a unique cultural resource-the own nations cuisine. The unique cuisine of each nation appeals to both foreign leaders as well as the populations in the motherlands of the foreign leaders. The culinary diplomacy can take place in both more private intimate settings as well as larger settings such as banquets. The smaller settings gives an atmosphere of friendship and familiarity in an attempt to affect the moods and opinions of world leaders and policy-makers. There is also a choice of nation branding in working with diplomatic gastronomy. The nation branding relies on the marketing and nationalism to create a strong images and to build a good reputation of one´s own country. The concept in itself is based on a nation´s self-image and the way in which it projects itself to the world. In this context diplomatic gastronomy as nation branding plays an important part by using the power of the national cuisine as a tool so when foreigners taste the food and beverage, they have a recognition of the host nation’s cuisine and by doing so; strengthen the association with that particular country. In order for a nation to display itself on the strength of its gastronomy it is required a national cuisine upon which it is possible to establish itself. Some mean that cookbooks plays a fundamental role in this creation. Authenticity is an important part of creating an image of the national cuisine at hand. Once a national cuisine has become accepted and established, it has the possibility to be uses as a facet of a nations´ brand. Ingredients, cooking techniques and culinary philosophies can be used by chefs and restaurants and be used in the marketing of a national outreach campaign.20 Previously, Sweden as a nation has sent chefs at Swedish embassies and general-consulates abroad to Sweden, Stockholm in order to learn more about the . The program

19 Chapple-Sokol, Sam, Culinary diplomacy: Breaking bread to win hearts and minds, The Hague journal of diplomacy 8 (2013): 167-168 20 Chapple-Sokol, 2013:167-168

13 was started by an employee at the Government offices of Sweden, and the courses was held at Restaurangakademien, Stockholm.21 Restaurangakademien, Stockholm was established in 1985 by the Swedish chefs Björn Halling, Örjan Klein, Frank Holingworth and Åke Håkansson with the ambition to create a gastronomic meeting place for the restaurant industry, where the meal itself was in focus.22 The years 2011-2014 and 2016 Restaurangakademien held educations commissioned by the Swedish ministry of foreign affairs for chefs employed at Swedish embassies and general consulates abroad. The purpose was to use Swedish food in the nation branding and to raise the level of the representation meals at the Swedish governmental offices abroad. The education has been given in Stockholm (three times) since there was an increased value for the chefs to visit Sweden and to gain a better understanding for Swedish traditions, primary products, tastes and food items. In total 65 chefs´ has undergone the education. The education is in two parts, one theoretical and one practical. The ultimate goal has been to give the chefs good and relevant knowledge regarding Swedish food items, the new Swedish cuisine and to create and present dishes that can represent Sweden. An example of how the education was laid up are the following where the overall theme was Sweden as a food nation and inspirational cooking. The course started with the purpose of the education and how representation can be a tool in national branding, followed by the Swedish national branding abroad linked to Swedish food and cuisine. There after came aesthetical presentation and a lecture about Sweden as a food nation on export and a lecture about Swedish meal culture in a historical perspective as well as how it is today. A lecture about Swedish meals and beverages followed. Thereafter came a tasting of the beverages. Food and beverage as a combination was next, before a study visit to a brewery located at Fjäderholmarna as well as a smokery. The day ended with a dinner for all the participants. The inspirational cooking day started with cooking classes with the focus on Swedish taste and modern cooking as well as exposition of cooking techniques and traditional Swedish dishes, as well as Swedish tastes and modern presentation of dishes. The education day regarding Swedish products and food items was an educational day about baking, both bread and classical Swedish pastry products. Swedish raw material and refinement started with Swedish modern taste in cocktail format (small format) followed by a lunch for all the participants and before the diplomas and recipes was handed out, a lecture was given regarding Swedish food trend and modern cooking. During the education, English was the common language of both the teachers and the

21 Mail conversation, Lindberg, Kristina, Deputy Director, Government offices of Sweden, 201806027 22 https://www.restaurangakademien.se/om-restaurangakademien/, 20190409 14 participants, regardless of the nationality of the participants. The teacher’s nationality was always Swedish, the foundation for the education was the ’s previous knowledge within the field of food and beverage, great respect was taken towards the foreign chefs religious believes if there were any.23 All of the foreign general consulates are located in the eastern part of Jerusalem and have their embassies in , a part from the United States of America. The Swedish general consulate is also located in the eastern part of Jerusalem, due to UN resolution 181 since the status of Jerusalem is still an unsolved issue. Swedish diplomats has been present in Jerusalem since the early 1900. The current chef at the Swedish general consulate in Jerusalem is a woman from Palestine. She has been working in Jerusalem for the major part of her life, always in a . Her first education course in cooking she received in 1986 held by the Franciscan order (brothers) in Jerusalem. After that, she worked in the kitchen of a Franciscan monastery guesthouse in Jerusalem for seven years. Followed by eight years at another guesthouse where the brothers came from mainly and . During her time in those , she learned a lot about how to combine the right wine to the right food, all due to the brother’s interest in gastronomy. That knowledge is something she is grateful for in her work at the general consulate. The previous Swedish general consul, Nils Eliasson, employed the current chef.24 Even if the Swedish general consulate is located in the eastern part of the city the residence where the receptions are held, are located in the western part of Jerusalem. All the groceries for the representation occasions are brought at the Arabic market in the eastern part of Jerusalem. The storekeepers are mostly Palestinian, speaking Arabic and the food items are labelled in Arabic and English. In 2013, the chef attended the education at Restaurang akademien, Stockholm in order to gain more knowledge about the Swedish cuisine. Even if she had previous knowledge in comparing beverage and dishes into a meal event, she enjoyed the repetition of the subject. What she enjoyed more was to learn about the Swedish cuisine in general and learning how to promote Swedish tastes and dishes. One of the dishes the chef learned to make was “” that has become a very popular dish at the events, today it is more or less a signature dish for the chef. When she is making Swedish they meat used is or/and , never pork, since the guest might be Jews and Muslims. If there is a grander event with a lot of guest, what usually is served, is a buffet where meatballs are a

23 Mail conversation, Lindberg, Kristina, Deputy Director, Government offices of Sweden, 2018-06-27, Interview, Halpern, Hanna, CEO, Restaurangakademien, Stockholm, 2018-09-07 24 Anonymous informant, Swedish General Consulate, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11

15 major part of it; the focus is to have so called finger food that the guests can provide themselves with what they like. Usually there will be a notification for the chef prior to the event if there are Jewish and Muslims guests attending as well as if there is guests that are vegetarian, vegans or guests with food allergies. Sometimes that fails, mainly when it comes to information regarding vegans. However, the chef does not see that as a problem since she always have something in store of vegetables in case that happens. To be on the safe side, the kosher food is ordered by catering and delivered to the event. Those dishes are severed on plastic plates, in order to keep the kosher food clean and not to offend any guest. However, the chef and her staff can plate the kosher food on the plastic plates; it is no need for a kosher chef to be present to do that. If wine is served on those events, will be present for the Jewish guests, as well as non-alcoholic alternatives. If the event is smaller and the guests are seated, it is most common to use round tables, in order to create a familiar feeling and setting among the guests. 25 Examples of official meal events are as follows; breakfast includes , , , juice, bread, , cold meat of some kind, warm omelette, berry flavoured yoghurt. Lunch almost always starts with some kind of such as , avocado or pumpkin soup (depending on the season), fried barbeque or roasted meat, potatoes or rice, salads after season, in form of what fruits are in season, followed by coffee or tea with a biscuit. Dinners usually have some form of meat (beef or veal); the meat dishes can be either boiled (such as stroganoff) or fried, served vid seasonal vegetables and potatoes. Examples for desserts are different kind of mousses, tarts, pies followed by coffee, tea or chocolate. The dinner meal are most of the times heavier than the .26 At the Swedish General Consulate there is also a book called “The Swedish Kitchen-from fika to cosy Friday” as a way of promoting Sweden via the Swedish Cuisine, the producer of the book is the Swedish Institute with the help of three authors, and is in full colour.27 The book is free and are very popular amongst the foreign visitors to the General Consulate. The book has eight chapters divided into fika, midweek dinner, grill party, breakfast, outdoor eating, lunch, cosy Friday and dinner party and each chapter has different recipes in order to present the Swedish cuisine. The category fika has mum´s cake, nus, chocolate shortbread , chocolate balls and Lenten buns, while midweek dinner has fish soup with

25 Anonymous informant, Swedish General Consulate, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11 26 Anonymous informant, Swedish General Consulate, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11 27 Forslin, Liselotte, Lagerberg, Rikard, Walström, Susanne, The Swedish kitchen-from fika to cosy Friday, 2016, Järfälla

16 shrimps, mussels and creamed , meatballs with soft whey cheese , elk with root vegetables and prunes and . Grill party is represented by rack of lamb with herb oil, creamy cold sauce for grilled dishes, creamy salad and baked grilled salmon. Under breakfast one finds crunchy crisp bread with , filmjölk (sour ), loaf with lingonberries, oatmeal . Outdoor eating are represented with mushroom tart, raspberry and blueberry compote, nettle soup, meadowsweet cordial and crispy bread perch on crisp bread. Under lunch the following dishes are listed root vegetable brown with and lingonberries, yellow soap, , juicy . Cosy Friday is represented by Quesadillas with smoked roast , with mushrooms and , raps with raw spiced salmon (gravlax) and - sauce and the last chapter that is a dinner party contains kavring (dark bread), crostini’s with goat cheese and cloudberries, avocado and rocket salad with whitefish roe, oven baked cod with brown butter, shrimps and grated horseradish and salted toffee pie with frozen blackberries.28 A part from the eight chapter with recipes it is also stated that the Swedish cuisine or food culture is largely based on access to local fresh ingredients provided by the country side, that includes farmlands to forests and also includes the coastline along with a multitude of lakes and rivers. The right of public access is a gift that means that it is free to walk in the forest and collect berries and mushrooms. Sweden also have a long tradition of hunting and game such as elk, deer and grouse are popular ingredients in the national cuisine. The different lakes, rivers and the coastlines provides the national cuisine with fishes such as perch, , salmon, trout and shellfish. In the past, before the refrigerator and freezer, Sweden was relying on different ways of preserving food items, during the dark winters. Even if the technology of today does not requires preservation, it has become a way for the modern Swedish cuisine to create culinary delights since preservations adds flavours that cannot be added in any other way. Fruits and berries are still cooked and preserved, and sometime turned into another product, such as jams for example. Vegetables are pickled, mushrooms dried, meat and fish smoked, salted, fermented as well as marinated, milk are processed into fermented dairy products. The national cuisine has been able to expand its recipe repertoire since traditional recipes has been transformed into unexpected highlights because new ideas and inspiration from others has been absorbed by the ones who are in the kitchens. In this manner, the Swedish cuisine has been transformed without losing the touch of its origins. The Swedish cuisine has caught the attention of different nations in Europe, and the Swedish

28 Forslin et al, 2016: 7-47

17 cuisine is doing very well in international cooking competitions. At the same time, while the Swedish cuisine has undergone a refined change on the international scale, Sweden is very open to the cuisines that comes with the immigrants that comes to the country. By doing so, the Swedish cuisine is extended even more.29

The cover of the book “The Swedish kitchen-from fika to cosy Friday”.© Walström, Susanne

29 Forslin et al, 2016: 2-3

18

2.2 Cookbooks In this part of the survey, I have first studied five cookbooks that only deals with the cuisine in Jerusalem and secondly four cookbooks that deals with the . Table 1. The contents in five cookbooks that deals with the Jerusalem cuisine

Name of the book Breakfast Snacks Bread Sauces/ side dishes Soups/Stews /Vegetarian Jerusalem 0 0 0 19 9 44 Before restaurants 0 0 6 11 0 9 Jerusalemrecipes 0 0 0 0 5 8 Jerusalem recipes 8 6 0 9 0 2 Shakshuka 0 0 8 10 0 24 Meat Fish/shellfish/ snails Eggdishes Dairy products Desserts/sweets Beverage Jerusalem 28 9 0 0 16 0 Before restaurants 17 2 1 5 8 1 Jerusalemrecipes 5 4 2 0 4 0 Jerusalem recipes 9 1 0 0 11 0 Shakshuka 9 2 0 0 8 3 Sources: Ottolenghi, Yotam, Tamimi, Sami, Jerusalem, 2012, Berkeley, Nidal Khalil, Khalil, Before restaurants, 2016, place of publication not identified, Jane, Angela, Jerusalemrecipes, 2017, place of publication not identified, Author unknown, Jerusalem recipes, 2016, Place of publication not identified, Kersh, Nidal, Shakshuka, 2017, Stockholm In table 1, the contents in five cookbooks regarding Jerusalem gastronomy is presented. The recipes has been divided into categories in order to make a comparison between the books. Breakfast There is only one book studied here that lists recipes under breakfast and that is the fourth book in table 1, namely “Jerusalem recipes”. Here recipes for different kinds of shaksshoukas are listed as well as ( and salad), kale .30 Snacks In the book “Jerusalem recipes” the following recipes are listed under snacks: lamb and croquettes, fried , with mushroom, ricotta and herbs, cakes, tomato and egg (shakshooka) and fava salad.31 Bread In two of the cookbooks, one finds recipes of bread. In the book “Before restaurants” there is recipes of taboon, samoni, pastry dough, orsa, and shrak bread. In the second book

30 Author unknown, Jerusalem recipes, 2016:7-15, place of publication not identified 31 Author unknown, Jerusalem recipes, 2016: 43-49

19

(Shakshuka) that has bread recipes one finds bread, za´atar sticks, dough for Arabic , two different kind of Arabic pizzas, Jerusalem bread and mana´ish bread.32 Sauces/side dishes In the book Jerusalem, there is 13 recipes of sauces and side dishes such as , sauce, and different kinds of pickled vegetables.33 In the book “Before Restaurants” there is a range of different recipes such as green , fried with fresh , dried figs, crushed boiled wheat (Burghol), spicy tart sauce, tahini (sesame sauce), that is fired dough that are stuffed with minced meat to name a few.34 In the book Shakshuka, there are recipes for tahini sauce, taratour, , aubergine salad, pickled sauce, chili sauce, baba ghanouj, aubergine with , Turkish salad, in the category of sauces and side dishes. 35 Soups/stews In the book Jerusalem there are nine recipes in the category of soups, there are mainly vegetarian soups with different vegetable as the main ingredients but there is also soups with and meat, all of the soups are meant to be served warm.36 In the third book studied for table 1, named “Jerusalemrecipes” there are four soups; grilles , chicken, Palestinian and soup as well as Iranian Jewish soup and one recipe for a stew of seafood.37 Fruits/vegetables In the first book in the table 1, there are 44 recipes with vegetables. The recipes is a range of different dishes that are both warm and cold. Some examples are roasted sweet potatoes & fresh figs, , baby with dates & . Roasted aubergine with fried & chopped lemon, roasted butternut squash & red onion with tahini & za’atar. Raw & herb salad, Shakshuska. In this category one also finds recipes with , pulses and grains as the main ingredient such as , falafel, split wheat & Swiss chard with molasses, rice dishes with different flavours, mejadra to name a few.38 In the book “Before restaurants” there is recipes such as maftool that is a dish based on flour, Boiled fennel stalks salad, salad, grilled eggplant salad, brown and rice with

32 Nidal Khalil, Khalil, Before restaurants, 2016:8-13, place of publication not identified, Kersh, Nidal, Shakshuka, 2017: 51-68, Stockholm 33 Ottolenghi, Yotam, Tammi, Sami, Jerusalem, 2012: 296-309, Berkeley 34 Nidal, 2016: 15-30, 48-49 35 Kersh, 2017: 69-84 36 Ottolenghi, 2012: 130-149 37 Jane, Angela, Jerusalemrecipes, 2017:3-21, place of publication not identified 38 Ottolenghi, 2012: 24-149

20 salad (tomato and cucumber), fava with tahini and falafel to name a few.39 In the book “Jerusalemrecipes” there is recipes for falafel, different kinds of salad (spinach, date, , sweet potatoes, figs, Swiss chard salad with tahini and yogurt dressing).fattoush, and tabbouleh.40 In the book, “Jerusalem recipes” there are two recipes in the category of fruits and vegetables and those are spinach salad with dates and almonds and falafel.41 In the last book in table 1, there are recipes for both Swedish falafel, falafel carrot salad from Morocco, different kind of rice and bulgur recipes with different seasonings, freekeh with mushrooms, haricots verts in , fattoush, hummus, Msabaha, tabbouleh, lentils with yoghurt salad, Shakshuka, Jerusalem salad (tomato and cucumber salad), different kind of potatoes recipes to name a few. 42 Meat In the first book in the table 1, there is 28 recipes where meat is the main ingredients. In all of the books studied here, poultry is included in this category by the authors themselves. In the book Jerusalem two of the recipes in this category are grilled, eight are boiled or braised, 19 are fired and three are roasted. 43 In the book “Before restaurants”, one finds recipes of different kinds of chicken that are marinated, fried and maftool with chicken. There is also meat dishes such as (that is a meat dish that is fried in a big pan, the pan is placed in the middle of the table), hummus with meat, almond soups with lamb, rice with and cauliflower (Makloubeh) and different kind of to name a few.44 In the book “Jerusalemrecipes”, there is recipes such as meatballs, shish tawook, beef , and lemon roasted chicken and Jerusalem artichokes.45 In the fourth book in table 1 there are recipes such as Syrian meat pie, Cypriot taro , fattoush, chicken with rice, roasted chicken with clementine, chicken skewers with pearl salad, with lamb and pine nuts to name a few.46 In the book Shakshuka, there are recipes for , different kind of chicken recipes, , , with lamb.47

39 Nidal, 2016: 35, 37-39, 42-43, 47, 64 40 Jane, 2017:22-39 41 Author unknown, 2016:21, 23 42 Kersh,2017: 85-136 43 Ottolenghi, 2012: 155-213 44 Nidal, 2016: 31-34, 36, 40, 46, 54-55, 59-60 45 Jane, Angela, 2017: 58-63, 66-73 46 Author unknown, 2016:16-29 47 Kersh, 2017: 140-159

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Fish/shellfish/snails In the book titled Jerusalem, there is nine recipes of fish and shellfish. Four of the recipes are fried dishes, one grilled, two are marinated and two boiled with different kinds of flavours.48 In the book “Before restaurants”, there is one recipe with snails that are wild and are served with and . There is also a stuffed fish recipe.49 In the book “Jerusalemrecipes”, there are recipes for baked St Peters fish with tahini and pine sauce, fish cakes, mixed , sea brass and grilled monkfish.50 In the book “Jerusalem recipes”, there is one recipes for shrimps.51 In the last book in table 1, there are two recipes for fried fish.52 Egg dishes There is one recipe of eggs in the book “Before Restaurants” and that is a recipe for roasted eggs in wood shavings.53 In the book “Jerusalemrecipes”, there are two recipes of eggs such as Sephardic Jewish style eggs and .54 Dairy Of the five cookbooks studied for the table 1, there is one that have diary recipes, such as homemade margarine, homemade yogurt, traditional , dried salted yogurt and white pastry cheese.55 Desserts/sweets In the book Jerusalem, there are 16 recipes for sweets and deserts. To give some examples there are sweet cigars, graybeh, sweet cheese, poached pears in white wine & cardamom and different kind of flavoured cakes as well as acharuli khachapuri. 56 In the book “Before Restaurants” one finds under desserts and sweets knafeh, fenugreek sweet bread (Hilbeh), classic cinnamon wheat and different kind of sweet sauces.57 In “Jerusalemrecipes”, there are recipes for tahini biscuits, Jerusalem and other sweet cakes.58 In the book “Jerusalem recipes” there are different kinds of desserts recipes such as knafeh with , Israeli fruit cup, different kinds of cake such as apple cake, chocolate torte with macerated strawberries, doughnuts , cakes , , ad mantaschen.59 In the last

48 Ottolenghi, 2012: 214-239, 243-255 49 Nidal, 2016: 44-45, 63 50 Jane, 2017: 40-53 51 Author unknown, 2016: 30 52 Kersh, 2017: 167-168 53 Nidal, 2016: 28 54 Jane, 2017: 56-57, 64-65 55 Nidal, 2016: 24-30 56 Ottolenghi, 2012:256-295 57 Nidal, 2016: 72-79 58 Jane, 2017:74-87 59 Author unknown, 2016: 50-61

22 book in table 1 one finds recipes for baklava, watermelon with jabneh and za´atar, knafeh, dates, salad, doughnut from Morocco to name a few.60 Beverage In the book “Before Restaurants”, there is one beverage and that is with biscuits.61 In the book Shakshuka, there are recipes for lemonade, mint tea, and .62 Table 2. Categories in four studied cookbooks about the Palestinian cuisine

Name of the book Breakfast Mezze Salads Soups Rice Stews Mahashi Vegetables Classic palestinian cuisine 0 0 23 18 13 10 7 6 Olives, and Za´atar 10 14 8 11 15 4 10 0 Palestine on a plate 13 0 7 0 25 0 1 0 The Gaza kitchen 0 12 10 4 15 4 0 0 Fish, Bread, Pickles, Meat Poultry shellfish dough Sweets/desserts Jams Refreshments Sauces Classic palestinian 10 6 0 7 16 3 3 0 cuisine Olives, lemons and 19 9 9 3 13 0 0 14 Za´atar Palestine on a 15 9 16 2 15 0 7 1 plate The Gaza kitchen 20 9 15 5 17 0 6 11 Sources: Bishara, Rawia, Olives, lemons & Za´atar, London, 2014, Dabdoub Nasser, Christiane, Classic Palestinian cuisine, London, 2013, El-Haddad, Laila & Schmitt, Maggie, The Gaza kitchen- a palestinian culinary journey, Charlottesville, 2016, Kalla, Joudie, Palestine on a plate-memories from my mother´s kitchen, China, 2017 For Palestine, there are two cookbooks that have breakfast listed as a category and there one finds different kinds of egg dishes. The mixture Za´atar is very often used for breakfast. Za´atar is a mixture of fresh , wild , lemony and toasted sesame seeds in the books. The Spice is served with different kinds of bread, cheese, eggs, meat and different vegetables and beans.63

60 Kersh, 2017: 174 61 Nidal, 2016: 80-188 62 Nidal, 2016: 192-199 63 Bishara, Rawia, Olives, lemons & Za´atar, London, 2014:12-27, Kalla, Joudie, Palestine on a plate-memories from my mother´s kitchen, China, 2017: 24-47

23

Mezze Two of the books have mezze as a category and the recipes vary in the books from between 12-14. The recipes are mainly vegetarian with some egg recipes, even on occasion, there also are recipes for liver, and the dishes are served both cold and warm.64 Salads Salads can be found in all the cookbooks and they differ in amount from 7-23 recipes. The major part of the salads are vegetarian even if there are a few recipes with chicken. Salads that contains cucumbers and tomatoes with herbs seem to be favourites in this category; fresh herbs are used in all of the salads. 65 Soups Soup is a category that appears in three of the cookbooks, and like the salads, there is a large span among the recipes, from 4-18. There are both warm and cold soups and the main group of recipes has fruits, lentils, beans, grains or vegetables as the main ingredients. Some soups have yoghurt as the main ingredient. However, there are also soups with meat from lamb and chicken and some with shellfish.66 Vegetable dishes All the cookbooks have listed vegetable dishes, the numbers varying between 13-25. The main ingredients in the category are artichokes, beans, aubergine, potatoes, lentils, onions, , tomatoes, grains, peppers, , spinach, pumpkin, cauliflower, vine leaves, , mushrooms and zucchini. Fresh herbs are used in all of the recipes. All these recipes are to be served warm.67 Rice dishes Before rice was introduced to the Arab world, some dishes were only made with bulgur or smoked wheat. When rice came, it speedily became a popular substitute. For many of the dishes Egyptian rice kernels that are small, round and broken are the only rice used in order to make an authentic version of the dishes, second best is the Chinese white rice. In five of the books, there is a category that has rice as the main ingredient. There are dishes with plain rice

64 Bishara, 2014:32-53, El-Haddad, Laila & Schmitt, Maggie, The Gaza kitchen- a palestinian culinary journey, Charlottesville, 2016: 124-140 65 Dabdoub Nasser, Christiane, Classic Palestinian cuisine, London, 2013: 20-43, Bishara, 2014:66-76, El- Haddad & Schmitt, 2016: 50-69, Gila, Levine, 2016:35-60, Kalla, 2017: 58-59, 65, 112-117 66 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013: 46-53, Bishara, 2014:82-95, Kalla, 2017: 54, 60-61, El-Haddad & Schmitt, 2016: 76- 81 67 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:58-69, Bishara, 2014:114-120, 174-180, Kalla, 2017: 56-57, 66-69, 72-77, 80-81, 84- 111, El-Haddad & Schmitt, 2016:92-94, 108-109, 152-155, 160, 162, 166-169, 176, 188, 200-201, 258 24 but also recipes with rice together with meat mutton, lamb and beef chicken, shellfish and vegetables, cauliflower, , lentils and beans, pine nuts and raisins.68 Stews Three of the books have stews as a category. The major part of the recipes are vegetarian stews with main ingredients such as okra, beans, cauliflower, potatoes, , lentils, butternut squash, spinach, tomatoes and aubergine. There are also stews with the main ingredient of lamb or beef. Fresh garlic and herbs are very often used in the recipes.69 Mahashi Mahashi dishes are dishes that are linked to Sundays and holidays since they can be prepared the day before. The preparation is time-consuming and is delicate that requires a lot of patience and skill in order to make these stuffed dishes. Preparation of the stuffed food items requires a special coring tool. In “Classic Palestinian cuisine”, the following are found under Mahashi; two different recipes of stuffed vine leaves and marrows, stuffed aubergines, stuffed marrows with tomato sauce, stuffed cabbage and stuffed marrows with yoghurt sauce.70 Meat dishes Meat dishes are found in all the cookbooks studied here and the recipes vary between 10-20. Lamb is by far the most common meat in the recipes in forms of meatballs, meat loaf, kebab, chops, makloubeh, followed by beef; meat is often accompanied by vegetables. Even so, vegetables play a major role in this category even if they are not the main ingredient since meat is often stuffed in aubergines, vine leaves, zucchini, squash, cabbage or artichokes. Another common dish is meat pie. There are also recipes for dishes for sheep’s’ brains. Many fresh herbs and garlic with sumac and za´atar are used in the meat dishes.71 Poultry All the cookbooks have dishes of poultry and the recipes vary between either six or nine. Chicken is by far the most common bird mentioned in the books. Chickens are prepared in bread, boiled, in stews, as shawarma, or baked, with different kind of seasoning, stuffed, grilled, on a skewer, kebab and prepared with fruits such as .72 Palestinian couscous with chicken is often in USA referred as to “”. According to one of the

68 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:73-87, Bishara, 2014:182-183, El-Haddad & Schmitt, 2016: 206-208 69 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:91-99, Bishara, 2014:98-109, Kalla, 2017: 64 70 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:101-113 71 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:117-129, Bishara, 2014:148-169, Kalla, 2017: 78-79, 122-150, El-Haddad & Schmitt, 2016: 110-111, 114-115, 148, 156, 164-165, 177, 182-183, 189, 191-192, 194-199, 210-213, 216-222, 228-229, 235, 238-239, 246,252, 256-257, Gila, Levine, 2016:131-144 72 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:133-140, Bishara, 2014:136-147, Kalla, 2017: 70-71, 150-165, El-Haddad & Schmitt2016: 180-18, 187, 230-234, 240, 244-245, 252

25 authors, its proper name is maftool. The dish takes a very long time to make since the grains are made by hand and to the author it is a clear proof “how important food was and remains in our culture”.73 Fish and shellfish Recipes for fish and shellfish are found in three of the books and the recipes vary between 6- 16. Fish are more common than shellfish. Bass, perch, , cod, halibut, salmon, flounder, red snapper, sardines and S:t Peter’s fish are used for boiling, frying, grilling, roasting, baked, with different fresh herbs and za´atar. Some recipes are also with raw fish, such as salmon or bass tartare. Prawns and jumbo shrimps are served with different sauces, clams are served vid za´atar, calamaris are served with strong , crabs are stuffed and roasted and squid are served stuffed. There are also seafood soups.74 Bread and dough In all of the books, there are recipes for bread and dough and they vary between two-seven. Arabic bread is the base for the rest of the bread- recipes and the dough is made from of warm water, dried yeast, sugar, plain flour and whole-, powdered milk or plain yogurt, sea salt and virgin oil. These are often topped with other products such as cheese, spinach, meat, eggs and different kind of spices. There are also recipes for Passover bread.75 Sweets and deserts All of the studies books in table 2 has sweets and desserts and the recipes varies between 13- 17. A variety of different kinds of white goat´s cheese is often used in this category, a cheese that is typical of Palestine where there is no actual cheese culture as such. The way of making it has been unchanged over generations. It starts in the spring when milk is plentiful. The milk is boiled and preserved in salted water for use throughout the year. During the boiling izha, mahlab and gum Arabic are added. The cheese is preserved in glass jars tin containers and when one is in need of the cheese, the right amount is taken out of the container and soaked in water for some hours before use. Other recipes that are common are knafeh, different kinds of puddings, and with , different kinds of fruit compotes, different kinds of sweet cakes, , baklava and sweet .76

73 Bishara, 2014:140 74 Bishara, 2014:121-135, Kalla, 2017: 170-197, El-Haddad & Schmitt 2016 :266-294 75 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:144-155, Bishara, 2014:57-59, El-Haddad & Schmitt 2016 :100-103, 107,112, 117, Kalla, 2017: 48-51 76 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:158-179, Bishara, 2014:202-217, Kalla, 2017: 200-210, 212-228, El-Haddad & Schmitt 2016: 300-323

26

Jams Jams are only found in “Classic Palestinian cuisine” where quince, apricot and azaroles are used. These jams are considered by the author to be representative for the traditional Palestinian cuisine. They are more or less classics.77 Refreshments In two of the books, there are recipes for refreshments such as different kinds of coffee, tea, syrups and molasses, nectars, juices, flavoured milk, wine, lemonades and juices.78 Pickles and sauces Recipes for pickles and sauces are found in three of the books studied here, the recipes vary between 1-14. Turnips, , cauliflower, carrots, aubergines, avocados, lemons, jams, figs, oranges, kumquats, pomelo, jalapeños and peppers are used for different kind of spreads, dips and pickles. 79 The cookbooks studied in table 1 and 2 gives an indication of the richness in the food culture of Jerusalem and Palestine. A closer look at the recipes in the books reveals that many of them are more or less the same and that vegetables are the main ingredients used. Very few recipes can be found under “bread”, which is interesting since bread is served at every meal. One reason for the lack of recipes in the cookbooks can be that the knowledge of making dough and baking bread is so well known that it is not necessary to have the recipes in cookbooks. It is a so called “silent knowledge” that everyone knows is there. Falafel and Maqluba There is one dish that can be found in all the cookbooks and that is falafel, regardless if the cookbooks are about Jerusalem or Palestine and that is falafel. Therefore, I have chosen falafel as an example of how one dish can be synonym with a food culture. One of the informants of Palestinian origin says that Israel has stolen the Palestinian cuisine and feels that it is equal to having a child stolen from you. Several other informants that also are agree with that statement and they expressed strong emotions such as sadness and anger talking about it.80 The ingredients for Egyptian Falafel : large fava beans (broad beans), brown or green, finely chopped onions, crushed garlic cloves, finely chopped fresh parsley, cumin, fresh coriander, baking powder or baking soda, salt. For Falafel one finds the following ingredients in the

77 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:182-186 78 Dabdoub Nasser, 2013:190-192, Kalla, 2017: 210, 232-234, El-Haddad & Schmitt 2016 :325-329, 334-341, 79 Bishara, 2014:188-197, Kalla, 2017: 118-119, El-Haddad & Schmitt, 2016: 63, 82-88 80 Anonymous informant, , 2018-02-19, Anonymous informants, Jerusalem, 2018-02-2

27 cookbooks; dried chickpeas or green fava beans, chopped onion and garlic cloves, grounded or fresh coriander, cumin, , chopped fresh parsley, salt, baking powder, oil for frying. The seasoning can vary and some add all spice, , hot red pepper, cinnamon, grounded paprika, grounded chili, cilantro, sesame seed and sumac as well. Falafel is a deep fried dish.81 The recipes are more or less the same for falafel in all the cookbooks in table 1 and 2.

The first postcard states Falafel as an Israeli snack and the second one states that the same dish is a Palestine snack. The Israeli flag has been replaced with the Palestinian flag and the word Israel has been crossed over and replaced with ‘Palestine,’ like a graffiti. Both the postcards have the same recipe for the dish on the backside as shown above, with the headline “A recipe to mail- Falafel”. As can be seen the ingredients are the same on the postcard as it has been presented previously in the text. However having said that, the recipe on the postcard is not identical to any in the cookbooks, so it is not taken from them. The postcard with the Israeli snack can be bought at almost every souvenir shop in the Jewish part of the of Jerusalem while the cards with the Palestinian snack can be bought at the “Educational bookshop” in . The Educational bookshop is a bookshop that only sell literature, bookmarks, postcards etc that are related to Palestine. This is an example of when

81 Bishara, 2014:52-53

28 one dish have two contestant cultures and how gastronomy over one dish is an example of gastronomy as sacred order. One dish that I have observed been made by Jews, Christians and Muslim on different occasion during my field studies is the dish is Maqluba. Maqluba is a dish based on rice and vegetables, meat can be added if one wishes. The dish is boiled in a saucepan and the ingredients needs to be placed in the pan reversed since the pan is turned upside down when the dish is done and served that way. This dish seems to be borderless, at least in this study. It seems like this dish have no national or religious boarders and have a common origin in the distant past in the Middle East. If I am to guess, I guess it is the same with Falafel. To me, the use of Falafel as a between two nations is a good example of the importance of origin of the dish and fall within the framework of sacred order. The use of Maqluba is the same, even if it is a bit different since no one claims it as their own (not in this study anyway), here it seems that a common origin and heritage is of greater importance than making a national claim of the dish. To me, the dishes Falafel and Maqluba are not only examples of how gastronomy in itself becomes the sacred order, but also how sacred order can be disputed when several nations claims or not claiming the dishes as their own.

The dish Maqluba made on different occasions by Jews, Christians and Muslims. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019 2.3 Chefs for peace Chefs for Peace is an organisation founded in Jerusalem in November 2001. The founding members were from Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Today the organization has approximately 20 chefs, both men and women. The main interest of the chefs is to explore cultural identity, diversity and coexistence by the way of food. The organisation works with food through its preparation, sharing and joy as means for creating bonds between others and reveals what is held in high regard by the three faiths: food, family and friends. For Chefs for

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Peace food in itself carries the power to build relations and bridges for mutual acceptance and to see peace as a delicious possibility. The message is the following: “Only real people living and working together, not politicians, will create peace on the ground”.82 Chefs for Peace started by making meals together only for the members. Sitting down at the table sharing the newly prepared meal the conversations dealt with many subjects, except politics and religion. After the initial years, the organization is now working on bigger events as chefs. The chefs comes together for certain occasions such as private parties and different kinds of galas, business events, inter-faith gatherings, events at colleges, youth groups, weddings and so forth. The organization creates events as requested.83 They also have cooking classes for Jews and Arabs; there are also special cooking classes for children. The latter are very popular. The organization also has special tours within the walls of old Jerusalem or the “Old City” but also at the open-air market in western Jerusalem. However if one wants to get the best fresh herbs, they are found in the “Old city” where the vendors are women who come in from their villages with their fresh herbs. They really know their merchandise. Including in the tours are also visits to spice shops that are highly appreciated. The idea behind the tours is to arouse awareness of the freshness of as well as what kind of food that can be found in Jerusalem and the neighboring areas among tourists and chefs who come from abroad. Several foreign chefs have visited Chefs for Peace in Jerusalem in order to learn more about the organization and create new dishes in the kitchen. The members of Chefs for Peace also have been abroad on different occasions and created menus and events in different countries in Europe and . The working exchanges that goes both ways are of great importance for all involved since they creates a deeper understanding for all that are involved, both for the chefs who have roots in the Middle East and those who come from Europe. Many of the food items that can be found fresh in Jerusalem are of better quality than those found in Europe and this is essential to the smell and taste of the finished meal. Not to say that meals cannot be tasteful with dried herbs. Some of the seasoning that is used in the Middle East is not used at all outside the region, such as sumac. Sumac is a red berry that is used dried and ground in many dishes in the Middle East and gives the meal a special taste. Many visitors encounter sumac for the first time when they come to the visit the Chefs for Peace. There have been attempts by the organization to hold a dinner for the Israeli government; the outcome was poor since only one guest turned up. That does not mean that

82 https://chefs4peace.weebly.com/about-us.html, 2018-03-16 83 Anonymous member, Chef for Peace, Jerusalem, 2018-02-22, 2018-02-24

30 the organization is giving up the work for peace by the means of gastronomy.84 However, there are Palestinian chefs that refuses to become a member of Chefs for peace regardless of the aim of the association. The reason for that is that the chef feels that he cannot work side by side with Israeli chefs since they are not equal due to the occupation of land in Palestine.85

Two examples of dishes made by Chefs for Peace at events. © Chefs for Peace 2.4 Education At Bethlehem University, there is a program within the framework of Institute of Hotel Management and Tourism. The day for my visit was a busy day for the students; they had lunch service upon my arrival. Until now there are no courses given that are based on diet in the Bible or theology at the university, however this does not mean that attempts of cooking in the biblical way has been undertaken by others. There have been attempts by the Israeli government to commercialize biblical meals in combination with a hike. During these hikes and cooking classes, allergies or special diet requirements are not meet. At the same University, there are plans to start research about food in the Bible and connect it to the field of theology. There has been research about old historical Palestinian cuisine (from north to south), 3000 questioners was distributed among elderly women of the age 85 and older. Every woman was asked to give five recipes and when these were sorted, one of the results was that the same recipe came up in different places with different names, so those recipes were not taking into account for the analysis. The researcher was left with 287 recipes for dishes that were not commonly known to the modern public. They were written down and are on the way to being published in the near future. The research shows how important it is to use oral sources and storytelling in order to preserve a cultural heritage that otherwise will be gone when the old generation passes away. Even so, if one talks about food as such, without mixing

84 Anonymous member, Chef for Peace, Jerusalem, 2018-02-22, 2018-02-24 85 Anonymous chef, Bethlehem, 2019-02-09 31 politics into it seems like it is very difficult to separate which dish or meal originates from what area in the Middle East since in Biblical times the modern borders where not there. During the different fasting periods within Christianity, the followers also learn and feel that gastronomy is not only for the body but also for the soul. There are different fasts within the framework of Christianity, some harder than others but with the same purpose, to live of what the land produces in form of vegetables and grains.86 At Notre Dame culinary school in Jerusalem, there is a course in culinary arts financed by the Catholic Church, with a student body of 150 students. The school has its own curriculum and they also publish their own material. The students are from both a Christian and Muslim backgrounds, from Israel and Palestine. There are also cooking classes for small children (free of charge) that are very popular. The reason for not having Jewish students are the strict kosher diet rules, which makes it difficult to separate meat and dairy products and utensils in the kitchens and that the teaching are done in English and Arabic.87 There are several modern kitchens at the school that are of very high quality with a separate bakery for pastry making. The students are given a set of knives and other tools. These are given to them on their first day and on the day of graduation, they need someone with a car to come and pick them up, since it is not safe to carry these knives home in the streets of Jerusalem. The students are also sponsored with clothing for the kitchen and they are taught to be proud of their uniform and the profession that they are studying for. If the students are given the opportunity to go abroad and work after graduation many of them do, however most of them return after some time.88 On the day for my first visit, a Saturday, the school was very busy since there were 30 minutes between the classes, starting with a class in pastry-making followed by a class of cooking in the warm kitchen. In the pastry class, the teacher was a pastry chef who had set the agenda for the day. The students were going to make a lemon with a modern twist. That means that the students first are taught the classic way of making the dessert and then create a modern version of it. Meringue is not easy to work with so not an easy task at all. The cooking class in the warm kitchen had a different theme and working schedule. In advance, the student has been asked to create a menu, write it down, prepare it and present it within three hours. One thing that is of great importance working in a kitchen is your preparation,

86 http://www.neot-kedumim.org.il/?CategoryID=231&ArticleID=115, 2018-02-23, Anonymous informant, Bethlehem University , 2018-02-23 87 Anonymous informant, Notre Dame, Jerusalem, 2018-02-24 88 Anonymous informant, Notre Dame, Jerusalem, 2018-02-24

32 and having your work place tidy and clean. The students worked very hard against the clock in order to get the meals done on time. Minor mishaps happen on the way but every student served the menus on time. The teachers then gave the students constructive criticism of the work and the plates they presented.

Examples of the restaurant school students’ creativity when the task was to create their own dishes. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2018

During my second visit, which was on an ordinary working day of the week, the teacher was learning the students about potato and what dishes are common with it for the students in their first year of the program. After a short break, there was a class for the second year students that prepared the lunch, that was served in the café of the school. The first year student that recently had been working with potatoes was now practicing the working tasks of being waiters and waitresses. The lunch consisted of a starter (a soup), a main course (shrimps in a clay vessel) and a dessert; lemonade was served throughout the meal. In order to get a seat at the lunches, it is necessary to book a table in advance and the cost for the lunch is 10 euros. The guests are mainly from different countries general consulates, which are located in Jerusalem. The teacher that was teaching the craft of waiting works at one of the first class hotels in the city. To have guest lecturers is not uncommon for the students during their education; a part from the chef that works with teaching on a daily basis, guest chefs comes and teach culinary arts every day of the week, even on Saturdays.89

Example of a three course dish served at the restaurant runned by the Restaurant school at Notre Dame, Jerusalem for 10 euros per guest.© Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019

89 Personal observation, anonymous informant, Notre dame, Jerusalem, 2019-02-18

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2.5 Palm trees and alcoholic beverages I meet with the first Palestinian Muslim woman, who is the first woman in Palestine to build a business being a palm farmer. She has a Jerusalem ID as a Palestinian living in eastern Jerusalem, even if her heart is in Palestine. She has her palm farm in Al-Auja near Jericho, it all started as a hobby since she always have had a wish to work with the hands. Before becoming the first female Palestinian date farmer, she made decorative cakes and baked goods that was sold in Jerusalem. However, the competition in the field of baked goods in Jerusalem is fierce, so she decided to do something else. The Israeli state does not allow Palestine farmers to water with fresh water, so what is available for watering is salt water, not many crops will survive on salt water. This makes it difficult to be a farmer in Palestine and be able to survive on agriculture. Palm trees is a tree that can live and thrive only by being watered with salt water. One palm tree absorbs 250 litres of water per day and the tree lets out 60 % of that back into the air. She started the farming in 2006, it took five years before the first harvest, and the dates are Medjoul dates. There are no chemicals involved on the farm, today there is 150 palm trees over six acres and the usual yearly harvest is 10 tons of dates. The dream for the future is to become a member of the slow food movement (Tierra Madre), which has shown interest in the farm. Another dream is to develop the farming to become a part of agro-tourism in the shape of being a farm that represent agro-ecology. The tourist would then be taken to the farm and be able to see the harvest and production for example.90 The harvest takes place in September-October (one month), and in the beginning of the year the dates needs to be pollinated by hand, which is costly and time consuming. During harvest time, there are five women working with the sorting of the dates, they need to be sorted by quality and size. Dates are a sensitive product that needs to be taken care of carefully, in order not to get any marks on them. The harvest dates are keep in sterilised storage rooms and are packed in see through packages that has been developed by the owner and her family. Even if date palms is a crop that stands being watering with salt water, that is not the only reason for the choice of crops, dates are a typical Palestinian treat, and the Prophet Muhammed was very fond of dates. Dates are eaten every morning before the sunrise during Ramadan, in order to

90 Dajani, Jamileh, founder of Jamileh dates, Jerusalem, 2019-02-13

34 have some energy and sugar in the body before the day of fasting. The Palm tree is also symbol for the tree of life. 91 It has from the beginning been a one woman’s show as she says, even if she has a great help from her family when it comes to develop date products. Dates are a perfect gift to bring to someone instead of brining flowers on feast occasions. Today the dates are sold after sizes natural or as date truffles and flavoured sweets. Energy bars or bits are under construction as well as homemade date paste and cookies. The products are mainly sold in Palestine since Jerusalem is a city with fierce competition and the prices are very high. The products are also sold at different fair and farmers markets. The prices of the products of today is to cover the costs.92 In her handbag, she always carries a notebook in which she writes down recipes, not only with dates, but collecting recipes from the older generation (some of the recipes are nearly 90 years old), recipes that are typical Palestinian and has been served in the Muslim communities for generations. The intention is that it will become a book with recipes, as a gift for younger generations, in order for the knowledge not to get lost.93

Label for Jamileh Dates, created by the owner. On the label, the owner has depicted her family since they are so helpful in the creating new date products. © JamilehDates.

91 Dajani, Jamileh, founder of Jamileh dates, Jerusalem, 2019-02-13 92 Dajani, Jamileh, founder of Jamileh dates, Jerusalem, 2019-02-13 93 Dajani, Jamileh, founder of Jamileh dates, Jerusalem, 2019-02-13

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The photograph on the left shows packed dates in their boxes on shelfs from IKEA in their storage room. The photographs in the middle are dates in the shape of sheep’s for the Eid celebration and the photograph on the right are date gifts to bring when a baby is born, in this case, a boy. ©JamilehDates I also meet two wine farmers, one in Taybe and one in Bethlehem, the one in Tabye also makes beer, all as a family company. The brewing company started in 1994, following the Oslo Peace Agreement in 1993. Tabey Brewing Company is the first microbrewery in the Middle East. The main idea was to make hand crafted micro-brewed in the same way as the German Purity Law. That means a beer without preservatives or additives. The intention was also to make a beer with a nationalistic feeling and to make a contribution to the Palestinian economy along with wider the international market and developing tourism to the village. The master brewer of today is the grandson of the founder. The master brewer has an undergraduate degree in Mechanical engineering and material science from Harvard and a master in brewing from UC Davis California. He was awarded the JS Ford Award granted for excellence in the Diploma in brewing Exam by the institute of brewing and distilling (UK) for the highest achievement worldwide in 2016. For security and safety reasons, the brewery keep yeast strings at one university in and at one university in Jerusalem. The yeast strings are the work of the master brewer’s father. The brewery also keep those yeast strings at the brewery. The master brewer are developing new yeast strings for new upcoming beers. One main ingredient for making beer is fresh water and that is something that is scares in Palestine, due to the Israeli control. The production of beer is approx. 6000 hl per year and can be bought in Palestine, Israel, , Sweden, and Belgium. Due to all the regulations for export set by Israel, Tabey beer is expensive abroad.94 The golden beer was launched in 1995 and are made of malted , hops, pure water and yeast. The dark beer is a classical beer that has roots far back in history, back in the Middle Ages it was produced by monks and was drunk during the fasting periods. Tabeys

94 Khoury, , Tabey, 2019-02-08

36 version is with roasted malted barley, hops, yeast and pure water. It was first produced as a celebration of Christmas and the new century in the year 2000. Another beer that was launched to celebrate and honour the new millennia was the light beer. The name comes from that the beer had 3.5 % alc/vol while the golden, amber and the dark beer contains between 5- 6 % alc/vol. It has stayed in the basic assortment since then. The Amber beer is named after the German world “alt” that means “old”. The name indicates that the beer is aged longer than the other beers made at the brewery. The white beer is a beer in the Belgian style made from Palestinian wheat, coriander, orange peel, hops, yeast and pure water. There is also a non- alcoholic brew made out of malt, hops, water and carbon dioxide. The beers are tapped mainly in bottles. 95 For the Octoberfest in 2018 the following limited beers was created, served and sold; Arabic Coffee Nitro Stout (a nitro stout brewed with Arabic coffee and cardamom), Shatta Ale (brewed with locally grown hot pepper, Double IPA (a sweet bitter and hoppy IPA), Spontaneous Ferm (aged in cabernet sauvignon oak barrels from the winery), Palestinian herbal lager (a pale lager with wild zaatar, sage, sumac, and ). The limited edition beers was sold on tap as well as Tabey Golden, Tabey Dark, Taybe IPA and Tabey white during the festivities. The last five beers are in the regular assortment from the brewery. It is not uncommon for the master brewer to create new beers as limited editions; one is the Christmas lager with tastes of honey, ginger, cinnamon and cloves.96 During my visit, I tasted some of the beers, and the latter reminded me of flavoured with brewer´s wort, that only is baked and eaten during Christmas time in Sweden. It truly was like drinking that particular bread. The white beer reminded me of spring and summer, light, fruity and fresh in taste.

How the brewing process is explained in the brewery by graphics. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019 The master brewer of today started in 2013 Tabey winery, the idea came from that the founder wanted to find a way to create a living that was not based on the Israeli control of his

95 Khoury, Canaan, Tabey, 2019-02-08 96 Khoury, Canaan, Tabey, 2019-02-08 37 homeland-Palestine. If it came to the worst, wine could be sold directly to customers from plastic bags. Equal to the brewery, the winery is a family business and the founder has taught his sister about and making wine. He has also honoured his grandfather by naming the wine with his name-Nadim, which means friend in Arabic. He has also created the label for the , it is a tree where his grandfather stands for the roots and each other family member has its own leaf. Both red and white wines are produced, attempt has been made to make wine from local grapes, in total 21 different grapes has been identified as native to Palestine. One such wine is the Nadim Zeini Blanc 2014. Other more traditional grapes are Sauvignon Blanc (aged or not ages wine), Merlo and Syrah. Israel is trying to claim the native grapes as Israeli in order to get control over the land where the grapes grow. The winery also makes recommendation how to combine the wine with food, such as the Merlot from 2013 is suitable with vegetables roasted in the Mediterranean style or with pizza. The Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 goes well with meat dishes such as kebab halabi, kibbi bi-siniyeh, grilled lamb and steaks and beef stew. Lamb shawarma and and marinated beef are recommendations to Syrah 2013 while barbequed lamb chops and stuffed wine leaves are going well with the Cabernet Grand Reserve 2013. The one-year younger wine, Sauvignon Blanc 2014 pairs with roasted chicken, goat cheese and Saint Peter fish. Roasted chicken and vegetables are recommended to the wine from the native .97 The company works from the philosophy that the highest quality fruits results in the highest quality wines. For that reason, the company works with several vineyards in and around Taybeh, in order to get the unique profile of flavour from each vineyard and by doing so, also get the variation of the different grapes. The vineyards consists of volcanic ash soils that are filled with pebbles and in the period of July-August, there is a blazing heat in the region. Those circumstances along with the location that is 850 meters above sea level, along with a large diurnal variation in temperature, and with high humidity at night at dry weather during the days gives the vine and the grapes a set of natural conditions that does not exist anywhere else, it is the local terroir that identifies the wines in the end. The vineyards has workers that attend the yards all year around. This is of importance so the grapes are allowed to ripe well, right and healthy. One way of attending the vineyards is to modify the winter running and watering strategies when it is necessary. For the winery, sustainable farming is of great importance for several reasons, as a guarantee for future use of the vineyards as well as to be able to produce a superior quality wine. The company therefore works to preserve the native

97 Khoury, Canaan, Tabey, 2019-02-08

38 ecosystem and nurture in the soil and working towards minimizing their environmental impact. The methods uses are costly and labour intensive, so the company has made the decision to work with the following; collecting and reusing rainwater to use at the vineyards and winery, using planting techniques that allows to reduce irrigation, incorporating handpicking of the grapes, applying integrated pest management methods in the vineyards in order to reduce and eliminate the need for insecticides, persticides and herbicides, using grape pomace, stems and leaves as both compost in the vine yards and also as food for cattle’s given free of charge to local farmers and using lightweight glass for the wine bottles. In the 1980´s, Phylloxera (wine lice) destroyed half of the existing plants in Palestine. In an area near Tabey by the name of “El-Enbaat” the destruction was total and the Tabey winery has replanted vineyards in the area.98 The grapes are sorted at the vineyards when ripped and then every cluster of grapes are checked manually at a selection table in order to make sure that only the high quality grapes are used for the wines. The wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks at controlled temperatures. After fermentation, the wine is transferred into oak barrels to age for a period of 8-24 months, after that period the wine is bottled. The winemaking is a combination of both traditional methods for making wines that goes far back in history in Palestine and modern winemaking methods.99

The steel tanks, oak barrel and wines at the Tabey winery. On the oak barrel and on the wine bottles the family tree of the family that owns the winery can be seen. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019 The second wine maker I meet in Bethlehem and he has always liked to work with his hands. Working with wine has been a way for him to go back to that as well as to discover and explore his history and his own homeland- Palestine. By profession, he is an architect. The

98 Khoury, Canaan, Tabey, 2019-02-08 99 Khoury, Canaan, Tabey, 2019-02-08

39 name of the company Philokalia means love of the beautiful, the good. Philokalia is also a piece of local history since it is a collection of writings by orthodox monks and mystics in Palestine from the fourth century, it continued to Mount Sanai in the eight century and to Mount Athos in the 13th century. Starting working with wine was inspired by Mr. Nasser Soumi who is an artist based in Paris, he has been doing research for 40 years about wine history in Palestine along with the maker Pascal Frissant.100 The winemaker only works with native grapes for making his wines. The grapes are hard to find and come by, and it is important to work with them for several reasons. The wines that he is making has never been made previously, it is a way of exploring which native grapes can be turned into wine (since no one has done it before with this native grapes, there is no tradition in Palestine as it is in for example France, Italy, Portugal, etc). It is a very slow process since wine is made once a year and one needs to wait for months in order to find out what grapes has the potential to become good wine or nor, and what grapes has the potential of becoming finer wines.101 In order to find the native grapes it has been a bit of a jig saw puzzle, the wine maker and his co- workers has been going out into remote areas in Palestine and talked to the elder generation if they have grapes, if so, what kind of grapes do they have and if they are interested in a co-operation. The vineyards are located 870-930 meter above sea level. The youngest wine yard is 60 years old and the oldest 100 + years. The wine yards are not the typical wine yards one is thinking of like in the Mediterranean countries. Some yards have been neglected for a very long time and needs to be worked and taken care of before the grapes can give a harvest. While talking to the elder generation the wine company has also learned a lot about old farming techniques when it comes to grapes. Some grapes that are used are grapes that has defeated all odds to be here. Israeli troops had buried them under tons of rocks and stones, however, the grapes took back its rightful places in nature and started to grow up and found its way through the cracks in the rocks and stones. The vineyard was destroyed in order to create a new road for a settlement. The grape yard is 80 + years old. The grapes are handpicked and it is hard work due to the harsh condition. The wine made from those grapes are called “grapes of wrath”. The wine maker is also working from the study made in the Bethlehem/Hebron area that identified 23 native grapes and are working on to replant those rare grapes in their own wine yard in the future. That is not an easy task since one needs a vital cutting from the original vine to re-plant. The wine maker never talks about

100 Khoury, Sari, Sahagain, Victoria, Bethlehem, 2019-02-16 101 Khoury, Sari, Sahagain, Victoria, Bethlehem, 2019-02-16 40 the name of the grapes since his vision is that costumers first should try the wines and if they find them of interest and likes them, then they will be told the grapes name. The wine maker does not want his costumers to by the wine because of a certain grape, but because they enjoy the wine. The vines are treated in an organic manner for several reasons; one is to pass forward the knowledge of farming from the ancestors and the lack of fresh water to water the vines with. The vines are sprayed with water that local herbs previously has been soaked in (no chemicals are used), by creating a top layer of the soil for the vine plants it is possible to create the natural micro biological protective layer that sustain the vine plants as well as keep the humidity in the soil that the plants needs by cover the top layer of soil with leaves etc.102 The cellar in itself is the place where the grapes transforms into wine, the vessels for that transformation is of great importance and wine aged in oak barrels does not really go well with the local cuisine since it is spicy. The better choice is to use ’s that are made out of clay. Prior to creating the wine cellar at the winery research was done on ancient amphora’s and the results indicates that the best clay vessels dates to the time of the Canaanites. After that result, the wine maker has found the right clay and produce their own amphora’s for fermenting the wine. The amphora’s density are close to the oak barrels when it comes to porosity. The black clay is originally from Gaza. However, the location of the clay is more or less lost, even to the pottery makers in Gaza. When it is found, it is almost impossible to bring to Bethlehem. Therefore, it has been necessary to recreate the composition of the clay. The approach of the wine maker is not to have an orthodox traditional way of creating wine in the way that they do not strive to produce the same wine year after year. They are now on their fourth vintage. A red wine is produced that has 11 % alc/vol and it is called Summer red. It is not common to drink red wine during summer time in hot climate, such as in Palestine. However, due to the low alcohol level and the fact that the wine is served chilled, it is very suitable for summer along with dishes from the local cuisine. Being inspired by the way white wine is made in the nation of Georgia, where grapes for white wine are fermented on their skins and left for weeks or months, before the skins is removed gives the white wine a deeper colour like amber is a technique that the wine maker finds of interest since such a wine goes very well with the local cuisine. The typical way of making white wine is to crush the grapes and ferment the jucie, which gives a light wine. The overall production has been 4000 bottles, some of the first year vintages has become very popular and are sold out, so now the wine farmer needs to buy some of the bottles back for the wineries own wine cellar. If the first

102 Khoury, Sari, Sahagain, Victoria, Bethlehem, 2019-02-16

41 vintages was wine from one grape, there has been a development in making sweet and blended wines, as well as . Arrack is here is similar to the Greek Ouzo. A bottle of white wine cost 80 shekel (nis) in Palestine and it sells for 210 shekel (nis) at one of the best restaurants in Jerusalem. The wine is very difficult to buy outside Bethlehem.103 The wine maker and his college are learning wine making by fieldwork, visiting different countries and cultures, visiting remote areas in Palestine but they also attend wine classes and workshops at Tel Aviv University. The teachers are wine experts from abroad and each workshop cost between 350-400 shekel (nis) per attendant, which is costly but money well spent since the sky is the limit.104

The grapes of wrath can be seen on the photograph to the left. © Khoury, Sari, Phiokalia Wines, Bethlehem. On the right hand photograph examples of one red wine, one white wine and arrack. The artist for the wine bottle labels are Mr. Nasser Soumi in Paris. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019. 2.6 Hospitality and culinary arts I visited the monastery for the sisters of the Swedish Saint Birgitta in Bethlehem; I came unannounced to the monastery and was greeted warmly by one of the sisters. This was during Lent, which meant that the sister was fasting. This did not stop her from serving tea and homemade cookies (made by herself). A part from during Lent the sister fasts every Wednesday and Friday. Sunday is a day for feasting. As for all other monasteries of the order the sisters’ ordinary days follow a schedule of prayer, work and rest. Since it is located in Bethlehem the monastery is surrounded by walls, intercom, security cameras and wires and the sisters seldom leave the premises. However, this does not mean that they are cut off from the outside world. The sisters are running a guesthouse for visitors, the same as all the other monasteries of the order. The

103 Khoury, Sari, Sahagain, Victoria, Bethlehem, 2019-02-16 104 Khoury, Sari, Sahagain, Victoria, Bethlehem, 2019-02-16

42 motherhouse is located in Rome, in the same house where Birgitta herself once worked, lived and died.105 The working tasks in the monastery are divided between the sisters after a rotating schedule. That means that they take turns in the kitchen. The sisters are of different nationalities and the dishes that are made on a daily basis for the sisters are depending on the sister’s nationality as well as on what food items are available for the day. If the sisters cannot find the exact ingredients for the dishes they want to make from their home countries such as certain spices, they modify the recipe according to the ingredients at hand. Sometimes the sisters go to the market themselves to buy the food they need. At, other times neighbours come with the items to the monastery. The sisters will eat whatever dish that has been made for the day regardless of their own taste and preferences.106 While in Bethlehem, I also attended a dinner in a family home in Beit Sahour. The father of the household greeted me with tea that was seasoned with fresh herbs from his own back yard. While working with the mother in the kitchen preparing a dish made out of chicken, rice, corn, green peas, and several different spices she told me that the recipe had been handed down from her own mother. There was no measurement for the ingredients; she had that in her fingers and in the palm of her hand. Along with the warm dish there was a salad made from fresh vegetables, bought on the same day. Food played an important role in this woman’s life, not only at home but also at church. The members of the church gathered at least once a week and everyone brought something edible or drinkable with them. The gatherings were not only food for the body but also food for the soul. Before the meal was served grace was said at the table by one of the other guests. The daughter of the house did not fancy cooking much but considered her mother’s kitchen the best restaurant in town.107

Making family dinner in Beit Sahour. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2018

105 Anonymous Sister, Bethlehem, 2018-02-23 106 Anonymous Sister, Bethlehem, 2018-02-23 107 Anonymous informants, Beit Sahour, 2018-02-23

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2.7 Two restaurants

During my field research, I visit two restaurants, one in Bethlehem and one in Jerusalem. In Bethlehem the owner of the restaurant is born Christian, however the owner states himself as an atheist. The chef whom is the owner received his restaurant education in Paris during his youth. It was hard work, however today he consider his time in Paris as a great gift even if it was long days, late nights and early mornings. The chef says he learned the trade and profession from the ground up. The head chefs he has worked for has been the elderly generation that took great pride in their profession and taught it with “tough love”.108 The chef has a strong opinion that Israel as a nation is using gastronomy (in the broad scene) as a mean to keep Palestine in its place. Israel makes it very difficult to export and import food items to Palestine. Fresh water is one item that is essential to all and the base of existence; even so, it is strictly controlled by Israel. When the chef invites celebrity chefs from abroad is something that Israel does not approve of. The chef needs to have private cars standing by at the airport in Tel Aviv to pick the foreign chefs up, in order to know that they safely will arrive in Bethlehem without any complications.109 The chef himself has from time to time been a teacher at Bethlehem University program for hospitality. He finds that the true students for the restaurant industry are found outside the university. They are the ones that has the true passion for the trade. He only employee’s women at his restaurant. By doing so, he helps unemployed young women in Bethlehem where the unemployment rate for women under 30 years is almost 40 percent. The women starts out with basic tasks like learning how to make bread. Bread is a vital part of the cuisine in Palestine, so it is of more importance than it might sound. As the women increases their skills and knowledge in the profession they go on to make the dishes served at the restaurant. The restaurant takes 40 guests and are open for dinner at 07.00 PM every day of the week. As a guest one needs to pre-book tables in order to get a place, the restaurant is always fully booked. I was lucky enough to be invited for dinner after the chef took me to the local market. The philosophy is to only use local Palestinian food items regardless if it is vegetables or animal . The only animal protein that is not served is chicken since they can be carrier of salmonella. Fish is only served on the days when the fishermen sell fish that has been caught the same day. The chef does not have a set menu since he never knows what will be found at the market. While visiting the sellers at the local market and smelling and feeling the

108 Anonymous chef, Bethlehem, 2019-02-09 109 Anonymous informant, Tabey, 2019-02-08, Anonymous chef, Bethlehem, 2019-02-09 44 products with his hands, he decides what will be on the dinner menu, this is done every day of the week. After arriving back at the restaurant the chef tells the staff in the kitchen, what he has bought and what dishes the food items will become on that evening. There is therefore no selection of different appetizers, main courses and deserts. That also means that the pre- booked guest have no idea what they will be served when they arrive at the restaurant. The menu is therefore never printed but written down on a chalkboard every evening and shown to the guests. A product he often uses in his kitchen is Freekeh, which is a green and slightly burnt wheat, native to Palestine.110 On the day I spent with the chef the dinner came to be the following; two different kind of bread buns, one plain and the other one with za’atar served with local olive oil on the side, qourgette plowers with parsley oil, Palestinian herb salad, leg of lamb with turnip purée and chocolate mousse. The Palestinian herb salad consisted of huwerneh, roquette, fresh camomille, za’atar, leaves, , pomegranate, pine nuts and green onions. For each dinner, the chef also has recommendations for what Palestinian wine to combine with the special menu for the evening.

110 Anonymous chef, Bethlehem, 2019-02-09, personal observation, Bethlehem, 2019-02-09 45

Photographs illustrating the dinner in Bethlehem made by local Palestinian products. ©Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019

The second restaurant I visited is located in Jerusalem and its owner and head chef is Jewish. He was not born in Israel, by the time he was nine month old he and his relatives was forced to leave into a camp in Israel, this was in 1951. The only thing a part from clothing that he and the other families that was forced to move was allowed to bring was one ring on one finger per person. His mother therefore also placed a ring on her baby’s finger before leaving their home. Once in Israel the families ended up in a camp, where he lived for nine years. During the time in the camp, one of his first food memories is how eggs was fried on open fire and that his father opened a bakery in the camp. The bread that was baked was thin Iraqi bread. Due to his father’s baking, bread is the first thing that is it served to the guest at his own restaurant, in shape of a . The focaccia is served along with small cups of tomato soup, and Jerusalem artichoke soup. The restaurant that he is the owner of today is his second, the first one was closed during the second intifada. His restaurant was not

46 the only one that needed to close during the turmoil of the second intifada. Many restaurants in Jerusalem meet the same fate, regardless of the religious identity of the owner and staff.111 The Old Testament and other ancient writings in Judaism is of great importance for the chef when he creates the dishes for the restaurant, in the way that the food items that are mentioned in the Old Testament and the other ancient text as the main ingredients in the different dishes. The seven spices mentioned in the Old Testament are of great importance and the intention is to in cooperate them in the dishes served at the restaurant. The seven spices are wheat, barley, grape, fig, pomegranate, olive (oil) and dates (honey). One can say that the dishes served are modern versions and interpretations of the Biblical cuisine along with family heritage from the cuisine served by the chefs Jewish relatives while growing up. The herbs that are used in the dishes are grown either at the herb garden at the restaurant or on the surrounding hills of Jerusalem and Judea. The menus are large and consists of a tasting menu, appetizers, main courses, entrees and desserts. Among the main courses that contains meat, lamb is the favourite. The wines that are served at the restaurant are from Israel. The restaurant is a member of the Slow food movement and the chef is a member of the organisation “Chef for Peace”. He personally believes that the latter chef association is of great importance, by working for Peace through gastronomy, which is the only chef association he is a member of, even if he receives requests from other associations. The ideas for new dishes can come any time, even in the dreams. The Chef then wakes up and write some words in the notebook he keeps at his bedside and in the morning, tries to understand them, which he often do. The restaurant is a , which means that no dairy products are used of any kind, since meat is served. One of the dietary rules within kosher is that meat never will be in contact with milk while cooking.112 On the night I was visiting the restaurant for my meeting with the chef, I was first served a glass of , nicely chilled along with the focaccia and the three soups mentioned earlier. During our meeting the dishes continue to come, some pure vegetarians others with animal protein, in total 12 dishes. One of the vegetarian dishes was freekeh, lightly stewed; the other vegetarian dish was eggplant with pomegranate seeds. One of the meat dishes was slow cocked lamb with root vegetables stewed in a clay pot, another one was grilled selected parts of chicken with purée of potato and a sauce of passionfruit, the dessert was a plate of different chocolate sweets and ice creams, the latter made out of coco’s and almond milk, to name a few. The restaurant has printed menus for both the food and beverages.

111 Anonymous chef, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11, Anonymous informant, Notre dame, Jerusalem, 2019-02-18 112 Anonymous chef, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11 47

Examples of some of the dishes that was presented during my visit to the restaurant. Focaccia bread with the three soups, freekeh, eggplant, lamb, chicken and dessert. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019.

2.8 Baked goods

One thing that it is striking while walking in both Jerusalem and Bethlehem is all the bakeries in the cities. The Jewish bakeries are kosher and I visit several bakeries in Mea Shearim. Mea Shearim is the most ultra-orthodox Jewish quarter in Jerusalem, and its inhabitants are not found of visitors and one needs to wear modest cloths during the visit. One bakery that was visited is a family owned business that has been in business since the early 1920s. The owner is Jewish, however not a practicing one, even if he is wearing the kippa, as well as the rest of the male staff. Since the owner does not celebrate the Sabbath a friend of his that is a practicing Jew comes every Friday to turn the electricity off and then back on Sundays. The bakery is very popular and have lots of customers and the selling space for the baked goods are a third or less of the total bakery. The bakery uses nine tons of plain flour each week for the baked goods. Since it is a kosher bakery and meat and milk cannot come in contact with each other, the bakery makes a sort of snack with a vegetarian that is surrounded by wheat dough. There is also a large assortment of different cakes and bread. In order to make some of the baked good “parve” which means clean within Judaism, some of the liquid used while making the dough is to add apple juice instead of milk. By doing so, the Jewish practicing costumers does not need to say a prayer before having the baked goods as snacks during the day. The costumers are not only Jewish; tourist from all over the world also finds their way to the bakery. Every single item of those baked goods are marked with a label that says it is “parve”. All of the labels are places there by hand. One of the most popular baked

48 goods are the bread for the Sabbath, called . Most of the time, the bread are made in one normal loaf that is enough for one family during the Sabbath dinner of Friday evening. However, sometimes there are requests for larger Challas that will be served at large gatherings. Mainly they are special ordered by costumers in order to welcome the firstborn son in the family. Since there is a rule that a prayer needs to be said over each Challah bread, it is a must to have a large bread at those occasions. At one time, such a bread weighed nine kg and took 3.5 hours to bake. That is not an easy task to get such large bread to be baked even; it has to be supervised during the baking time.

The photograph on the left is showing the making of an ordinary Challah bread at the bakery. The photograph in the middle shows the 9 kg Challah bread and the photograph on the right shows a “parve” bread before baking. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019

Another bakery I visited in the same quarter was larger than the first one, owned by one family. The most amazing thing with the bakery was the oven that was used for baking bread. It is located straight under the roof of the bakery and the oven is very deep. Due to the location the bakers needs to be standing on a ladder and work with baking spade with a very long handle. The bread is done in the early morning hours, so it does not disturb the costumers during opening hours. The bakery was established in the early 1900 and the iron front for the oven is the original and has the word Palestine on it. Equal to the first bakery I visited in the area the assortment of baked goods is of great variety. The third bakery I visited in the same quarter was very different from the previous two, since it was a bakery that was only baking bread for the Sabbath and no other baked goods. The previous owner past away a year ago and one of the sons felt he needed to keep the bakery in business. Since the bakeries only item is the Challah bread, the bakery is only open on Fridays for costumers.

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The photograph on the left shows the iron front with the word Palestine on it since the bakery was established in the early 1920´s. The photograph on the right shows Challah bread in the oven at the bakery that only makes that bread and no other baked goods.© Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019

During my visits to the markets and the old part of Jerusalem, baked goods can be found almost everywhere. At the markets, the different bakeries and vendors sell many sweet baked goods, which seems to have its origin in the Middle East as a region, equal to the bakeries in the Old city of Jerusalem regardless if it is the Muslim, Christian or Jewish quarters. The prices are also more or less the same. One bread item that is frequent at the markets and the bakeries in the Old City is what is called the Jerusalem bread. It has a special oval shape and are covered with sesame seeds. The bread is very popular, among both tourists and the inhabitants of the city, yet another baked goods that are popular is bread baked with false ().

Examples of sweets as baked goods at the markets and in the Old City of Jerusalem. The photograph on the left are sweet berry cookies, the one in the middle is coloured knafeh and the photograph on the right is small knafeh served with Arabic coffee. ©Söderlind, Ulrica, 2018, 2019

The bread in the front of the photograph is the Jerusalem bread and the bread in the back is the yellow bread made with false saffron. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019

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In the centre of Bethlehem, there are several bakeries in connection to the market. They are small equal to the bakeries that are located throughout the city; one item that is popular is what is called the Iraqi bread, which is a thin bread, baked on a hot metal construction when the costumers order them.

The photograph on the left shows Iraqi bread being made in a bakery in Bethlehem and the photograph on the right shows the baked bread serves with Arabic black coffee with cheese. © Söderlind, Ulrica, 2019

Chapter 3

3.1 Closing discussion The material presented in this text should be seen as a microstudy regarding the role gastronomy plays in Israel and Palestine, if it is uniting or dividing or both. To me, it stands clear that there are several layers of how gastronomy is used in Israel and Palestine. On a high political level, gastronomy is an important tool for marketing different nations. In this study the Swedish general consulate stands as an example for how that is done. The chef is a Palestinian woman that has been to Sweden as an ambassador chef, in order to learn more about the Swedish cuisine, both the historical as well as the modern one. The knowledge gained in Sweden has led to that one of the most famous dishes from the country “gravad lax” has become one of the chefs signature dishes during the meal events, while one the other hand, there has also come to be a fusion of the Sweden and Middle Eastern cuisines when the chef is creating dishes that has its foundation in the Swedish cuisine but with local food items. This is an indication that even if taste is of great importance for the gastronomic man, it is not necessarily fixed to one nation or cuisine. The Swedish cuisine is also marketing by the book that is handed out free to the visitors. The content of the book is a mixture of the historical Swedish cuisine and influences that has entered and in some ways changed the Swedish cuisine due to migration to Sweden, the book is illustrated with photographs in full colour.

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The book is used as a tool for national labelling Sweden and its cuisine. As a first encounter with the Swedish cuisine the book gives a very colourful picture of the nation’s cuisine and stands here as an example for the importance of eyesight to the gastronomic man, as well as what can be seen as something like “Swedish order” since the authors of the book have done their selection of what they believe is sacred within both the historical and moderns Swedish cuisine. It is seldom that people sits down to a meal with its known enemy, however, in political settings it is normal to be seated with people that is of another opinion that oneself. By using round tables for the guests to be seated at during formal diplomatic meal events is a way of creating a feeling of a familiar and peaceful environment for the guests. The guests at each table has the opportunity to talk to each other in a less former way than if they were seated at a long table. A round table, also create the feeling of that every guest is equal towards each other, no one is seating in the high seat at the table. From a perspective of meal science I find it of great interest how the chef at the Swedish General Consulate has created a from the knowledge she gained during the course in Sweden about Swedish dishes and taste with the food products that are at hand in Jerusalem. The products have another freshness in Jerusalem than they have in Sweden, from meat, vegetables to spices. In my point of view, this is a good example on how gastronomy know no limits and how it has the possibility to connect people over all the boarders that constitutes the gastronomic man. Another example of a cuisine that has become a fusion is the monastery in Bethlehem by the sisters of Saint Birgitta of Sweden. The sisters comes from a wide range of nations and have their own personal gastronomy with them when they enter the order, and even if the monastery has heavy security each and every one of the sister creates something new each day they have kitchen duty, where there base is their own personal gastronomy but with ingredients from the local area and fares. Talking to the sisters it gave me an insight in what they miss from their homelands cuisine and what they are longing for. The sisters’ choice of life is a good example of how ideology in this case, represented by their faith and their memories from their upbringing regarding gastronomy creates different sacredness when it comes to food and beverage, that fits well into the framework of the sacred order. The Sisters of Saint Birgitta of Sweden represents both level of gastronomy that I find in this study. On a higher level, their faith rules their lives and they answer to the Pope in Rome, and in a way that is on not only a religious level but also a political level since the Pope is a strong force not only in religious issues but also in political ones, at least for Catholics. The sisters also

52 represent the second level of gastronomy that to me is on a more personal and individual level even if they are living very closely together. The cookbooks studied here gives an indicator of the richness of the food and Palestine. To me, the cookbooks represents important research material that are often overlooked, only for the reason that they are cookbooks that are published for an interesting common public. The cookbooks also represent a global insight into the cuisines of Israel and Palestine since they can be accessible anywhere in the world for those that can afford them. I also find it of great interest that the numbers of believers within the different religions in the Holy Land are found in a cookbook about Israeli food, the numbers I used as an introduction for this study. To me that is an indicator on how important gastronomy and culinary arts is in the Holy Land for the believers and their heritage, nation and culture. Gastronomy and culinary arts seems to become sacred in its own right by the information regarding the percentage of believers within different religions. I do not think that a cookbook regarding the Swedish cuisine would contain that kind of information. I found a glimpse of the richness of the food culture in the cookbooks when I was visiting the markets in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. In the markets in both cities, there is not only vendors, but also many small restaurants, coffee houses and bars. A closer look at the recipes in the books gives that many of the recipes are more or less the same and that vegetables are the main foodstuff used in both nations. Even if postcards does not play as a big role as it has done in the past for tourist travelling and sending regards back come, the existence of the postcard with the Falafel is an indicator of the importance of one dish for two nations. The postcard stating that Falafel is an Israeli dish can be found all around the souvenir shops in the old city of Jerusalem, while the postcard stating Falafel as a Palestine dish can be found at the Educational bookstore, located in eastern Jerusalem. It is therefore much easier to send a postcard that states that the dish is Israeli than it is a Palestinian one. It can be seen as an indicator of that Israel has the upper hand claiming Falafel as a national dish. It is not possible to know how many card of each kind that are mailed this days of internet, however it is still so important that both nations needs to sell them and marketing the dish as their own. Maqluba is a dish that I have seen been made by and eaten by Jews, Christians and Muslims on different occasion during my field studies. None of the informants in this study claimed the dish to be from a special nation or belonging to a certain faith. If that is true overall or not, I do not know. Regarding the Falafel dish both Israel and Palestine claims it as their own national dish, it might seem childish to claim the origin of a specific dish to one nation. However, in this case it is not, equal to the diplomatic gastronomy and the politics that lies behind it, claiming a specific dish

53 in this region is on a high political level. By doing so, both nations are within the framework of sacred order trying to create tension between the nation’s inhabitants and their heritage and that they should be proud of that heritage by making Falafel sacred for both nations without any religious undertones. If that is the same or not for the Maqluba dish, I cannot say but the informants in this study did not express any feelings or notions of that Maqluba did not belong to all. Further research might show that there is a different scenario also for Maqluba, and then I stand corrected. After visiting two different restaurants, one in Bethlehem and one in Jerusalem, one owned by a Christian atheist and the other by a Jew, the interviews and my personal observations during the time spent with the owner indicates that their heritage from their own childhood, education and treatment from a superior state (Israel) has left its mark on how they are using gastronomy and culinary arts, in order to create awareness of their own heritage and show it to their guests. Both have strong opinion on how gastronomy can be used, both as a tool for peace but also as a tool for oppression of others, none of them practice the latter. For the chef in Bethlehem, gastronomy is a tool in order to raise awareness of native Palestinian products and for this chef, the local products are sacred, since he does not use any other products for his restaurant. For the restaurateur in Bethlehem, availability of food items and foodstuff is on a daily basis, so the choice to only use local products is a way to not give in to the Israeli restrictions. After studying the printed menus from the restaurant in Jerusalem, it is clear that the menus are organized by the classical way of a restaurant menu, that means that a person that often visits restaurants feel comfort in finding their way through the menus. The restaurant in Bethlehem has a different approach for its menu, it is never printed since the owner create the dinner of the day, during his daily visits to the markets and then writes the menu on a chalkboard. An intriguing way of keeping the restaurant guest interest for what will be served, since it changes on a daily basis. It is no doubt that the guests at both restaurant have the experience that they are taking part in a special event, an even that will create a loving memory of the evening. A memory that they will cherish and talk about with their loved ones and friends. That in turn will create a wish to visit the restaurants for the ones that has only heard about them. I am not the right person to say if the food at the restaurant in Jerusalem are serving Biblical food with a modern twist or not. Having said that I personally would say that the restaurant serves food from antiquity with a modern twist. The reason why I am saying that is that one needs to identify what one means with the term Biblical. For Jews it is the Torah (Old Testament) and other ancient writing, for Christians the term includes both the

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Old and the New Testament as well as other texts, and for Muslims it is the Quran and the hadiths. The guest that are attending the restaurant are Jews, Christians and Muslims and they come for the quality of the food so a more proper way might be to say it is a cuisine with influences from antiquity. There is no doubt that the human senses are of great importance for both restaurants owners when they create their menus. For the restaurateur in Jerusalem it seems that the Bible and the food items in antiquity are of sacred nature, created by the restaurateur himself. After meeting with the first female date farmer in Palestine and two of the wine makers in Palestine the restrictions from Israel is always present, mainly the way Israel is restricting one of the most important things for life-fresh water. The availability of raw materials and foodstuff becomes very clear hear, as well as for the restaurant owner in Bethlehem as well as regulation and economy. All of them are successful despite the hard conditions from Israel or may be thanks to it, since all of them have come up with very creative way of working and are managing well with their businesses. To all of them, equal to the restaurant owners previously mentioned, their history, heritage and origin plays a great role in what they do, and their gastronomy is a strong identity and cultural marker. The story about the grapes that took back their rightful place in nature after being demolished, and the name of the wine “grapes of wrath” reminds me of Steinbeck, Jon book with the same name with a very similar story. After seeing the labels for the different wines for that winery, to me it is like an explosion of feelings. It can be seen as an explosion of anger, happiness and/or fulfilment, if that is a statement or not towards the restrictions placed by Israel on Palestine I do not know, however it can easily be seen as such. Both the palm farmer and the winemakers represent gastronomy on a personal level in this study but also indirect on a political level, even if it is not in diplomatic settings. They are individuals that are fighting the system and occupation in their own personal ways as individuals in a situation they have not chosen themselves. One can say, that their engagement in surviving under occupation has become their own sacred order by using gastronomy as a tool since they are selling their products on a global market, with a deep sense of the dates and grapes origin that goes way back in history. History here should be understood in a broad way since it is connected to both religion, culture, society and nations. The members of Chef for Peace has one goal and that is to unite people through gastronomy, regardless of faith. All of the chefs that are members of the association have other work as well and give their spare time to the association, in order to educate in the understanding that gastronomy is universal, regardless of religion and political points of view. The latter is never

55 discuss when the members meet, regardless if it is for a meal together or to cook for others on different events. Visiting the family in Beit Sahour gave me an insight in how two generations feels about the Palestinian cuisine, for the parents their local cuisine is of great importance for their identity and the younger generation appreciated the mothers cooking very much, even if the young generation did not cook much in this particular family. Both for Chefs for Peace and for the Palestinian family, gastronomy by itself has become a form of religion that unites people over religious borders or regardless of religion in a conflict area. By saying that, I do not mean that gastronomy has replaced religion for the members of the chef association or for the Palestinians but themselves has raised the culinary art to the dimension of religion as a uniting force or tool. Even if this survey is a microstudy with a few participants, they all give the picture that they are using gastronomy at a professional level to live in peaceful co-existence, regardless of religion, even if Israel put restrictions on the inhabitants of Palestine. One thing that is striking to me after the field research is regardless of what level in society gastronomy and culinary arts is practiced, education seems to be the key for peaceful co-existence, regardless of religion. Education either by learning and doing first hand at restaurants, wineries, farming or education through academies and schools. After doing my field research, gastronomy seems to be a strong, important and meaningful tool in order to create peace in an area where conflicts can be found on a daily basis as well as a tool for resistance. I find that all of the components in the theory of the gastronomic man are found within this microstudy for the inhabitants of Palestine and Israel. However complex gastronomy and culinary arts might be it is a deeply human activity that unites more often than its separates if one choose peace over conflict. 3.2 Further research Since there was no possibility for me to meet charity organisations during my field study in the Holy Land for this thesis there is an open field for further research within the right to safe food. There are organisations that work with food charity, such as Caritas and it would be of great importance in the future to be able to include them in research regarding religion in peace and conflict from my perspective of gastronomy and meal science. Another way to wider this study is to study more cookbooks that deals with the different nations that are represented in the city of Jerusalem. Yet another way to expand this study is to visit and interview farmers, which I was not able to do during the field research due to the fact, that no Israeli wine farmers answered my e-mails regarding a meeting. That does not mean that it is not worth to try to get in contact with them in the future. Expanding the focus

56 of the study to what gastronomy means for the people in the diaspora is yet another topic for further research that is of great interest. It seems that the gastronomy of a person’s motherland becomes very important while living in exile, since it is an important link to one’s family, nation, faith, heritage and can become almost like a religion in itself during those times. Yet another good example of sacred order where individuals create what is sacred.

References Oral sources Anonymous informant, Nazareth, 2018-02-19 Anonymous informants, Jerusalem, 2018-02-20 Anonymous member, Chef for Peace, Jerusalem, 2018-02-22, 2018-02-24 Anonymous member, Chef for Peace, Jerusalem, 2018-02-22, 2018-02-24 Anonymous informant, Bethlehem University, 2018-02-23 Anonymous Sister, Bethlehem, 2018-02-23 Anonymous informants, Beit Sahour, 2018-02-23 Anonymous informant, Notre Dame, Jerusalem, 2018-02-24 Halpern, Hanna, CEO, Restaurangakademien, Stockholm, 2018-09-07 Anonymous informant, Tabey, 2019-02-08 Khoury, Canaan, Tabey, 2019-02-08 Anonymous chef, Bethlehem, 2019-02-09 Anonymous informant, Swedish General Consulate, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11 Anonymous chef, Jerusalem, 2019-02-11 Dajani, Jamileh, founder of Jamileh dates, Jerusalem, 2019-02-13 Khoury, Sari, Sahagain, Victoria, Bethlehem, 2019-02-16 Anonymous informant, Notre dame, Jerusalem, 2019-02-18 Mailconversation Lindberg, Kristina Deputy Director, Government offices of Sweden, 201806027 Websites https://chefs4peace.weebly.com/about-us.html, 2018-03-16 http://www.neot-kedumim.org.il/?CategoryID=231&ArticleID=115, 2018-02-23 https://www.restaurangakademien.se/om-restaurangakademien/, 20190409 Litterature Alvehus, Johan, Skriva uppsats med kvalitativ metod: en handbok, 2013, Kina

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Author unknown, Jerusalem recipes, 2016, Place of publication not identified Barnekow, Louise & Östberg, Jenny, Måltiden som upplevelse, unpublished bachelor thesis, Örebro University, Sweden, 2000, Örebro Bishara, Rawia, Olives, lemons & Za´atar, 2014, London Braw, Daniel, Nordqvist, Magnus. Ormestad, Catrin, Shalom inshallah: encountering jews, christians and muslims, 2013, Skellefteå Brilliant-Savarin, Anthelme, Smakens fysiologi,1958, Stockholm Bringéus, Nils-Arvid, Mat och måltid, 1988, Lund Chapple-Sokol, Sam, Culinary diplomacy: Breaking bread to win hearts and minds, The Hague journal of diplomacy 8 (2013), 161-183 Dabdoub Nasser, Christiane, Classic Palestinian cuisine, 2013, London El-Haddad, Laila & Schmitt, Maggie, The Gaza kitchen- a palestinian culinary journey, 2016, Charlottesville Fornberg, Tord, Ödquist, Ingrid, Måltiden som mötesplats : tro och tradition i Jerusalem, 2001, u.o Forslin, Liselotte, Lagerberg, Rikard, Walström, Susanne, The Swedish kitchen-from fika to cosy Friday, 2016, Järfälla Gila, Levine, T, Simply Israel- a collection of recipes from the people of Israel, 2016, Israel Halling, Björn, Måltider och matsedlar, 1994, Värnamo Hjärpe, Jan, ”Mat, hälsa och religion, mest om Islam”, Årsbok, Föreningen Lärare i religionskunskap, 1998, Malmö Jane, Angela, Jerusalemrecipes, 2017, place of publication not identified Kalla, Joudie, Palestine on a plate-memories from my mother´s kitchen, 2017, China Kersh, Nidal, Shakshuka, 2017, Stockholm Nidal Khalil, Khalil, Before restaurants, 2016, place of publication not identified Ottolenghi, Yotam, Tamimi, Sami, Jerusalem, 2012, Berkeley Paden, William E, Sacred order, Method & Theory in the study of religion, vol 12, Nr 1 / 4 (2000), pp. 207-225 Söderlind, Ulrica, Nobels middagar, 2005, Stockholm Ware, Kallistos, Den ortodoxa kyrkan, 2003, Malmö Vetenskapsrådet, Forskningsetiska principer inom humanistisk-samhällsvetenskaplig forskning, 2017, Stockholm Westblom Jonsson, Helene, Mat, tro, tradition, 1999, Falköping

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