Lemons and Blossom

I spoke to my sweet mother the other day and she asked "Why oh why can't you come and live in Sweden..."

I just said "How can I? When the almond trees are blossoming and the lemons are perfectly ripe on the branches for me to pick..."

Herb Garden

After planning an amazing trip to the desert and failing tragically, (see desktop image) I decided to comfort myself with planting a herb garden just outside our door.

All went well, bought earth and pots and found most of the herbs I wanted - Mint, Flat-leaf Parsley, Chives, Oregano (the fat velvety kind) and Zatar.

Zatar is a spice mix and is hugely popular here, made from zatar, olive oil and sesame seeds.

Now the complicated part of this mix is the main ingredient, zatar, which no one knows the English name for. I have been told by various experts in the field (and all emphasize that his/her knowledge is the truth) that zatar is one of the following: Oregano, Salvia, Marjoram, Hyssop or "wintersweet"?!

After a lot of hard work comparing pictures on google, I can now tell you the answer: Zatar is Sweet Marjoram or maybe it is Wild Marjoram, anyway it is of the Marjoram family and a lovely plant of which ever it is, is growing in my garden now.

I still have to add two very essential spices, Basil and Thyme before my garden is complete.

Before I show you my beautiful garden as it looked this morning, I will tell you how I use these spices:

Mint - great for a lot of different things: mint tea, mint sauce for hot indian dishes like samosas, lemonade and my favorite current drink - strawberry smoothies.

Flat-leafed parsley - I like it much more than the curly parsley. Great for all sallads (especially tabouleh) when fresh, in omelets, and in all soups when dried.

Chives - (sv. gräslök). Great in yogurt based sauces, as sprinkle on sandwiches and in home made cream cheese.

Oregano - of course a major part of all Italian dishes but also in omelets. The dried spice taste a lot more than when it is fresh, so with eggs I prefer to use fresh oregano.

Marjoram - amazing taste explosion in your mouth when dried and sprinkled over feta cheese with olive oil; and with eggs both fresh and dried.

This is what my beautiful herb garden looked like this morning:

Yes! It is snow and hailstone!
My beautiful herb garden has temporarily moved
to my bathtub for now.

Market Day

Once a week I try to go to the market in the city to do our grocery shopping. It is cheaper and always much more colourful than the big supermarkets.

Vegetables are among the few things here that are cheaper than in Sweden, BUT only in season. Off-season the price is shocking or else it is impossible to get. Unlike Sweden where we can buy most vegetables and fruit all year round and the prices don't vary too much inspite of season.

Meat, fish, dairy products and bread are all more expensive here than in Sweden.

A few exmples of how much stuff costs:

Milk 1 litre: 6-8 NIS = 12-16 SEK = 1-1,5 EURO
1 loaf of bread: 15 NIS = 30 SEK = 2,9 EURO
5 pita bread: 4 NIS = 8 SEK = 0,8 EURO
12 eggs: 16 NIS = 32 SEK = 3 EURO
12 eggs organic (Sv. ekologiska): 22 NIS = 42 SEK = 4,2 EURO
Lemons per kilo: 4 NIS = 8 SEK = 0,8 EURO
Lemons per kilo: OFF SEASON 26 NIS = 52 SEK = 5 EURO
Tomatos per kilo: 2-4 NIS = 4-8 SEK = 0,4-0,8 EURO

I buy vegetables in the Iraqi part of the market

Spices, oils and teas

Nuts, drieds fruit and grains

Kitchenware

I never eat crackers, but I like the idea of buying crackers by weight.

You have H&M - we have the market.

Breakfast

I love staying in Jerusalem over the weekends. It is the time where I write, sew, read, walk, eat nice and healthy or unhealthy.

This will be one of those weekends and here is how it always starts:

Poached eggs