LONDON — This recipe is from Falastin: A Cookbook by Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley. Tamimi is the executive chef and founding partner of the <https://ottolenghi.co.uk/> Ottolenghi restaurant group, and Tara Wigley, a long-time Yotam Ottolenghi recipe writer. They titled their cookbook, Falastin after the Palestinian newspaper that brought diverse people together. The more than 100 recipes celebrate the evolution of Palestinian cuisine, as seen through the lens of Tamimi’s childhood in Jerusalem. They draw from his recent travels with Wigley through the region to visit refugee camps, home kitchens, family farms, and tahini mills.
Falastin is a vision of a cuisine, a culture, and a way of life as experienced by one influential chef. The story of Palestine’s food is really the story of its people. When the events of 1948 forced residents from all regions of Palestine together into one compressed land, recipes that were once closely guarded family secrets were shared and passed between different groups in an effort to ensure that they were not lost forever.
Discover recipes such as “Buttery Rice with Toasted Vermicelli,” “Beet and Feta Galette with Za’atar and Honey,” “Chicken Shawarma Pie,” “Palestinian Bakewell Tart,” “Hassan’s Easy Eggs with Za’atar and Lemon,” “Fish Kofta with Yogurt, Sumac, and Chile,” “Pulled-Lamb Shawarma Sandwich,” and “Labneh Cheesecake with Roasted Apricots, Honey, and Cardamom.”
Tamimi retraces the lineage and evolution of his country’s cuisine, born of its agriculturally optimal geography, its distinct culinary traditions, and Palestinian cooks’ ingenuity and resourcefulness. He covers the territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River-East Jerusalem and the West Bank, up north to the Galilee and the coastal cities of Haifa and Akka, inland to Nazareth, and then south to Hebron and the coastal Gaza Strip-recounting his upbringing with eleven siblings and his decision to leave home at seventeen to cook in West Jerusalem, where he met and first worked with Yotam Ottolenghi.
“The journey of these rolls can be traced through Lebanon to Armenia, where kubez el tahineh comes from. They are simple to make, impressive to look at, and loved by all. They’re a particular favorite with kids. Eat them as they are, or sliced and spread with dibs w tahini, the Palestinian equivalent of peanut butter and jam, where creamy tahini is mixed with a little bit of grape or date molasses.”
These rolls are enriched with tahini, an ingredient that works equally well in sweet and savory dishes. They are perfect for snacking on throughout the day or for enjoying at breakfast or brunch time.
