NOTICE & REMINDER:
*Shavuot deliveries: During the week of the upcoming Shavuot festival, the Monday 17.5 delivery will take place as usual. The Wednesday delivery will be moved to Thursday, 20.5, the day after the holiday.
*A reminder: After Pesach, Yiftach resumed regular bi-weekly baking of his sprouted spelt bread. Those wishing to place an order for loaves being baked next week, please send it to me by this coming Friday, May 7th.
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Made in Israel
Lately there’s a new advertising campaign promoting Israeli products. Two guys roam the streets, and one boasts to the other that everyone around is working for him. I identify with the idea of local products, and we at Chubeza try to connect you to local and smaller manufacturers, but I’m a little bothered by the idea that the way to our hearts, according to the spin makers, is to convince us that “everyone is working for you if you buy blue and white!” Some may think this is humor– I find it embarrassing.
But forget about the commercial, let’s get back to the actual issues. On Independence Day, I wrote you about our attempts over the past year to add more cottage industries, small manufacturers and small farmers/growers to the Chubeza circle. The person who initiated this was my dear brother, Yochai, who worked with us for five years, in direct contact with our clients during the latter years. Yochai started dealing with outside manufacturers in response to the many requests from our clientele to expand the product range.
I was a little wary, especially of the added bureaucracy, but Yochai was determined. He sowed the seeds that later sprouted and grew, and now we have many nice products to add to the vegetable box—Their common denominator is that all products are raised or manufactured by local businesses, from small home kitchens to a little factory in the north or a southern kibbutz. We started out with manufacturers from our immediate surroundings, and over time added representatives from across the nation.
Business-minded friends, and sometimes clients who hear how we work, wonder about it being cumbersome to buy from each manufacturer individually. They suggest instead that we assemble all the information and orders and not complicate others by having them order directly. We’re trying to do it carefully. If you would like to order from us, we will pass your order to them, but will make an effort to keep an open channel between you and the growers/manufacturers, so they will feel responsibility towards your order, and receive your immediate feedback as well.
Today I proudly present you with the list of busy hands you can purchase from. You will see that we are guided not only by “basic products” which can easily be purchased in shops and chains, but rather by the desire to personally introduce you to manufacturers who make good, quality products with their own hands. We want you to learn how flour, honey, sprouts or cheeses are made, and about the various choices made when preparing granola, sprouted breads or crackers, and about the host of challenges and great wealth of growing organic fruits or dates.
We have nearly ten partners. I will tell you about part of them today, and the others next week. With each description, there’s a link to Hebrew-language information sheets on the product. I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have—just phone me at 054-6535980
The pioneers are Danny and Galit who established a small, charming business a couple of years ago named ”Granula.” After an extensive test period, where they acted as guinea pigs for the granola they mixed and baked in their kitchen at Moshav Kidron near Gedera, they started preparing granola, and then various cookies, all based on the concept of healthy, whole-grain ingredients. Today they offer a variety of granola: rich granola (4 types of nuts and dried bananas); cranberry-cashew; date-halva, and even Rice Krispie granola, halva-flavored, gluten free! They make yummy cookies as well: Rice Krispie with sesame gluten free, oatmeal cookies with techina and honey and chocolate chip cookies. Delicious!
The next on our list is an impressive organic farmer, Maggie, who sprouts for us, but also has her own organic vegetable garden from which she distributes to dozens of families, just like Chubeza. Maggie started her unique sprouts by attempting to sprout everything in sight, wherever there was room in her house in Nataf. After a period of learning and experiencing, Maggie decided to focus on over ten different types of sprouts: alfalfa, fenugreek, radish, turnip, broccoli, black beans, lentil, mung beans, azuki beans and more. Every week she sprouts in a small hothouse behind her house. All these varieties produce a wealth of sprouts that vary in taste, color and appearance. They seem very tender and young, these sprouts, but they are a huge powerhouse of vitality and health. And this daily miracle occurs every week in Maggie’s back yard.
The third of our crowd is Helaf Menachem, a fruit grower from the Melo HaTene farm. Helaf is a close neighbor– all he has to do to bring us his boxes of fruits is to cross the little mounds separating our farm from his. The Menachem family created a beautiful and magical endeavor, where instead of one orchard that grows one type of fruit, they grow a varied garden with many fruit trees, bushes, climbing plants, and even some vegetables. The fruit assortment does include “regular” fruits like apples and citrus, plums and grapes, along with raspberries, guava, Annona squamosa (sugar apple), figs, pomegranates, loquats and others. The fruits change with the seasons, and you can order a small/large box regularly or make an individual order directly from Helaf.
That’s it for now, more to come…
Wishing you a great week, Alon, Bat Ami and the Chubeza team
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This week’s basket includes:
Monday: parsley, cucumbers and fakus, zucchini and squash, lettuce, fennel, kohlrabi, turnips, tatsoi, Swiss chard, tomatoes, celery.
In the large box, in addition: beets, green onions, dill
Wednesday: parsley, cucumbers and fakus, zucchini and squash, lettuce, fennel or kohlrabi or turnips, tomatoes, Swiss chard, lettuce, green cabbage, green onions, celery, potatoes – our first harvest of springtime potatoes – welcome!
In the large box, in addition: beets, garlic, New Zealand spinach
Fruit box: Small: oranges, apples, avocado. Large: melon, watermelon, apples, oranges, avocado.
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Our cucumbers and facus (Armenian cucumbers/snake melon) started maturing in abundance. To celebrate, here are some recipes. I promise a Cucumber Newsletter coming soon!