Fellowship with Falafel

My church is sponsoring a refugee family from Syria, and the mother, Ezdehar, is a wonderful cook who loves to share Syrian food with others. Yesterday she hosted a falafel luncheon at her home for ten of us, beginning with demonstrating how to make it.

She starts by spreading her homemade hummus on handmade bread, then crumbling the falafel balls (these she made with lima beans) on top.

Next come pickled turnips, thinly sliced tomatoes, pickled cucumbers and a generous squiggle of her homemade yogurt.

She tops it off with chopped lettuce, mint and parsley, sprinkles a bit of salt on top and rolls it tightly.

The flavors are fresh, simple and satisfying. Washed down with cardamom or cinnamon tea, it’s a fantastic lunch.

For dessert, a dense cake-like confection consisting of a smooth filling the texture of cream cheese, glazed with a thin layer of crackly honey. It’s actually made with semolina, butter and yogurt. (I think it’s called harisi.) We could eat this with our hands and wash it down with strong Syrian/Turkish coffee flavored with cardamom. Syrians drink their tea and coffee with lots of sugar.

After lunch it was time for a hijab-tying lesson. For some of us it was our second attempt, and thanks to my very short hair I still can’t do it right.