by Gil Marks
The First Temple was erected around 960 BCE and remained the center of Jewish life for nearly four centuries until, on the ninth day of the month of Av in the year 586 BCE, Babylonian forces entered Jerusalem and torched Solomon's Temple and much of the city. The upper and middle classes of Judea were exiled to Babylonia, inaugurating the Diaspora. Although a small group of Jews returned fifty years later and in 516 BCE constructed the Second Temple, the majority of Jews would subsequently live outside of the land of Israel.
In 63 BCE, Pompey annexed Judea to Rome, setting in motion centuries of conflict due to ongoing Roman misgovernment and affronts to Judaism. Roman procurators, like Pontius Pilate (26—36 CE) and Gessius Florus (64—66 CE), purchased their positions and then used the opportunity to extract as much loot as possible from the subject populations. In addition, emperors who deemed themselves gods and arbiters of morality had a tendency to place statues of themselves in Jewish holy sites and forbid what they considered to be objectionable rituals. According to Josephus, the Jews' frustration bubbled over in 66 CE, triggered by the killing of several Jews by Greeks in the city of Caesarea, along with Florus' appropriation of funds from the Temple. A spontaneous revolt spread through the Galilee and Judea. At this time, Jews constituted fully 10 percent of the entire population of the Empire of approximately fifty million people. In response, Rome dispatched General Vespasian and several legions to suppress the insurrection, first vanquishing the Galilee in 67 and then laying siege to Jerusalem the following year.
Again on the ninth day of the month of Av, in 70 CE, after three years of revolution, Roman forces breached the walls of Jerusalem and burned the wooden parts of the Second Temple. The loss of the First Roman War and capture of Jerusalem resulted in large-scale death or enslavement and deportation from Judea, the first instance of widespread Jewish enslavement since the redemption from Egypt. Josephus reported that 1.1 million people died in Jerusalem alone. There were 97,000 more taken captive, many ending up in the mines of Egypt or in bondage in Italy. The Roman historian Tacitus estimated the number of deaths and captives at 600,000.
On the ninth of Av in 86 CE, the emperor Domitian had the stones of the Temple torn down, effectively ending the hope of salvaging the remnants from which to rebuild.
In 132 CE, a second major insurgency erupted in Judea. Under the leadership of Simon Bar Kokhba, the rebels captured numerous strongholds and towns and defeated the initial Roman forces sent to suppress them. Hadrian then dispatched his best generals and legions. Bar Kokhba's last remaining forces as well as numerous refugees gathered in his headquarters, the fortress of Betar southwest of Jerusalem, and attempted to outlast a lengthy siege.
Sixty-five years after the Roman legions crushed the first revolt, the second met the same fate, as Betar fell on the ninth day of Av in 135, effectively ending military resistance.
For centuries, Jews were forbidden from entering Jerusalem, except once a year on the ninth of Av, to mourn.
Afterward, various other tragedies occurred on the ninth of Av, including the expulsion of the Jews from England in 1290. Notably, the Alhambra Decree issued by Ferdinand and Isabella ordered the Jews of Spain to convert or leave by the end of July 1492, and that day was Tisha b'Av. World War I also broke out on this date. A practice in some German concentration camps during World War II was to starve the prisoners for several days before Tisha b'Av to ensure that they would need to eat on that day.
In the Talmud, Rav Papa predicts that Tisha b'Av and the minor fasts day will be transformed into days of rejoicing "when there is shalom [peace]." In the meantime, as the Mishnah states, "As Av enters, we diminish our joy." Weddings are not held during the entire three weeks. For the nine-day period (Tishat HaYamim) commencing with the first of Av, Jews traditionally do not eat meat or drink wine, except on the Sabbath; some abstain during the entire three-week span. Accordingly, cooks prepare an assortment of dairy and vegetarian fare during this time of year.
As a fast day, there are no traditional foods during Tisha b'Av. However, immediately before sunset is the Seudat Hamafseket (meal of separation), consisting of only one cooked food in addition to bread. For Ashkenazim, this meal typically consists of a roll or bagel and a hard-boiled egg. Most Sephardim have pita bread and a hard-boiled egg. Some Mizrachim partake of a piece of flatbread and mengedarrah, even though consisting of lentils and rice, it is considered one food. There is no Seudat Hamafseket when Tisha b'Av falls immediately after the Sabbath, but rather a somewhat regular seudat shlishit (third meal of the Sabbath).
Since the Seudat Hamafseket is so sparse, a custom emerged to have a sustaining meal beforehand, one also consisting of dairy or vegetarian foods, usually dishes containing lentils and eggs, both ancient Jewish symbols of mourning as well as fertility (life, like a lentil, goes around like a wheel).
Among Ashkenazim, the meal to break the fast is also dairy or vegetarian, as meat and wine are not eaten again until the following day. Many Sephardim, however, serve chicken. Turkish and Greek Jews begin with pepitada, a beverage made from melon seeds. In Iraq, a little rose water in cold water was customary. Many Ashkenazim sip tea or juice, perhaps accompanied with cake, before beginning the meal. Syrians and Iraqis serve kaak. Sephardim offer almond cookies or almond paste—filled pastries, representing a tradition that when the Messiah, who will be born on Tisha b'Av, arrives, the first to greet him will be an almond tree. Some Sephardim serve a dried fava bean dish called bessara, as it sounds like the Hebrew b'tzara (in troubles) and Arabic f'sarra (in troubles). Many Mizrachim eat watermelon to provide some relief from the heat. Persians serve polow adas (rice with brown lentils). Other traditional dishes include Sephardic red lentil soup (sopa de lentejas), Alsatian green lentil soup (soupe de lentille), Sephardic lentil salad (salata de lentejas), Middle Eastern lentils and rice (mengedarrah), and Sephardic long-cooked eggs (huevos haminados).
Tishpishti
Tishpishti is a semolina cake, frequently containing ground nuts, that is soaked in a syrup.
Origin: Turkey
Other names: Algeria: kalb-el louz; Crete: shamali; Egypt: basboosah, basboussa; Ladino: pispiti, tezpisti, tupishti; Lebanon: hareesa, hrisseh; Morocco: chamali, chamia, gâteau de semoule; Syria: namora, namoura; Turkey and Greece: revani.
In the Middle East, pastries and puddings were typically made from semolina, the predominant form of wheat in much of that region through the medieval period. For more than a millennium, Persians have enjoyed a golden pudding, halva aurd-e sujee, made by sautéing fine semolina in butter, then gradually stirring in sugar syrup. Ground nuts and various spices were commonly added. Although semolina halva is typically eaten warm, people began spreading it into a round metal tray, letting it cool, then cutting it into diamond shapes. At some point, cooks began baking the uncooked halva ingredients in a tifsin (large round pan) and adding the syrup afterwards; this method was easier than the time-consuming practice of making halva over a fire and resulted in a favorite Middle Eastern cake.
In the former domains of the Ottoman Empire, there are a myriad of variations and names for semolina cakes. The most common name in Israel and among the Sephardim from Turkey, Greece, and the Balkans is tishpishti—probably a nonsense name from the Turkish tez (fast/quick) and picti (plane/slope). For centuries in Egypt, men stood on street corners in the morning selling homemade semolina cakes from trays to passersby on their way to work. Today, sweet shops throughout the Middle East sell the semolina diamonds.
The predominant common threads among these cakes are the presence of semolina and a soaking syrup. Greeks call the various syrup-soaked pastries and cakes siropiasta. However, these cakes fall into three main categories: denser ones containing all semolina (and nuts) and no egg or baking powder; slightly lighter ones with a few whole eggs; and much lighter ones, particularly from Greece, made with some white flour and beaten egg whites (the contribution of Sephardim), and baking powder (a more modern innovation). The granular semolina imparts a slightly wheaty fl
avor, crunchy texture, and yellow hue. Fine semolina (called smeed in Arabic) is necessary to prevent the cake from being gritty. Sephardim make this cake with oil instead of butter and add a touch of orange. Algerians first toast the semolina, creating a nutty flavor, and typically fill the cake with almond paste.
Drenching the cakes with sugar syrup creates moisture as well as a striking sweetness. The syrup varies depending on the place of origin: It is usually made from sugar, but sometimes honey is added as well, and it can be accented with lemon, rose water, orange-blossom water, or cinnamon, or any combination.
Some semolina cakes are rather thick, while others are relatively thin. Many recipes call for finely ground nuts, which contribute flavor and a pleasant textural contrast. Tishpishti and revani always incorporate at least a small amount of nuts. Some cooks add grated coconut. Semolina cakes made with plenty of coconut are sometimes called baseema and, in India, bolo de coco. Some Indian cooks add a little turmeric for a bright yellow color. More than a few Greeks include a shot of ouzo. Some versions contain yogurt or milk, but Jews usually make a nondairy cake to serve in conjunction with meat. Jews typically use oil instead of butter.
Tishpishti is a frequent sight at most special occasions. It is a traditional Rosh Hashanah dessert, served to start the new year on a sweet note. Although any kind of nut may be used, blanched almonds are traditional on Rosh Hashanah to produce a light color so that the year should be dulce y aclarada (sweet and bright). At other times, walnuts, creating a darker cake, are more common. Many Mizrachim include semolina cake in the meal to break the fast of Yom Kippur. It is also popular on Purim. All-nut or matza meal versions are enjoyed on Passover. Among Middle Eastern Jews, it is also a favorite Sabbath afternoon indulgence. Tishpishti is frequently served topped with dollops of whipped cream, ushta (clotted cream), or yogurt and accompanied with, as are most Middle Eastern sweets, Turkish coffee or mint tea.
(See also Semolina)
Middle Eastern Semolina Cake (Tishpishti)
about twenty-four 2-inch pieces
[PAREVE]
1 cup (6 ounces) fine semolina (not semolina flour)
1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup (3.5 ounces) ground blanched almonds, walnuts, pistachios, or hazelnuts
1 tablespoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon or vanilla extract (optional)
6 large eggs, separated
1 cup sugar
½ cup vegetable, olive, or nut oil
2 tablespoons orange-blossom water or orange juice
2 teaspoons grated orange zest, or 1 teaspoon orange zest and 1 teaspoon lemon zest
24 or 48 whole almonds, walnuts, pistachios, or hazelnuts for decoration (optional)
2 cups atar (Middle Eastern Sugar Syrup (Atar/Shira)), cooled
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 13-by-9-inch baking pan or a 10-inch round cake pan that is at least 2-inches deep.
2. Combine the semolina, flour, nuts, baking powder, salt, and, if using, cinnamon. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until thick and creamy, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the oil, juice, and, if using, zest and/or vanilla. Stir in the semolina mixture.
3. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry, 5 to 8 minutes. Fold one-fourth of the egg whites into the semolina mixture, then gently fold in the remaining whites.
4. Pour into the prepared pan. If using, arrange the whole nuts in even rows on top of the batter. Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and immediately drizzle the cooled syrup evenly over the hot cake. Let the cake cool and absorb the syrup. Cut into diamond shapes or 2-inch squares. Cover with plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 48 hours.
Tkemali
Tkemali is a cherry plum and a tart sauce made from the plums.
Origin: Georgia
The pride and joy of every Georgian cook is tkemali, a tart, slightly spicy plum sauce. The fruit is stewed with various typical Georgian spices and herbs, notably garlic, coriander, fennel, chili, and cilantro. Many people like a hint of mint or dill too. Depending on the ripeness and color of the plums, the sauce is pink, reddish, or green.
In Georgia, this sauce is made from a very tart variety of plum, known as tkemali and, in English, called cherry plum or myrobalan. Unripe Santa Rosa plums or Golden Gage or Japanese plum varieties may be substituted and a little lemon juice added. In addition, a version can be made with more readily attainable sour prunes. More recently, Georgians have developed a tomato and garlic sauce (adjika) used similarly to tkemali. Today, several Georgian companies produce bottled tkemali, although some cooks still insist on making their own to control the spices. Tkemali or raw sour plums are also boiled into a puree, spread into a thin sheet, and dried to make the fruit leather known as tklapi/tkhlopi.
Tkemali is used as a souring agent in the same manner as lemon juice in the West; it adds tartness to dishes such as lobio tkemali (red beans with plum sauce) and kufta (meatballs). Tkemali also serves as a condiment, akin to ketchup and salsa in America, with any number of dishes, including tapaka (pressed fried Cornish hens), shashlik (grilled skewered meat), and other grilled meat and fish.
Tomato
Tomatoes are the mildly acidic, pulpy fruit of a South American vine. While botanically it is a fruit, the tomato is generally used as a vegetable; it is almost always found in the vegetable section of stores and is called a vegetable by most people. In an 1893 ruling, the United States Supreme Court classified it as a vegetable for marketing purposes.
Tomatoes first arrived in Spain in 1523 and in Italy about two decades later, and soon traveled to the eastern part of the Mediterranean. Europeans initially believed that this member of the nightshade family, originally called mala insana (Greek for "unhealthy fruit"), was poisonous and, for many years, relegated the plant solely to decorative use. The earliest European record of tomatoes used in a sauce appeared in Italy in 1692, and the pairing of tomato sauce with pasta was first recorded nearly a century later.
In contrast, the tomato received an enthusiastic reception in the Middle East, particularly among Jews in the Ottoman Empire, who incorporated it into numerous stews, salads, and vegetable dishes. Much of the tomato crop was cooked into a concentration, known as tomato paste, which was used to add body to dishes such as soups and sauces. People in many regions enjoy fresh tomato salads, including the Bukharan banadora, Indian kuccha, and Moroccan shlata bi matesha. A basic Yemenite sauce, now widespread in Israel, is made from chopped fresh tomatoes (rotav aghvaniyot).
No one more completely adopted the tomato early on than the Sephardim of the eastern Mediterranean. Tomato-based sauces (such as ahilado), typically with garlic and often with a squeeze of lemon, lie at the heart of the cooking of the Sephardim of Turkey and Greece; vegetables, rice, meat, chicken, and fish are commonly cooked in a tomato sauce. The presence of tomatoes and onions together was frequently a sign of Sephardic influence. Sephardim also added sliced tomatoes to numerous dishes, including fritadas (omelets) and quajados (casseroles). The northern Ashkenazim had the exact opposite response to the tomato, as reflected in a Yiddish nickname for it—treyfene epl (unkosher apple). It was only in America and Israel, after becoming acculturated, that many Ashkenazim finally accepted the tomato.
By the end of the eighteenth century, the tomato had gained widespread acceptance in Italy, as reflected in a change of name to pomo dei Moro (apple of the Moors), connoting its usage in Arab lands, and pomodoro (golden apple), connoting the yellow color of the small Mexican variety that originally reached Europe. The rest of the continent eventually followed Italy's lead. Thomas Jefferson credited Dr. John de Sequeyra, a Sephardic physician who settled in Williamsburg in 1745, with first importing the tomato to Virginia, as well as with persuading Jefferson that they were not only edible but also healthful. Nevertheless, it was another half century before the tomato was fir
mly embedded in American cuisine, and even then, it was only eaten cooked, usually for hours, and not yet eaten raw.
(See also Israeli Salad (Salat Katzutz))
Tongue
The tongue is a bundle of muscles on the floor of the mouth used to manipulate food for chewing and swallowing, and in humans also for enabling speech. Accordingly, in many languages, the word for tongue is used as a word for language, such as the Hebrew lashon (the Hebrew safa, "lip," also means language and is more commonly used in modern Hebrew). The Latin lingua gave rise to the Italian and Ladino lingua as well as the English word language, while the Indo-European dnghu evolved into the German zunge, Yiddish tsung, and English tongue.
Animal tongue is rather tough and requires a slow moist cooking. Its dense and velvety texture, beloved by some but unpleasant to others, is different from that of beef muscle. If tongue is not cooked sufficiently, the texture is rubbery, but if it is overcooked, the meat will break down. Most of the tongue is covered with skin, whose thickness varies from front to back. The skin of the tongue can be peeled off easily when the tongue is still warm. Beef tongue is available fresh, pickled, and smoked. Veal and lamb tongues are found only fresh. Pickled and smoked tongues require soaking before cooking and some cooks add a whole potato to the cooking water to extract even more of the salt. Tongue's flavor is somewhat bland, so piquant and lively accompaniments are common. Consequently, after cooking, it is usually thickly sliced and accompanied with mustard or prepared horseradish or baked in a sweet-and-sour sauce.
Since beef or lamb heads are rarely available these days, tongue is often served on Rosh Hashanah to symbolize that the diners should be a "head" and not a tail. Tongue with black-eyed peas is a traditional Persian Rosh Hashanah dish. According to Rashi, in the Bible, Abraham prepared three calves for his three guests in order to give each a veal tongue with mustard, reflecting the enduring Ashkenazic conception of tongue as a special delicacy. Many Hungarians like to add a whole tongue to their Sabbath cholent. Generations of Polish grandmothers made tongue with a sweet-and-sour or raisin sauce for special occasions.
