Shab e Yaalda

The Noori's have done it again!  For the third year in a row they have shared their beautiful Persian, Shalba- Yaalda, celebration with the children.

Pomegranates are a representative fruit of Shab e Yaalda and the children enjoyed the red, sticky, juicy mess involved in taking the seeds out to eat.

They also brought in a traditional rice and lentil dish along with some raisin cookies for tasting.  The reviews were a BIG thumbs up.

Another delicious success! Here is a note from the Nori's:

SHAB e YALDA: A Persian Celebration

Dear Families,

Today, the children learned about Shab e Yalda and had a tasting of the foods eaten.

Shab e Yalda is an evening of festivities and merriment that begins when the sun sets on the last day of fall and continues until the dawn of the first day of winter. It falls on the longest night of the year, this year being Thursday, December 21st. It is known as the birthday of the sun and as the “victory” of light taking over darkness. After this night the daytime starts to slowly increase. On this night families keep lights glowing to help the sun in its “battle” against darkness. They recite poetry (by Hafez), play music, tell jokes and stories, talk and eat and eat and talk until the sun reappears in the morning!

To this day Yalda remains as one of the most ancient festive ceremonies that has been celebrated in Iran for centuries. By tradition Iranians gather in the homes of the elders of family or friends on Yalda night, eat (fresh fruit, dried fruit and nuts), drink tea and be merry. The main Yalda fruits are watermelon, pomegranate, persimmons, apples and pears. Nuts and dried fruit (particularly pumpkin seeds, watermelon seeds and raisins) are eaten on Yalda night along with a specific dinner menu.

There is a saying in Farsi that goes something like this: I wish you a long and happy life like Shab e Yalda, sweet as watermelon and fruitful as pomegranates!

Happy Shab e Yalda!

With Love,

-The Nooris

RECIPES

Rice with Lentil (Adas Polo)

- 3 cups of rice
- 1.25 cups of lentil
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon Table salt
- 2-3 tablespoons of cooking oil (Canola oil)

1.  Mix rice and lentil and rinse the mixture well

2.  Put the mixture in the rice cooker and add add 6.5 cups of water.

3- add the salt, oil, turmeric and raisin and mix all ingredients

4- turn the rice cooker on and cook the above mix until the food is ready and the cooler stops

**Please note you need a rice cooker that holds at least 10 cups for this amount. Adjust proportions as needed for desired amount needed.

Persian Raisin Cookies (Shirini Kishmishi)

Ingredients

·       ½ cup butter, softened

·       1 cup white sugar

·       2 eggs

·       ½ teaspoon vanilla

·       ¼  teaspoon rose water

·       1 cup flour

·       ¼ teaspoon salt

·       1 cup raisins

Instructions

1.     Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

2.     Cream together butter and sugar for 2 minutes, until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and rose water; beat until incorporated. Slowly add the flour on low speed of the mixer. Mix until it forms a dough.

3.     Fold in raisins.

4.     Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Using a small cookie scoop, drop teaspoonful sized cookies onto cookie sheet, spacing them at least 2 inches apart.

5.     Bake 15 minutes until golden around the edges. Cool for 4 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

6.     Store in an airtight container.