Shavuot is a holiday with lots of meanings, customs, traditions and even names - Shavuot, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Feast of Harvest and the Feast of the Giving of the Torah.
When we were kids, Shavuot was the water holiday for us in general.
We would splash water on each other, and yes, on passersby as well.
Everyone accepted it with understanding that it was the holiday custom.
On the "big" holidays, Rosh Hashana and Pesach, we are hosted by the parents.
These are holidays that require a large meal and kiddush and are "saved" for the festivities of the parents' home.
On other holidays we are "allowed" to do other things or be with others, so on Sukkot, for example, we travel with friends, Hanukkah is a holiday where you go between the menorah lights and the Christmas lights, and Shavuot for me has become the kibbutz holiday.
My sister is a kibbutznik today, and we come to the kibbutz where she lives and celebrate with the smell of cows and hay that preserves the holiday atmosphere as it was, since Shavuot has two main meanings - agriculture and Torah.
I focus on Shavuot on the agricultural side, a significant portion of which is cheeses and dairy products, which have already become a holiday symbol.
If you combine cheese and Torah, the answer is Yaakov's dairy in Kfar Haroeh.
Workers and cheese production at Yaakovs Dairy // Photo: Arik Sultan
When Yitzhak and Ruth Yaakovs came to the village of Haroeh, somewhere in 1936, they still milked the cows by hand. They set up their home and opened a small farm, where they began to raise cheese for self-consumption. The dairy for a successful business, which does not forget to maintain tradition.
The dairy and the Jacobs family and I have an old acquaintance.
Beyond the great cheeses, these are charming, pleasant and generous people who do their job faithfully and fairly, with lots of passion and respect for the profession.
For me, there is no better time to visit the Jacobs family and make cheeses together than for Pentecost.
Passion for the profession.
Sheetrit with Eran Yaakovs, Photo: Arik Sultan
Homemade ricotta
Materials:
1 liter of milk
6 tablespoons vinegar
Eran Yaakovs, grandson of Yitzhak and Ruth, makes vinegar from a teaspoon and a half of lemon salt that is diluted in hot water.
You can also use regular vinegar.
Heat milk to a temperature of about 80 degrees (if there is no thermometer, the sign that you have reached the right temperature is when there are small bubbles of boiling in the milk, but it is not boiling and bubbling all over. It is also important to heat the milk while stirring).
When the milk reaches 80 degrees, add the vinegar and mix well.
Remove the pot from the heat, cover with a lid and wait about a quarter of an hour until the hump floats.
After a quarter of an hour, transfer the hump to a gauze cloth or cloth diaper for half an hour, add a little salt and serve.
It can be served as a final dish with honey and nuts on top.
For home stone
Materials:
1 liter of yogurt (preferably sheep)
An easy and simple recipe - and the result is delightful.
Transfer the yogurt to a filter cloth or cloth diaper, hang over the sink or place the cloth in a colander over a bowl for 12 hours.
After filtering, transfer to a bowl and add salt.
For lovers of special flavors, you can vary and add hyssop, fennel, red pepper, herbs, olive oil and whatever you like.
For a more creamy texture, you can add a cup of sour cream after filtering and mix well.
Jacobs' cheeses, Photo: Arik Sultan
Homemade cream cheese
Materials:
750 ml milk
250 ml sweet cream
2 tablespoons yogurt
Heat the milk and cream to a temperature of about 50 degrees (hot, but not boiling), add the tablespoons of yogurt and mix well.
Cover the dish with a towel and leave in a warm place for 12 hours.
After 12 hours, transfer to a gauze cloth or cloth diaper for another 12 hours, add salt to taste and serve.
You can add green onions, olives, shatta pepper or any other interesting addition to the cheese.
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