Hanukka Is Almost Here

Hanukka latkes in our "Letters" serving dish

This Hanukka, I'm celebrating one of my all-time favorite foods: Latkes! (Levivot, in Hebrew)
My tried-and-true recipe for cooking up these golden potato patties is so simple and delicious that for ages I've wanted to use it in one of my designs - and now I have!

Meet the Latkes apron - It's got a lovely hand-printed graphic illustrating the recipe with quirky pictures of each ingredient. It comes in blue and bordeau. This recipe makes about 25 latkes if they ever get to the table; most of the time you can't resist eating them from the pan...

and I hope you'll join us this season for some fun:

Barbara Shaw invites you for a Pre-Hanukka Party: drinks, tasty nibbles, and good cheer.

Dec 15th 2011, 4-7pm

Live music with Simon Shaw

Bezalel Street #2, Jerusalem
02-625-7474

Everyone Loves a Yiddishe Mama!

She stirred the savory, dill-spiked chicken soup as it simmered for hours on the stove... She served the hearty, stick-some-meat-on-your-bones shabbat cholent, brought steaming to the table on chilly Saturday afternoons while the family gathered round, laughing noisily over a week's worth of small (or not-so-small) misfortunes...
Isaac Bashevis Singer once said that "Yiddish is the language with the most vitamins in it," and this is certainly what your Yiddishe Mama would have hoped for, whenever she peppered you with questions about your health and well-being...

Here at Barbara Shaw we love to celebrate all our yiddishe mamas - their struggle and their strength, but most of all - their hilariousness! We hope that you enjoy our ever-expanding collection of home gifts that feature the the witty Yiddish sayings of yesteryear.

At our Bezalel Street store this month you can find coasters, mugs, aprons and more with all your favorite Yiddishisms, each one full of the twinkle-eyed fun in zaydie's grin ;-)

Rimon Mania

It's Pomegranate season in Jerusalem!

I just love that first sign of fall, when pomegranates all over the city begin to redden and ripen. Did you know that pomegranates have been grown in Israel and the Mesopotamian region for over 4,000 years? We are just as smitten by its tangy ruby morsels today as in ancient times. In Jewish tradition the pomegranate symbolizes abundance of blessing and a fruitful new year. In India and Persia this fruit was traditionally considered to have powerful medicinal properties; today we know that pomegranates contain high levels of antioxidants and even have an anti-bacterial cleaning effect on your teeth! 

For hundreds of years, Persian and Syrian Jews have used pomegranate concentrate to flavor meat dishes and stews: try pouring a generous amount of pomegranate syrup over chicken before baking or roasting, adding a bit of honey, and crushed garlic or sauteéd shallots  - you can't go wrong!  

Visit us this season at our shop (Bezalel Street 2) to find lots of gorgeous pomegranate inspired items for your Rosh Hashana table- like bowls, placemats, trivets, and cushions. Plus, you'll get a free handmade pomegranate vase (50NIS value) with any purchase of 199NIS. Just print out the coupon at our Coupons Page on facebook.

Happy Anniversary on Bezalel Street

Happy anniversary to the Barbara Shaw flagship store! I’m amazed to say that it’s been a whole year since we moved to our fabulous location on Bezalel Street! Reflecting on the past year, I cannot think of a better place, in the most wonderful city of Jerusalem, to be located.
Bezalel St is the historical location of the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Jerusalem, founded in 1906 by Boris Schatz. That original building still stands today. While most classes are given at the Mt. Scopus campus, the famous building still houses the department of architecture, as well as exhibitions and a wonderful café.

Bezalel St is naturally filled with art students, sipping their cappuccinos at one of the numerous little cafes filling the “midrachov.” Aside from our store and the cafes, the pedestrian walkway has a number of quirky, Israeli-style, designer clothing stores. Pop into “Sophia”, or “Shaul” the shoe shop that has been there for over 50 years. If I could, I’d spend everyday browsing the unique scarves, shoes, and leather bags available in these shops.
In addition every Friday Bezalel St, as well Schatz Street one block down, hosts a wonderful artisan’s fair. All forms of artwork are displayed, and you’ll be sure to find a one of a kind piece, whether is jewelry, woodwork or kitchen accessories. Usually there’s even some form of entertainment, such as live concerts held at the Bezalel building, giving the area an even more fabulously fun atmosphere!

It’s the combination of these factors makes the Bezalel Street and area a true exhibition of Jerusalem culture and life! I am so glad to be in the midst of it all! Come visit us on #2 Bezalel St, and be sure to check out our new travel-themed window display!

Meet me at the summer festival - Hutzot Hayotzer

It’s a busy time here at the Barbara Shaw studio! The long sunny days, filled with tourists and kids off from school, naturally make the summer a busy and energized time. But even besides for the heightened summer activity, there is something that has me and everyone else here in an eager and excited frenzy. “What could it be?” you, my loyal blog followers, ask yourselves, and I’ll tell you! The thing that has gotten me worked up into a hectic and thrilling whirl of excitement is the Hutzot Hayotzer festival.

The Hutzot Hayotzer festival is a ten day cultural fair in Jerusalem, from August 15th until August 27th, and is arguably one of the biggest summer events in this city. Taking place by the Sultan’s Pool, opposite the Old City ramparts and the Tower of David, this 30+ year tradition is a combination of art, food, and music, from all over Israel and all over the world! Every night (except Friday), from 6 PM to 11 PM, groups of families and friends come out to enjoy stalls of over 150 of the best Israeli artists of all types, food and craft stands from all over the globe, children’s events, small shows of exotic singing and dancing, and big name Israeli music performances. The combination of the breathtaking view, mix of all cultures, and great, and family-friendly, atmosphere makes this one of my all-time favorite events of the year.

This summer will be the third year that I’ll be privileged to have an artist’s booth at the festival. It’s a critical time at the studio, preparing all of the merchandise for the big event, especially all of the new gifts and designs that I’ll be debuting there! Although it’s a bit busy and crazy here, I am so excited, because Hutzot Hayozer is such a spectacular experience! If you’re planning on being in Jerusalem during those 2 weeks in August, I urge you to come to the festival, it’s truly an amazing, and come and greet us, we’d really love to meet you!

Summer Eating

Summer is the time for luscious fruits and foods. What a treat to stroll through any market or even the local supermarket and see the cornucopia of colours. I think I would be happy to live on grapes and watermelon alone! While Israel is not often thought of as a gourmet capital I believe it is. As the country is so small, the distances between the orchard to market is minimal so the freshness doesn’t have time to be squandered in transport. Being a country of immigrants with each group bringing rich culinary traditions wonderful eateries reflecting a myriad of cultures exists, yours for the picking!

Ira Ginsburg designed my new “I love Israeli Foods” apron and dish towel which reflects the wonderful eclectic variety of yummy dishes we all eat on a daily basis. Someone remarked, “but are they Israeli”? Well, we adopted them from lots of places over the years; Kube soup from Kurdistan, to Gefilte fish from eastern Europe to watermelon and Bulgarian cheese from Greece! Why not work your way around all the foods on the apron, but perhaps not all on the one day... :-)

Here is one of my favorite summer salads, so quick and tasty – takes just 5 minutes and is always a hit.

Barbara's super and simple mushroom salad:

Ingredients:

1 punnet of mushrooms

A handful of chopped parsley

A small onion chopped finely

Method:

Slice the mushrooms, or leave whole if they are small, and put in a bowl,

Mix with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste

Like us on facebook to win a free apron + dishtowel gift set this week, in our tasty new print, illustrated with Israeli dishes!

facebook.com/pages/Barbara-Shaw-Gifts

Pesach Goodies

When in Jerusalem come and visit our store at No 2 Bezalel street or shop on line at http://www.barbarashawgifts.com/. We have one of the most innovative shop windows designed by the ever creative Tova Safra.+ large selection of surprising gifts inside. Lots of Matza themed ideas. Bezlale street is a great place to hang out on Friday mornings when there is a fund arts and crafts fair  which will be on during Chol Hamoed Too.

Ma Nishtana Spring is in the air

Have had a great time producing lots of new items, for Passover. Started a new ceramic line have a range of Seder plates. Tova Safra is my new in house designer and its thanks to her that I am going into new medium.

Pesach items on my website  are located at http://www.barbarashawgifts.com/pl_products~6~40.htm