Experiencing Palestine through Cuisine, Stories, Music

Al-Bustan is pleased to present THREE events this winter featuring Palestinian cuisine, stories, and music.

Limited spaces available for cooking demos!

Enjoy a demo and tasting of starter (lentil soup), seafood (shrimp in clay pot), and dessert (date cookies) featured in the book. Participants will also get a list of local stores to purchase ingredients from and Arabic/English vocabulary related to the cuisine demonstrated.

“An important book on an egregiously under-appreciated, under-reported area of gastronomy. This is old school in the best possible meaning of the term.” – Anthony Bourdain

Laila El-Haddad, co-author with Maggie Schmitt of Gaza Kitchen: A Palestinian Culinary Journey, and author of Gaza Mom: Palestine, Politics, Parenting, and Everything in Between, is a blogger, political analyst, social activist, and parent-of-three from Gaza. Through her work she provides rare insight into the human experience of the region. She presently lives in Maryland.

Dorrance H. Hamilton Center for Culinary Enterprises
310 South 48th Street, Philadelphia
Admission: $55/person – advance payment required – Last day to purchase tickets is by end of Thursday, Nov 21

Co-sponsored by American Friends Service Committee

Watch video clip of Anthony Bourdain having a traditional dish in Gaza, with Laila El-Haddad as his guide.

A musical and literary evening opens with the Philadelphia Arab Music Ensemble and Percussion Ensemble, followed by author Shawqi Kassis reading excerpts from his book accompanied by Al-Bustan’s Resident Takht Ensemble.

Born in Haifa, Shawqi Kassis grew up in the village of Rama and came to the US at the age of 32 after receiving his Ph.D. in Microbiology from Tel-Aviv University. He worked as a Senior Investigator/Lab Chief in Discovery Research and Research & Development at Glaxo SmithKline. After a productive accomplished career, Kassis dedicated himself upon retirement to his passion, the Arabic language, both through teaching and writing. In 2003, he founded and taught at the Arabic and Hebrew language programs at Drexel University. Currently, Kassis is a writer working on several literary projects, the first of which is the historical fiction book he published last year, loosely based on his life growing up in Palestine-Israel, “Haifa is Not Cordoba.” Read recent interview with Kassis on Al-Bustan’s blog.

Trinity Center for Urban Life
22nd & Spruce St, Philadelphia
Admission: $20/person – suggested donation
Co-sponsored by UPenn’s Middle East Center
The Philadelphia Arab Music Ensemble and Percussion Ensemble are supported by UPenn’s Department of Music and Greenfield Intercultural Center

– Enjoy a demo and tasting of Palestinian appetizers (chopped salad), the quintessential Palestinian dish “msakhan” – chicken with sumak and onions served with freshly baked bread, and ending with a dessert “namura”. Participants will get recipes along with a list of local stores to purchase ingredients from.

Born in Akka, Anan Jardali Zahr is an Arab Palestinian American living in the US since the age of 11. She graduated from the University of California at Berkeley’s Department of Near Eastern Studies and attended Graduate School at West Chester University in the Department of Education. Anan has worked as an Arabic Language Instructor and owned and operated a Mediterranean restaurant in Wilmington, DE for five years. As a long-time resident of the Philadelphia area, Anan is a dedicated community activist involved with a number of national and local organizations.