Eppes Essen

November 2001 - Afghan Snowshoe Bread

by Ellen Saxe

Ronnie and I bought a used car at European Motors in Fremont this week. The seller was Lebanese. We asked him where we could get some good Middle Eastern food. He sent us to a falafel and shwarma stand in a nearby shopping center.

On the drive there we passed grocery stores and restaurants selling food from every part of Asia. When we spotted two restaurants advertising Afghan food we realized we were on the street we had seen several times on television highlighting the East Bay's Afghan community. Having recently seen people interviewed about their fears for the safety of family back in Afghanistant as well as for themselves as potential targets of hate crimes, our eyes were wide open. There were many American flags displayed in store windows and even tee shirts with Osama bin Laden's face in the cross hairs with the words "Wanted Dead or Alive."

Here in Mendocino we don't have much chance to reflect so rawly on our amazing American melting pot and how much its promise of material comfot and freedom from personal fear mean to people. We found the stand, next to a Baskin Robbins. The food was Lebanese style, served by two young men with multiple earrings and spiked hair speaking the accented English of new arrivals. Instead of being stuffed into pita the falafel balls were rolled in a thin wrap. Other than that it had all the familiar ingredients.

We took out lunch to the tables outside and being aware that we ourselves were identifiable as members of one of America's minorities, began to eat. Next to us two men conversed in Russian. A mini van with several girls wearing traditional Islamic head covering drove by. A sari clad mom rushed into the supermarket as an African American family drove by in their SUV. A family of Chinese descent crossed the street dressed in shorts and tank tops licking their ice cream cones. Even as delicious as my falafel was I had a hard time swallowing it for the lump in my throat. A tear or two got into the tahina and mixed with the fried eggplant slices as I tried to grasp what it means to be an American.

We made a plan to restock our depleted supply of pomegranate syrup, orange blossom water and other Middle Eastern specialties at one of the shops while we put our change into the Relief for Afghan Children box. At the open sukkat at our house two weekends ago several people asked me for the recipes for the woderful flat bred Yarrow kept cranking out (with Max's help) from the wood burning stove. It was my friend Ellen Springwater who gave me the recipe we used.

Afghan Snowshoe Bread
  • 6-8 cups of white flour
  • 1 tsp. sugar
  • 1 tsp. yeast
  • 1 Tbsp. salt
  • 2-1/2 cups of lukewarm water
  1. Make a "sponge" with the 2 cups of flour, sugar, yeast, . salt and lukewarm water.
  2. Let ferment for at least two hours in a warm place, or for longer in a cool place. I left it overnight.
  3. Add 4-6 cups of flour, making a soft dough that can just be kneaded. 1/3 of the total flour can be whole wheat.
  4. Knead at least 100 times.
  5. Let rise for 2-3 hours.
  6. Punch down, knead again and divide into balls. (This will make about 6 big loaves or any number of small ones.)
  7. Let the balls rest a minute.
  8. Then begin to stretch into oval shape, pushing, lifting, stretching, almost like a pizza. Make indentations with fingers.
  9. Let riseon floured baking sheets about 1/2 hour.
  10. Brush with olive oil, sprkinkle with kosher salt.
  11. Bake at the bottom of a hot oven until just brown. If you can't eat them as they come out of the oven, immediately wrap the flat loaves in dish towels to retain their moisture. Store in plastic bags.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Es Gesunter Haidt in the Land of the Free Ellen

©Ellen Saxe 2001

updated 10/29/2001 - rge

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