Chapter 41, Sukkah

“Mom,” I said as she was showing me the new “Zohar” washing machine. “I need a Blanket.”

“See that? She said, “this is how you start the machine. It is half automatic, which means we have to control when to switch the functions. What do you need a blanket for? 

“We are building a sukkah.”

“Nice, I will get you one of the old blankets, but now I want you to learn how to use this machine. When we rinse the laundry, we don’t waist the water. We can reuse it for the next wash. So, I have here a few buckets for the water to drain and collect. you have to remember to put the hose in the bucket before you turn the switch to rinse. You see, this machine has its own cycle of rinsing. We don’t have to put the clothes through that squeezer. You don’t need to be afraid that your fingers will get stuck in between the two hard cylinders.”



Mom found an old green blanket we use only when we have guests and gave it to me. Bentzi’s father who was a contractor brought wood planks from one of his construction’s sites. Dad was an expert using a hammer and nails helped us putting the frame of the sukkah. I showed my friends how to use a stone and a string to hold the blankets together without making holes and hanging them around the sukkah. For the roof of the sukkah, we had to find branches. Palm branches were not easy to fine in Netanya, so we walked to the small forest next to our neighborhood and cut off Eucalyptus branches and covered the top of the sukkah.

All the girls got together and were busy making decorations. We collected all kind of colorful magazines and cut strips to make hanging chains. Rivka showed us how to make hanging baskets out of one magazine page. By sundown we had a beautiful large sukkah for our neighborhood. Every kid brough their dinner and we sat on the floor singing holidays songs and eating our dinner. It was one of my favorite times of the year when all the kids and their parents got together to create a project for all of us to share. There were other times like that, “LaG BaOmer” for example, when we collected wood from everywhere to build a big bon fire. Or when we all got together to burn the “Hametz”, but we will get to that some other times.

 

***

 


Chicken Chachitori

 

    I like this simple dish. It has middle eastern flavors with some Greek and Italian influence.

 

Ingredients:

1 Chicken Cutups

2 Tomatoes

1 TBSP Capers

1Lb. Mushrooms

2 Garlic Cloves

½ Onion 

½ tsp Hot Pepper

 

Marinate:

2 TBSP Salt

1 Cup Red Wine Vinegar

2 Cups Water

 

Marinate the chicken in Vinegar and saltwater over night. Roast the chicken for 20 minutes at 500f. Flip over and roast for 20 more minutes.  Add the rest of the ingredients, cover and roast for 20 more minutes. Lower the heat to 300 and leave in for 2 hours. 

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Location: Borokhov St, Netanya, Israel

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