How to Cook in Palestine.
Scarce Zionist Cookbook
[Cookbooks]. Meyer, Dr., Erna. How to Cook in Palestine. Assisted by Milka Saphir Nutrition and Domestic Science Teacher at the “WIZO” Domestic Science School in Nachlath Izchak. Palestine: ca. 1925.
8vo.; light foxing throughout; pages browned; printed wrappers, soiled, and heavily worn. In a specially made cloth slipcase.
First edition; published on behalf of the Histadruth Nashim Zionioth, the Palestine Federation of the Women’s International Zionist Organization (WIZO). The colophon and title page are paginated incorrectly, as the colophon appears first, with the title page on the verso. Text is in English, German and Hebrew. OCLC lists only two copies, at Yale and Florida Atlantic Universities. With a purple stamp reading “S. Abrahamoff. Rehmat Manzil. Churchgate St Extension, Bombay, 1.” opposite page 46 and 60; at the colophon, the word “Bombay,” as well as a lighthearted poem written upside-down in pencil, reading: “Me no worry, me no care, me go marry a millionaire/he go die, me no cry/me go marry another guy/Be good girl/lead a good life/find a good husband/and be a good wife.” Illustrated throughout with cooking diagrams and home-related advertisements.
In nineteen chapters – and two sections separating warm and cold dishes – with titles like, “Vocabulary (English-Hebrew),” “Seasoning in Palestine,” “How to Cook with Electricity,” “Sweets, Warm Drinks,” “Cold Desserts and Various Quick Creams,” and “How to Use my Ice-Box.” In her Introduction, Meyer explains particular problems that European-born – and recently immigrated – Palestinian housewives might face in the kitchen; :
What shall I cook? This problem, the concern of housewives the world over, is particularly acute in our country. The differences in climate and the necessary adjustments arising out of these differences compel the European housewife to make many drastic changes, particularly in her cooking – a change not so easy to achieve as is [sic] would seem…we housewives must take an attempt to free our kitchens from European customs which are not applicable in Palestine. We should wholeheartedly stand in favour of healthy Palestine cooking. We should foster these ideas not merely because we are compelled to do so, but because we realize that this will help us more than anything in becoming acclimatised [sic] to our old-new homeland. (p. 7)
A compelling statement that illustrates that nationalism even extends to the kitchen.
Meyer goes on to explain the mission of WIZO. It was a domestic science training school that “consider[ed] the knowledge of rational domestic management and nutrition one of the fundamental requirements for the upbringing of the National Home. Accordingly it has made the training of women and girls one of its main aims” (p. 7). Its courses are taught by traveling instructors, who offer their services to “all sections of the population” including the “domestic worker in the collective settlements (the Kibbutzim), and the new immigrant” (p. 14).
In the Seasonings section, Meyer points out the population difference in Palestine is culturally reflected in the foods consumed by each group, and this difference further illustrates the separation between groups. She mentions that mint is available throughout the country and that Arab and English people use it frequently, though Jewish people do not. “It is really surprising that this healthful and cheap vegetable should be used only by the Arabs and should not be planted in Jewish colonies, particularly since, in addition to its use as a savory, it can be used as a delightful and thirstquenching tea, when dried” (p. 30).
The recipes range from potato noodles, to piquant pudding, to chestnut tortes, to “good coffee,” and cold milk soup. In her Introduction, Meyer mentions that the Hebrew section of the books includes a few “extra recipes at the end of some chapters” (p. 10).
During the 1920s, Meyer was a strong advocate for
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