In April, we celebrated Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israeli Independence Day). Each grade had the opportunity to cook a different Middle Eastern dish to experience the foods commonly eaten in Israel. At the end of each session, we all got together to sample falafel and hummus made from chickpeas, Israeli chopped salad full of cucumbers and tomatoes, baba ghanoush made from grilled eggplant, and blue and white (Israeli flag) cupcakes. All these recipes can be found on a great website that shows films of how to make these delicious dishes. Go to www.videojug.com. Then go to "food" and then choose "middle eastern". Here is my favorite recipe for hummus. Serve it with pita bread or carrot sticks.

1 15 ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
2 gloves garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
1/3 cup water
Juice of one lemon
6 tablespoons sesame tahini
1 teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste
Drain chickpeas. Put all ingredients in a food processor and
process until smooth. If too thick, add a little more water.
Hope you all have fun cooking!