Bait al Karama Palestinian Cookery School by cristianabottigella

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Bait al KARAMA (House of Dignity) is the first Women’s Centre in the heart of the Old City of Nablus (Palestine), and aspires to combine a culinary social enterprise with activities of art and culture to develop regular income for women who struggle in the aftermath of the second Intifada.

Bait al Karama is planning to open the first women led international Palestinian Cookery School!

Bait al KARAMA Cookery School

The aim of the project is to generate flexible forms of employment for about 20 women living in the Old City of Nablus. The school will be located in a ottoman building, at the heart of Nablus; a palace that was recently rehabilitated after its complete destruction by the IDF – Israeli Defence Force. The kitchen, situated on the ground floor, will be refurbished according to the traditional domestic local culture but with highly professional and security standards.

Bait al Karama will be innovative in its structure and conception. The women will be offered the possibility to work, meet, aggregate and teach. Rather then a passive role as attendees, listeners and participants, they will take a very active position in the management of the centre and will have the opportunity to capitalise and transfer their cookery skills. The women will work in flexible shifts according to their family needs and will generate an income for themselves as well as for the development of the centre and its social and cultural activities.

The centre will represent a strong and concrete link between the local grass rooted social and educational activities of the Charity and an international cultural network. Bait al Karama is the first Slow Food Convivium in Nablus, looking at food as cultural heritage to preserve and revaluate.

Bait al Karama will offer to artists and researchers from all over the world the opportunity to investigate and contribute to the enhancement of the extraordinary tangible and intangible cultural heritage of the Nablus Old City. The school will help build a positive image of Nablus as a city of culture, history and tradition, an image beyond the usual stereotype of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Finally, Bait al Karama will foster a sustainable use of the available resources. It will implement a network with local farmers and producers, will promote the use of organic and sustainably grown vegetables and meats, and will be converted, furnished and decorated according to the local arts and crafts traditions. Thanks to its activities, the centre will also foster meaningful sustainable tourism and will contribute to the local economy.

The money we will collect thanks to Eppela will be entirely devoted to the development of the cookery school: it will be used to buy furniture and appliances and to organise and deliver professional training for the women involved. We aim at opening the school in Spring 2012.

Bait al Karama is not part of any international NGO. Conversely, it is fully driven and carried on by the local association Nablus Old City Charity Society and by the women of the community. Every donation through Eppela is therefore vital and we prepared a set of rewards in order to thank and intrigue you. Throughout these gifts we would like you to share some of the tastes and beautiful products of the Palestinian cuisine.

The Zatar is the golden herbs of our cuisine and it holds all the Mediterranean flavours. You can eat it with oil and bread, and it will be great as part of your aperitif or as a simple snack. The Sumac is a red intense spicy you can add to your meat and veggie dishes, although we love it in the Shashuka, a vegetarian dish with onions, peppers, tomatoes and eggs.

As for the master chefs amongst you, we thought of a simple but meaningful object, the cliché for making Mammoul, gorgeous little cakes with a date filling (Don't worry, we will send you the recipe too!)

All this is just a little taste of what you can get in our school in Nablus where, if you come, we will share more incredible dishes prepared by the women of the Old City.

We look forward to meeting you!