Zaterdag 13 juni — Lunch experience

(onderdeel van bonenfestival BEAN THERE (done that) BEANS & BLOOM)

The Hummus Academy
met Umayya Abu Hanna & Mary Ann Jaraisy

Een verhalende maaltijd waarin je gaat kleien, rollen, ruiken, luisteren en proeven. Je ervaart niet alleen inspirerende gerechten, maar ook verhalen die generaties overspannen.
Een maaltijd die verbindt en waarbij bonen de glow-up krijgen die ze verdienen: met za’atar, met granaatappel, met aubergine, met sumac en een hele grote berg liefde.

Taal: Engels
Zaterdag 13 juni 12.30 - 16.30
€52,50

The Hummus Academy presents:

Four workshops, garden and Hakura tour, four course lunch and non alcoholic drinks all inclusive

Our Saturday starts with stations of workshops which culminate in a lunch.

First Station: We kick off at the altar of Baal - Palestine’s ancient Canaanite God of fertility, rain, dew, and good soil. We hear how Baal’s sister, Anat, the Goddess of love and war, saved her brother from death. Myth, drama, and resurrection.

What we do: We make tiny clay vessels and press beans and seeds in addition to our fingerprints to the body of the vessel. We burn frankincense and myrrh- ancient tree saps which arrived from the Spice & Silk Road-  sacrifice at the altar.

Second station: Zaatar Remix: Make your own Zaatar

Wild herbs, resistance, flavor bombs. Za’atar isn’t just seasoning—it’s memory, land, survival.

Baal is the God of all wild and foraged plants. Palestinians still call all foraged plants “Baali”. Zaatar belongs to the family of thyme and oregano and is an  iconic Palestinian staple. “We only had Zaatar to eat” means we had the bare minimum to survive. Israel has criminalised Palestinians from picking wild Zaatar, among other things.

Israel is fighting a 4,500 year old God. We take sides. We are on the side of the one who offers us food. 

What we do:  Build your own Za’atar blend from a lush spread of herbs, spices, and unexpected extras. Go classic or go rogue. Discover and experiment. Add roasted chickpeas, or think outside the box, twist the ratios, make it yours.

Third station: Dye your balls

Labneh—ancient, creamy, iconic, is getting a glow-up.

Labneh is as old as Baal. During the Agricultural Revolution, the shift from hunter gatherers to settled farmers came with the domestication of animals and with that we got our dairy. Linen cloth was already developed and in use during the Canaanite culture and so the ‘Hangop’ and preparing fresh cheese from yoghurt, the Labneh, was invented. 

What we do: Roll your sleeves and think spices, petals, and edible blooms first.

Then feel the silky labneh rolled into soft clouds, then coated in bold spices and herbs:

greens, purples, reds, yellows, black, and pink. Zaatar, Sumac, sesame- nigella-, poppy seeds, lavender, dry mint, fresh dill, petals- you name it. Fashioned fresh cheese.

Fourth Station: Stuff & Roll

Leaves are the original packaging and make a cosy home for stuffings. There are more edible leaves than you can think of. Did you know that Palestinians used to roll the leaves of our wild cyclamen? This is part cooking, part composition, part theatre of color, scents and tastes.

What we do: Pick your leaves: grape, fig, kale, malva, romain salad, currant, courgette, wild

chards. 

Then choose your stuffing and custom mix: Freekeh, bulgur, couscous or rice

Herbs: parsley, mint, basil, coriander, dill, and other

Spices: black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, chili pepper, salt, 7 spice, all spice, cumin, white pepper, seeds and more

Beans, lentils, and other vegetables

Different oils, pressed molasses and other

Join and combine your elements and stuff leaves of your choice.

While the leaves cook, getting ready for our lunch, step outside. Join the birds and the bees in the Silent Garden with a Palestinian Hakura.

Here Sylvia Avontuur, a permaculture designer, takes you on a tour of the Silent Garden she has created.

Now we feast Palestine in a 4 course lunch:

Hors d’oeuvre:

Tabouleh Gazpacho Shot, summer in a glass

Appetizer:

‘Stuff and roll’ leaves, eat your own creation

Main course:

Rummaniyeh with a twist, from Gaza

Dessert by Berlin Based food designer Inés Lauber

Over de Hummus Academy:

Mary Ann Jaraisy is een multidisciplinaire kunstenaar op het snijvlak van design en keramiek. Met haar Nederlandse moeder en Palestijnse vader groeide ze op in Nazareth en is ze al tien jaar Amsterdammer. Zij is medeoprichter van het iconische Sudfeh-restaurant en cultureel centrum in het oudste gebouw van Nazareth.

Umayya Abu-Hanna is een Palestijnse schrijfster en culturele makelaar, geboren in Haifa. Umayya woonde 30 jaar in Helsinki en nu 16 jaar in Amsterdam. Samen met de Nederlandse ontwerper Anouk Jansen creëerden ze in 2025 het boek 'A Palestinian Dinner'.

Ze zijn oprichters van de Hummus Academy en je hebt de kans om hun unieke ‘Palestine Beans & Blooms' lunch mee te maken op zaterdag 13 juni. Op zondag doen ze een make-over workshop, waarbij bonen een glow-up krijgen met jouw eigen gemaakte za'atar. Je vertrekt met deels eten, deels herinnering en je neemt je opgedofte, glanzende, geparfumeerde en getransformeerde Bonen mee naar huis.