Noah's Pudding

All yall who watched the Super Bowl instead of coming 'round to Trinity @ 7 yesterday missed something really rather cool. We were joined by our friends from the Buffalo Turkish Community Foundation who brought us, their neighbors, Ashura or Noah's Pudding which was not only an incredibly tasty sugar-fix, but a cross-cultural interfaith experience. ...Allow me to explain.

"Sharing Ashura is a symbolic representation of the unity and essential reltionship of humans to one another and to their Creator. Ashura prepared at home is shared with neighbors and friends. As tradition goes, the residents of the forty houses around one's house are considered neighbors. One has the responsibility of maintaining good relations with their neighbors regardless of what their religion or beliefs may be." - this, from the Buffalo Turkish Community Foundation.

Now, a little more of this history, recopied from the information given to me, with a recipe at the end!

Ashura is also known as "Noah's Pudding" Noah's Pudding celebrates Abrahamic heritage.


"It was thousands of years ago, a community was again on the threshold of catastrophe. The community had abandoned worshiping One God and was corrupted. Adultery was spreading and those with power were oppressing those without. There was no justice and the level of humanity was getting low.

"The Great Creator, because of His All-Compassion toward them and all humanity, sent Noa to guide them. Noah called them to beleive in One God, made sure that justice was established and maintained, and eliminated all evils in the society, as did Moses, David, Solomon, Jesus, Muhammad adn the ones whose names we do not know, but believe in. "The Prophet Noah called his people to the religion of God for nine hundred and fifte years. When his people insisted on unbelief and persisted in their wrongdoings, God ordered him to build an ark. After completing the construction of thie ship, Noah embarked in it, upon god's command, of each kind two, male and female, his family - except those against whom the Word (of punishment) had already gone forth, - and the believers." (Qur'an 11:40) When the waters of the great Flood began to recede, the Prophet Noa and his family gathered up all the remaining dry beans and wheat on the Ark and made a delicious pudding.

"Ever since that day, Muslims prepare Noah's Pudding every year according to the Islamic calendar. The pudding is made by mixing dry beans and wheat together, and is then shared with neighbors and friends."


Recipe

There are various recipes, but the essential ingredients are: haricot beans, chickpeas, barley, rice, dried apricots, walnuts, dried figs, currants, lemon, cinnamon, caster sugar, corn flour, milk, and water. All the ingredients are boiled together until their reach a thick porridge-like consistency. This dessert is served cold.

Ingredients (30 servings):

• 1 cup wheat
  
• 1 cup white beans
  
• 1 cup garbanzo beans
  
• 1 cup raisins
  
• 1 cup almonds
  
• 3/4 cup peanuts
  
• 12 dried apricots
  
• 5 1/2 cups sugar
  
• water - enough to cover
  
• topping: walnuts, cinnimon
  

Preparation:

Soak wheat, white beans, garbanzo beans, and almonds in water overnight.

Boil the above ingredients, remove the outer shell or skin.

Soak the raisins in boiling water until they soften.

Put all the ingredients above in a large pot and boil. Add peanuts and almonds (peeled and cut in half) at this point.

Chop the apricot into small pieces, add to mixture along with sugar.

Boil for 10-15 minutes.

Enjoy your pudding!