Barley

"Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof...And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes". Ezek 4:9,12

Barley may not be frequently used in today's modern kitchens, except in traditional mushroom-and-barley soup perhaps, but once upon a time, it was considered one of the basic staples in the daily cuisine of both man and beast. It's no wonder then, that it follows wheat in the list of the Seven Species.

Simple barley, Hordeum vulgareo (also known as Spring barley) is mentioned no less than 32 times in the Bible, 10 of those times together with wheat. Made into barley cakes, bread, porridge, gueland grain pastes, it was considered a poor man's food that could feed the masses.

As such, barley became a symbol of worthlessness and poverty, the rich preferring wheat and its "fine flour" whenever possible (see Ezek 13:19 "Ye have profaned Me among My people for handfuls of barley") In the days of the Prophet Elisha (approx. 843 B.C.) a measure of "fine flour" cost the consumer of yore twice as much as barley, and in the time of Jesus, just plain wheat cost three times as much as humble barley (see 2 Kings 7:1 and Rev.6.6, respectively)

Luckily for our ancestors, barley survives heat and drought better than other cereals, and ripens about a week to a month before wheat. This explains why, in Pharoah's Egypt, the barley was destroyed, but not the wheat (see Exod 9:2-31 ) The barley harvest also served ancient peoples as a sign of the advent of spring, and it's not surprising that the Bible uses an agricultural symbol to give us a bit of a timetable. In the Book of Ruth, read by Jews all over the world on the Shavuot holiday, a beautiful description of a Biblical grain harvest is provided. In those fragrant fields, fresh with the scent of ripe barley, Ruth "gleaned and beat out an ephah of barley" from wealthy Boaz's field. And it was there, under the hot sun, that he first fancied her -and long before perfume or flowers - gave her a gift of "six measures of barley" as a token of his affection (See the Book of Ruth 1:22, 2:27, 3:17)

When King David was on the battlefield, Barzillai the Gileadite made sure to bring barley as part of the army rations. And later, during the siege of Jerusalem, the Prophet Ezekiel lived on bread prepared from a mixture of barley, wheat, beans, lentils, millet and spelt for 390 days! Lest you think it was a common recipe, the Commentaries tell us that "bread made of such a strange mixture indicates the great scarcity during the siege" (2Sam 17:28.) Elisha the Man of God was also brought 20 loaves of barley bread as a gift (2.Kings 4.42).

Barley loaves were common fare for fishermen as work, as we learn in the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, when Jesus creates twelve full baskets of barley bread from just five loaves (See John 6:9, 13)

Even the cattle, draught oxen and other beasts of burden enjoyed barley as a staple food. Along with straw it was daily fare at the royal stable of King Solomon (See 1Kgs 5:8.

Gideon appears in the Midianite soldier's dream as a "cake of barley bread" which Commentaries tells us was probably a circular flat cake, baked hard on ashes, hot stones or a small stove.

• 1 cup barley flour
• 6 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons water
• dash salt

Slowly work the sesame oil, water and salt into the barley flour, kneading constantly for 5-10 minutes, or until dough is elastic. Add more oil or water if necessary, but dough should be rather oily.Roll the dough flat on a floured board and cut discs out with an inverted cup or glass. Alternately, dough may be pressed into cakeswith the fingers. Place the cakes on an oiled baking tray and bake in a medium- hot oven (400 F) till lightly browned around the edges. Note: Oil tops and sprinkle with sesame seeds or "Za'atar" before baking, if desired. center> "But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael, Slay us not; for we have treasures in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey. So he forbare, and slew them not among their brethren". Jer 41:8

Barley Cakes

• 1 cup barley
• 2 ¼1//
• ½2 cups water
• 1 tsp salt
• ¼1/
• ½ cup whole wheat flour
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 medium carrot, grated or finely chopped
• 1 medium onion, grated or finely chopped
• 2-4 tablespoons fruity olive oil
• 1-2 tablespoons butter or samneh

Rinse the barley quickly in cold water and place in a pot with thewater. Bring to a boil, skim off the top, and cover and cook over low heat until all the water is absorbed. Barley should be tender, but not soft. Cool.

Transfer barley to a mixing bowl, and add the salt, flour,garlic, honey and vegetables. Mix well, using hands to press and mash the ingredients together. Form the mixture into patties the size of your palm. Heat the oil in a large heavy frying pan. Add butter and stir to melt. When hot, add the barley cakes and brown over medium high heat. Turn and brown the other side. Lower heat and cook for a few more minutes. Serve warm. Makes about 10 cakes. Note: Barley cakes may also be baked in a medium oven (about 350 F) for 45 minutes. Place on a greased sheet and turn once. Slip under broiler for a few moments to brown tops.

Barley Tea

• 4 tablespoons pearled barley
• 4 cups boiling water

Toast the barley in a dry frying pan until browned, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Place 1 tablespoon of barley in each glass, and pour over the boiling water. Let steep until the barley sinks to the bottom of the glass. Sweeten with honey if desired.

Barley and the Brewery

"Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, And wine unto the bitter in soul". Prov 31:6
"They drink not wine with a song; Strong drink is bitter to them that drink it". Isa 24:9

This "strong drink" of Proverbs and Isaiah is usually interpreted by most English readers of the Bible, as yet another expression for wine, yet the Hebrew "sehar" as interpreted later by the Talmud, refers to an intoxicating beverage made from grain ors ometimes dates. The "grain" they explain, was barley, and the drink none other than that beloved beverage - beer!

Long before draft beer hit Tel Aviv's pubs, beer production was widespread throughout Israel and the Near East. In Mesopotamia's early Sumerian period (3000 BC), it is estimated that 40% of all cereal production was used to brew dozens of of kinds of beer. Documents written in Mesopotamia in the second and third millenia, and old Sumerian seals and low reliefs, shed light on the ancient art of beer brewing. Even in Egypt, tomb walls and models from early dynasties show that beer was an oft-consumed beverage.

Primitive beer making, like its modern counterpart, first involved "malting," or softening of the barley grain in water until it began to sprout. This allowed the diastase enzyme to develop, which was capable of transforming the starches of the malt into sugars during fermentation. The grain was then macerated and the liquor that formed - a thickish substance that resembled a mashed porridge - was heated with aromatic herbs such as coriander or bay leaves (the latter containing some of the essential oils present in hops), honey, or dates for sweetness and improved alcohol content,and fermented.

Archaeologists believe that beer brewing probably evolved from cooking and bread making, since both in Mesopotamia's early Sumerian period and in Egypt, brewing and selling beer was largely in the hands of women.

Perhaps the earliest forms of beer developed when sprouted barley, mixed with water and gently heated, was left too long in the pot...and fermented. And somehow, somewhere along the course of history, they also discovered that dried-and-macerated sprouted grain bread kept better than bread made from regular flour, and it could be soaked in water, fermented strained, and voila! also form an intoxicating liquor. Of course, it's a little difficult to believe that it would be very tasty to the modern palate. By the end of the third millenium BC, Egyptian brewers were making various "beer breads" to be used in the production of sundry types of brews. Eventually, the introduction of yeasts made more uniform brews possible, and cottage industries evolved into full-fledged breweries. As the art of brewing developed, men took over the brewer's art and left bread-baking, housework and childcare to the women. Since the Children of Israel were neighbors to Egypt, and indeed spent so much time there themselves, it's no wonder that they picked up and adopted the art of brewing this "strong drink" for their native land. And although wine was, and remained, their favorite, beverage, barley and/or date beer ran a close second, adding variety and interest to their simple diet.

Times have changed, and today beer is probably the most popular beverage in Israel; along with sunflower seeds, it provides the basic nutrition of sports fans. "And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man telling a dream unto his fellow and saying: `Behold, I dreamed adream, and lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the campof Midian, and came unto the tent, and smote it that it fell,and turned it upside down, that the tent lay flat". Judg 7:13