New immigrants prepare a delicious meal, reminding me of my roots in Aleppo, Syria

SYRIAN COMFORT FOOD: At a Syria Supper Club event in a private home in Oradell last weekend, I loaded my plate with hummus, tabbouleh, a rice-and-lentil dish called mujadara, stewed okra with tomatoes, eggplant salad, pocket bread and more.

GRAPE LEAVES OF WRATH: A couple who fled the Syrian civil war prepared the buffet. Yabra or grape leaves, one of my all-time favorites, were stuffed with rice and vegetables, front.

-- ORADELL, N.J.

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

My most vivid memories of growing up in Brooklyn revolve around the Sephardic Jewish specialties prepared by my mother, who emigrated to the United States from Aleppo, Syria.

My favorite dishes are too numerous to mention, but last weekend, me and my wife attended a Syria Supper Club event in a private home, and enjoyed some of them in a buffet prepared by a couple who fled the Syrian civil war. 

The Syria Supper Club program connects Americans and recent immigrants, providing moral and financial support to the refugees who cook the meals and to their families.

Our nation of immigrants

I am a first-generation American, whose parents emigrated from Aleppo, met on Manhattan's Lower East Side, married and then moved to Brooklyn, where they spent the rest of their lives.

But the Saturday night dinner at the Oradell home of Lisa and Sean O'Donoghue proved to be an eye-opener, as Jews, Christians, Muslims and people of other faiths sat down to a great meal.

During an ice-breaker in the couple's family room, paying guests, the hosts, cooks and translators discussed their roots:

We were immigrants, and first- and second-generation Americans from Jamaica, Costa Rica, Panama, England, Ireland, Italy, India and other countries opening our hearts and wallets to the Syrians who had escaped the brutal civil war, which the United States and United Nations continue to ignore.

Four of the guests at the Syria Supper Club event on Saturday night in Oradell.

Syrian food

The 17 guests paid $53 each for a belly busting dinner from a buffet of Syrian food, plus wine, seltzer and dessert.

We were told to sit next to someone we didn't know, and the four Syrian cooks and translators, and our hosts -- a total of 23 people -- also sat down among us.

My favorites were mujadara, a dish of cooked rice, lentils and caramelized onions, which I ate with a fluffy garlic sauce I had never tasted before. 

We were invited to take home leftovers, and I had another big portion of mujadara for breakfast today.

'Taste of Syria'

"Taste of Syria" starts at 12:30 p.m. on March 21 at William Paterson University in Wayne, where guests will learn about Syrian culture and the current struggles Syrians face.

Admission is $10, including lunch, and the location is University Commons 211.

The event will be presented by the co-founder of the Syria Supper Club. To buy tickets, go to WPPresents.org.

For information about Syria Supper Club dinners in private homes in New Jersey, go to United Tastes of America.

See: I can't help but cry for Aleppo

See: A birthday meal at Aleppo Restaurant

FALAFEL AND KIBBEH: Falafel and kibbeh (bulgur wheat formed into ovals and stuffed with ground meat), were two of the items on the buffet.

TABBOULEH: A refreshing salad of finely chopped parsley, tomatoes, bulgur wheat and other ingredients.

HUMMUS: Ground chickpeas, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice are the ingredients in this Syrian classic.

OKRA AND TOMATOES: Bamia or okra stewed with tomatoes and other ingredients is another great dish from the Syrian kitchen, which relies on garlic, tamarind, lemon, cumin and other flavors.

From carefree vacations at Jersey shore to the harsh reality of trying to save the coast

There are 15 nests for ospreys or fish hawks at Fort Hancock, an old Army base in Highlands now called home by a federal fisheries research lab, a public marine sciences high school, and headquarters for the coastal conservation mission of the American Littoral Society, which was founded in 1961.

On Saturday, the American Littoral Society held its annual meeting and members day at its Fort Hancock headquarters. On a historic tour of the old fort led by Jeff Dement, senior naturalist at the society, those with binoculars said this pair of ospreys were caring for three chicks.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HIGHLANDS, N.J. -- I have many fond memories of the summers my family spent at our home in Bradley Beach from the 1940s to the 1970s.

My mother's brothers and sisters would drive their families out from our neighborhood in Brooklyn, taking turns as guests in the eight-bedroom house with a wraparound porch on Third Avenue.

We'd pick up my father, who commuted by train to his dry goods store on Manhattan's Lower East Side, and before going home, drove across the tracks to shop in the farmers market in Neptune.

Jersey beefsteak tomatoes, corn, potatoes and other produce were an important part of the big meals of Sephardic Jewish specialties my mother prepared for as many as 10 people every night.

Now, when I drive to the shore, it's usually for members day at American Littoral Society headquarters in Fort Hancock, an old Army base on Sandy Hook, part of the Gateway National Recreation Area.

On Saturday, the program included hikes, seining and birding; feeding of an African penguin; and a buffet lunch under a tent with terrific live music by "an Americana-flavored music duo" called The Danjos (Dan Corboy and John O'Neill).

Serious business

The American Littoral Society, founded in 1961, promotes the study and conservation of marine life and habitat, protects the coast from harm and empowers others to do the same.

At Fort Hancock, the society has powerful, like-minded partners, including a fisheries laboratory operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAA, and the Monmouth County Marine Academy of Science and Technology, a four-year public high school. 

A major concern today is the low pH or acidity level of coastal waters that affects the ability of clams to form their shells.

That has a direct impact on New Jersey's hard-clam industry.

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No crustaceans were harmed at Lobster Run

A chef from The Lusty Lobster in Highlands demonstrating how to shuck a clam. American Littoral Society members day always includes clams on the half shell, washed down with cups of cold beer. 

My lunch of fresh arugula, pasta salad, roasted clams and a fat veggie burger. My wife had a cheeseburger. Fresh watermelon slices and a fruit salad also were served.

We enjoyed our lunch at a picnic table on the front porch of American Littoral Society headquarters, overlooking Sandy Hook Bay.

The Sandy Hook Lighthouse was built in 1764, and paid for by New York City merchants who wanted to cut down on the loss of goods when ships ran aground in the narrow channel leading to the city. Today, it is the oldest working lighthouse in the United States.

At Fort Hancock, the American Littoral Society occupies a building in Officer's Row, the oldest of which dates to 1892, above. The federal government is offering free 60-year leases to anyone who uses their own funds to restore one of the buildings.