In honor of Chanukah, I just ran a hands-on olive picking and pressing workshop for the family’s of the Community Garden of Arnona, a neighborhood in southern Jerusalem.
The first step was to pick the olives off the branches that I brought in. Then we had to crush the olives.
Then we pressed the crushed olives in a fruit press.
What you see coming out there is not actually oil yet, but a mixture of olive juice and oil, known in old Hebrew as “Mohal.” We bottle it and then we wait a few days for the oil to gather on the surface.
Below we attempted to light a menorah using olive oil made using the same method during my Olive & Oil workshop for women the previous week.
Now that Chanukah is done, it’s time to say goodbye to the olive season.
I can’t wait until next year!
PS. Thanks to Rachel Wanetik for organizing this event to and Jack Jacobs for the photos and videos
My name is Naomi and this is my tiny little farm in the heart of the rapidly growing city of Beit Shemesh, Israel. I enjoy growing, making and processing as much of my family's food and household essentials as possible, while nurturing a biodiverse ecosystem filled with beauty and life.