If there is one thing the shopkeepers at Tel Aviv’s Shuk Hanamal Farmers Market share — apart from a love of good food, obviously — it is a passion for what they do. The indoor market — Israel’s first commercial green building, costing seven million shekels — opened in November 2010.

‘That was the weirdest thing I’ve ever done,” said my husband, flopping on a sunbed. “I was lying in a steam room while some woman in a swimsuit covered my eyes with a cold flannel and threw ice over my head.” After a traditional hamman treatment — Turkish bath — he could do little more than lift his cocktail.

Whether you’ve been inspired by the Olympics to get moving, or if you simply need sustenance while you watch others sweat it out on television, these energy bars will satisfy. Made with healthy ingredients, they are quick and easy to make — you need hardly take your eyes from the screen. Unlike normal flapjacks, they are not too sweet.

At the time of writing, the view from my window is of a grey, chilly, rain-filled sky. With luck, you are currently looking at blue, warm, and sunny. But this summer, who can ever guess? There is a saying in Wyoming, a state notorious for its rapidly changing meteorological conditions: “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes”.

In South Africa, polony is a processed meat sausage much like wurst. When I first demonstrated this recipe, everybody thought I was going to pour chocolate over a meat polony. I could think of nothing worse, but they thought I might be offering them my own “polony glaze”. Actually, all I did was name the dish after the sausage’s shape.

My winning dish is this delicious impressive Italian ice cream inspired by Florence’s cathedral.

Serves 10–12
Preparation: 30 minutes plus 3 hours freezing

INGREDIENTS
400g marbled sponge cake
400ml chocolate ice cream, softened
100g toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
4 tbsp chocolate drops
250ml vanilla ice cream, softened
4 tbsp grated chocolate

Gooseberry with elderflower is a truly English combination. This yoghurt will freeze solid, so it is best served soon after churning. If you do freeze it again, ensure you give it a good hour in the fridge to soften.

INGREDIENTS
500g gooseberries, washed
150g caster sugar
3 tbsp elderflower cordial concentrate
500g natural Greek yogurt

METHOD

I might be biased but for me, the best French speciality must be patisserie. I have used apricots and cherries for this tarte, but it would work equally well with berries, peaches or plums. Make sure you use very ripe, sweet fruit.

INGREDIENTS
320g ready-rolled puff pastry
250ml milk
3 egg yolks
75g caster sugar
25g flour
1 vanilla pod
400g of very ripe apricots halved, stones removed

All the best recipes are those that are inherited from relatives, I think, and my favourite is definitely this delicious salad handed down to me by my mother. I always make it whenever we have family celebrations or parties, and it would be a really fantastic addition to any buffet or pot-luck table.

Serves 4-6
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

This chicken, corn and noodle soup comes from Singapore and Malaysia where slurping is considered essential.

INGREDIENTS
110g pad Thai rice noodles
2 tsp sunflower oil
1 small onion (90g), finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp mild curry paste
1 tbsp soft light brown sugar
400ml tin coconut milk
250ml chicken stock
2 tsp soy sauce

A friend’s daughter spent her gap year working as a waitress in a London pub. Seeing fresh mint growing in abundance in my garden, she decided it was time to create one of her famous minty cocktails, which doubled up as a refreshing frozen dessert. After a scoop of this the day seems a whole lot less stressful.

Ingredients
60ml water
Juice of 1 lemon
200g sugar
2 large fresh pineapples

The honeycomb in this icey dessert makes it a real treat. It is so popular with my family that I have to make a double batch otherwise they tend to fight over it. When you are making it, be brave and simmer the golden syrup and sugar long enough so that it gets a nice rich, deep amber — it gives the honeycomb a great flavour.

Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

This is a delicious refreshing ice cream — ideal after an oriental meal. Its creamy texture comes from the coconut milk. Great if you have an abundance of desiccated coconut still left over from Passover. It will keep in the freezer for up to one month.

Preparation: 10 minutes plus 3 hours freezing
Cooking: 20 minutes
Serves 8–10

Ingredients
400 ml coconut milk

Many of the sacrifices made in the name of a kosher home have little impact on our lives. No seafood? Less chance of violent food poisoning. No pork? One less unhealthy animal fat to ingest. Hardly a disadvantage.

This is a refreshing low fat parev summer soup. It is a great way to start a barbecue or perfect for when you are entertaining, as it is easy to serve and very quick to make. It looks great served in small tumblers or, alternatively, in shot glasses. Garnish the glass rim with lime zest. Add finely chopped avocado and cherry tomato before serving.

Jam is a lovely way of preserving some of our beautiful summer fruits. Making jam needs no special equipment, although you may find a jam funnel useful for the hot jars to prevent the jam dribbling down the sides.

Preparation time : 10 minutes. Cooking time: 45-55 minutes, Makes 1 x750ml jar or 3 x 250ml jars

INGREDIENTS
1kg blackcurrants, stalks removed
750g jam sugar

The story of Israeli bakers finding success in London is hardly big news.
Anyone worth their cake knows that the most recent success stories in the life of the loaf have been Israeli — Gail’s, Ottolenghi and Baker and Spice all have Israeli founders or co-founders. Israelis are to be found in many bakery kitchens.

Royals are the kings of new potatoes. They are nearing the end of their short season so they will now be larger but more flavourful than those harvested in early April.

Try to choose potatoes of equal size so they take the same time to cook. If they are on the large side, slice them after cooking so they don’t absorb too much water.

Serves 8 as a side dish

INGREDIENTS

‘But you’re a Jew — you’ll never survive in the country!” That was the reaction when Joanna Weinberg mentioned to an acquaintance that she was off to live in deepest Somerset with her family, husband Ed and children, May aged four and two-year-old Billy.

Next week, aficianados from all over the UK will gather at north-west London's Ivy House to spend an entire day cogitating, discussing and digesting a matter close to our hearts. Food.

In the three years since he founded Gefiltefest, Michael Leventhal has become something of a godfather of Jewish food - the Noshfather, so to speak.