As one of grass roots activities of the Raindrop Turkevi, the "Noah's Pudding" celebrates the common heritage of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

In the Muslim prophetic tradition, the day Moses (peace be upon him) and his community were saved from the Pharaoh's army, and the day Noah's (peace be upon him) ark was saved from the flood is celebrated with fasting and in modern times with the sharing of a piece of desert known as Noah's pudding.

In 2006, over 14,000 cups of Noah's pudding were shared by the volunteer families of RAINDROP TURKEVI and their neighbors and members of various culture-based organizations in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi and Louisiana. Starting the first week of February 2007, the Noah's pudding will be served in small sized serving cups in many cities where RAINDROP TURKEVI has volunteer families. The servings may last until the end of February in order to broaden the reach of this activity.

Historical account
It was thousands of years ago, a community was again on the threshold of a catastrophe. The community had abandoned worshiping One God and 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 Noah to guide them. Noah called them to believe 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 and 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 fifty years. When his people insisted on unbelief and persisted in their wrongdoings, God ordered him to build an ark. After completing the construction of the 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 Noah 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.

Sharing Noah's pudding is a symbolic representation of the unity and essential relationship of humans to one another and to their Creator. Preparing the Noah's pudding is a common practice among Muslim and Christian people around the Mediterranean.

People prepare the pudding at home and send a bowl to each of the neighbors in their neighborhood. As tradition goes the residents of forty houses to your east, west, north and south are considered neighbors. One has the responsibility of maintaining good relations with their neighbors regardless of what their religion or beliefs may be.

What are the ingredients?
There are various recipes, but the essential ingredients are: wheat, rice, sugar, nuts, dried fruit, beans, raisins and sesame seeds. All the ingredients are boiled together until they reach a thick porridge-like consistency. This dessert is served cold.

Recipe for Noah's Pudding (makes 30 servings)

Ingredients*:

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, cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Soak wheat, white beans, garbanzo beans and almonds in water overnight.
2. Boil the above ingredients, remove the outer shell or skin.
3. Soak the raisins in boiling water until they soften.
4. Put all the ingredients above (steps 1-3) in a large pot and boil. Add peanuts and almonds (peeled and cut in half) at this point.
5. Chop the apricot into small pieces, add to mixture along with sugar.
6. Boil for 10-15 minutes.
7. Enjoy your pudding!

*These are the ingredients we chose. Feel free to experiment with other grain, fruits and nuts. Pomegranate, sesame seeds and orange peel are recommended.