Sailors’ Bread Salad

Basema Abu Daff and her son Sami Zaharna, Gazans living in the United States, explain that sailors (milaaha) would make this salad when they didn’t have much on hand except hard bread. “They would mix it with tahina and anything else in season, such as tomatoes, cucumbers, or basil. Ya salaam!” explained Sami, an engineer, part-time imam, and self-described “fatt malaahi evangelist.” Basema showed Laila