Favorite Passover recipes

"Erica" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a rule when I make seder dinner: other than the
soup (matzoh ball), NO MATZOH MEAL! I am just
philosophically opposed to it.

Even for the matzo balls you can do better than plain matzo
meal, at least. Try making it from whole wheat or spiced
matzo, powdering it in a blender, and put herbs (minced
carrot, onion, celery, etc., the dried stuff is great if you
can get it) in them. And make them twice as big as normal
increasing the recipe as required. None of those wimpy pale
golfballs for me.

Erica wrote in message
<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hey,

I haven't checked the group in a while, so I apologize if
someone did this thread recently. Either way, I wanted to
share two of my Passover standbys that I absolutely adore.

First, I always make Joan Nathan's gefilte fish pate. I'll
transcribe the recipe if anyone would like. I can't stand
the slimy poached fish balls

that

Quoted message said:

come in a jar, but hers is comprised of ground whitefish,
caramelized onions, shredded carrots, and some other
binders and spices. It is beaten

in

Quoted message said:

a standing mixer for 15 minutes, poured into a bundt pan,
and baked in a

pan

Quoted message said:

of water. Delicious with beet horseradish!

Also, my favorite Passover dessert is Elizabeth David's
Gateau au Chocolat et aux Amandes. I have a rule when I
make seder dinner: other than the soup (matzoh ball), NO
MATZOH MEAL! I am just philosophically opposed to it. Any
other time of year if you go to someone else's house for
dinner you get roast chicken, steamed asparagus, baked
potatoes, etc. But for some reason on Passover, people
panic and make awful things like, say, chicken breaded with
matzoh meal, matzoh cherry cobbler, and the like. Really
awful concoctions.

Finally, I found a dessert that is delicious without any
flour or leavener. I found a link to the recipe at
recipesource.comrec0989.htmlOpen ↗
. Basically, it is a dense, chocolatey cake that is almost
like a very refined brownie.

It's

Quoted message said:

stabilized by ground almonds and beaten egg whites, and
flavored with

brandy

Quoted message said:

and espresso. I like to sift powdered sugar over the top
and fresh strawberries for serving.

Does anyone else have any favorite Passover standbys?

i am not observant; however, my mother is. she is a
fantastic cook, and i always looked forward to pesach
because she would always find yummy things to try. none of
that matzah meal-coated stuff or facsimilies of desserts
(well, she would make angel-food cakes out of it. but ive
made them myself, with flour, and i prefer the ones she used
to make :> ) the two things i looked forward to the most
were: matzah brie (i make it myself sometimes now, at any
time of year. the only way i will eat grape jelly) and this
recipe from my dad's sister for matzah farfel "macaroni" and
cheese dish. it had sour cream and cream cheese and lots of
cheddar. ive never had an actual macaroni dish that compared
in its creamy cheesiness, and the matzah farfel gave it a
semi-crunchy texture that was yum. i was prepared to hate it
when she made it for the first time, thinking it would be
like all the crummy "faking it" pesach recipes i'd seen, but
it was very good. after she has her kitchen changed over
this year, im gonna have her copy over the recipe to me 🙂

it was the one time of year that she might make gefilte
fish, and those slimy pieces in the jars pale in comparison.
its almost enough to make a girl keep kosher 🙂

--
Saerah

TANSTAAFL

"Strange women lying in ponds distributing
swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive
power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some
farcical aquatic ceremony."

Erica said:

I found a link to the recipe at recipesource.c-recipesource.c-Open ↗
om/desserts/cakes/09/rec0989.html . Basically, it is a
dense, chocolatey cake that is almost like a very refined
brownie. It's stabilized by ground almonds and beaten egg
whites, and flavored with brandy and espresso. I like to
sift powdered sugar over the top and fresh strawberries
for serving.

Be careful with the powdered sugar. Most powdered sugar
contains about 1% cornstarch to prevent caking. Thus it is
kosher, but not for passover. Maybe you can find (U)P
powdered sugar at an enthic Jewish grocer, if there is
such a thing.

You can also make you own powdered sugar out of granulated
sugar using a blender.

Best regards, Bob

"Erica" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

<Snip>

Quoted message said:

Finally, I found a dessert that is delicious without any
flour or

leavener.

Quoted message said:

I found a link to the recipe at recipesource.c-recipesource.c-Open ↗
om/desserts/cakes/09/rec0989.html

. Basically, it

Quoted message said:

is a dense, chocolatey cake that is almost like a very
refined brownie.

It's

Quoted message said:

stabilized by ground almonds and beaten egg whites, and
flavored with

brandy

Quoted message said:

and espresso. I like to sift powdered sugar over the top
and fresh strawberries for serving.

Does anyone else have any favorite Passover standbys?

--Erica

I do find it interesting that beaten egg whites are
considered leaveners. Could someone explain this to one of
the Goyem?

Thanks

Dimitri

leavener; leavening agent [LEHV-uhn-er] Agents that are used
to lighten the texture and increase the volume of baked
goods such as breads, cakes and cookies. Baking powder,
baking soda and yeast are the most common leaveners used
today. When mixed with a liquid they form carbon dioxide gas
bubbles, which cause a batter or dough to rise during (and
sometimes before) the baking process. Some foods, such as
ANGEL FOOD CAKE and SPONGE CAKE, are leavened by the air
beaten into egg whites. When heated, the egg whites cook and
set, trapping the air inside and creating a light, airy
cake. © Copyright Barron's Educational Services, Inc. 1995
based on THE FOOD LOVER'S COMPANION, 2nd edition, by Sharon
Tyler Herbst

If you have Joan Nathan's "Jewish Holiday Kitchen," try
the recipe for Larry Bain's Bubbe's Haroset. IN addition
to apples, nuts and wine, it also has lots of citrus and
dried fruits.

I think I might try your idea of the gefilte fish pate,
maybe made with salmon. The goyim we invite to our
seder always shy away from the jarred gefilte fish my
MIL has served. Served with our home made horseradish,
who could say no?

"Erica" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hey,

I haven't checked the group in a while, so I apologize if
someone did this thread recently. Either way, I wanted to
share two of my Passover standbys that I absolutely adore.

First, I always make Joan Nathan's gefilte fish pate. I'll
transcribe the recipe if anyone would like. I can't stand
the slimy poached fish balls

that

Quoted message said:

come in a jar, but hers is comprised of ground whitefish,
caramelized onions, shredded carrots, and some other
binders and spices. It is beaten

in

Quoted message said:

a standing mixer for 15 minutes, poured into a bundt pan,
and baked in a

pan

Quoted message said:

of water. Delicious with beet horseradish!

Also, my favorite Passover dessert is Elizabeth David's
Gateau au Chocolat et aux Amandes. I have a rule when I
make seder dinner: other than the

soup

Quoted message said:

(matzoh ball), NO MATZOH MEAL! I am just philosophically
opposed to it.

Any

Quoted message said:

other time of year if you go to someone else's house for
dinner you get roast chicken, steamed asparagus, baked
potatoes, etc. But for some reason on Passover, people
panic and make awful things like, say, chicken breaded
with matzoh meal, matzoh cherry cobbler, and the like.
Really awful concoctions.

Finally, I found a dessert that is delicious without any
flour or

leavener.

Quoted message said:

I found a link to the recipe at recipesource.c-recipesource.c-Open ↗
om/desserts/cakes/09/rec0989.html . Basically, it is a
dense, chocolatey cake that is almost like a very refined
brownie.

It's

Quoted message said:

stabilized by ground almonds and beaten egg whites, and
flavored with

brandy

Quoted message said:

and espresso. I like to sift powdered sugar over the top
and fresh strawberries for serving.

Does anyone else have any favorite Passover standbys?

--Erica

Erica said:

First, I always make Joan Nathan's gefilte fish pate.
I'll transcribe the recipe if anyone would like.

Please post it! I love gefilte fish done grandma style, but
I've never thought about it as a pate - Hmmmm, that's a very
interesting concept! What do you serve to spread it on?

Practice safe eating - always use condiments

Dan Levy wrote in message ...

Quoted message said:

"Erica" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a rule when I make seder dinner: other than the
soup (matzoh ball), NO MATZOH MEAL! I am just
philosophically opposed to it.

Even for the matzo balls you can do better than plain
matzo meal, at least. Try making it from whole wheat or
spiced matzo, powdering it in a blender, and put herbs
(minced carrot, onion, celery, etc., the dried stuff is
great if you can get it) in them. And make them twice as
big as normal

increasing

Quoted message said:

the recipe as required. None of those wimpy pale
golfballs for me.

the only problem is that often, those "specialty" matzahs
are not kosher for pesach.

--
Saerah

TANSTAAFL

"Strange women lying in ponds distributing
swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive
power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some
farcical aquatic ceremony."

"Dan Levy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

"Erica" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:2ce7-
[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a rule when I make seder dinner: other than the
soup (matzoh ball), NO MATZOH MEAL! I am just
philosophically opposed to it.

Even for the matzo balls you can do better than plain
matzo meal, at least. Try making it from whole wheat or
spiced matzo, powdering it in a blender, and put herbs
(minced carrot, onion, celery, etc., the dried stuff is
great if you can get it) in them. And make them twice as
big as normal increasing the recipe as required. None of
those wimpy pale golfballs for me.

First of all, whole wheat matzo meal is not usually Kosher
for Passover. Neither is the spiced matzo.

Second of all, Matzo balls, especially for Passover, should
NOT be messed with. They are to be made EXACTLY the way your
Mom and/or your Grandmothers made them!

Matzo balls are not gourmet food and I'm sick of people
trying to add gourmet twists to them. They are the humblest
of peasant food, born of poverty and trying to make do with
what you had, within the confines of the food laws of your
faith. Some traditions are sacred. Eating matzo balls made
exactly as your ancestors made them, floating in a bowl of
homemade chicken soup, is one of them. It reminds you that
no matter how fancy your tastes have become, how
sophisticated you are, there are some simple things that are
fine just as they are.

Same thing with latkes. They are NOT gourmet food, stop
trying to fancy them up! Potato latkes need only 7
ingredients: Potatoes, Onions, matzo meal, salt and pepper,
eggs and oil of course to fry them in.

Erica - where are you getting kosher l'pesach powdered sugar
without cornstarch in it? Lynn from Fargo

Dimitri said:

I do find it interesting that beaten egg whites are
considered leaveners. Could someone explain this to one of
the Goyem?

Sounds like the Goyim are explaining it to us as per the
below so what is to explain to them?

regards, Ben

Quoted message said:

leavener; leavening agent [LEHV-uhn-er]

<snip>

Quoted message said:

during (and sometimes before) the baking process. Some
foods, such as ANGEL FOOD CAKE and SPONGE CAKE, are
leavened by the air beaten into egg whites. When heated,
the egg whites cook and set, trapping the air inside and
creating a light, airy cake. © Copyright Barron's
Educational Services, Inc. 1995 based on THE FOOD LOVER'S
COMPANION, 2nd edition, by Sharon Tyler Herbst

--
"What passes for wisdom may only be eloquent foolishness"

Cheap long distance calling using Onesuite
(onesuite.comonesuite.comOpen ↗).
2.5 cents/min anywhere in the U.S., to Canada or the U.K. No
monthly or connection fees! Use promotional code 038664643
for 20 free minutes.

"zxcvbob" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Erica wrote:

Maybe you can find (U)P powdered sugar at an enthic Jewish
grocer, if there is such a thing.

Ah, you are all missing a key piece of info: the seder is on
Long Island 🙂 Easy to find Jewish grocers and kosher
l'pesach stuff...

--Erica

"Cassandra" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:JWp6c.36199$J05.228155@attbi_s01...

Quoted message said:

If you have Joan Nathan's "Jewish Holiday Kitchen," try
the recipe for

Larry

Quoted message said:

Bain's Bubbe's Haroset. IN addition to apples, nuts and
wine, it also has lots of citrus and dried fruits.

I always make her Sephardic haroseth balls, made from ground
dates, walnuts, and some other yummy stuff. It might be
similar to what you are referring to, only there are no
apples or citrus.

Quoted message said:

I think I might try your idea of the gefilte fish pate,
maybe made with salmon. The goyim we invite to our seder
always shy away from the jarred gefilte fish my MIL has
served. Served with our home made horseradish,

who

Quoted message said:

could say no?

I know of someone who made it with a combination of salmon
and halibut, and she said it was delicious.

--Erica

Sheryl said:

Second of all, Matzo balls, especially for Passover,
should NOT be messed with. They are to be made EXACTLY the
way your Mom and/or your Grandmothers made them!

Matzo balls are not gourmet food and I'm sick of people
trying to add gourmet twists to them. They are the
humblest of peasant food, born of poverty and trying to
make do with what you had, within the confines of the food
laws of your faith. Some traditions are sacred. Eating

I wouldn't (necessarily) mess with them either but I
wouldn't call them the "humblest of peasant food etc."
especially when made with shemura matza meal. In fact when
you add something like egg to a matza recipe it is called
"matza ashira" as opposed to "lechem oni" - i.e. rich mans
bread vs. poor mans bread. Tradition or minhag is an
excellent reason to stick with what you have, but I wouldn't
go so far as to say it is traditionally humble (in this
instance).

Quoted message said:

matzo balls made exactly as your ancestors made them,
floating in a bowl of homemade chicken soup, is one of
them. It reminds you that no matter how fancy your tastes
have become, how sophisticated you are, there are some
simple things that are fine just as they are.

Same thing with latkes. They are NOT gourmet food, stop
trying to fancy them up! Potato latkes need only 7
ingredients: Potatoes, Onions, matzo meal, salt and
pepper, eggs and oil of course to fry them in.

This is a nice personal reason for sticking with what you
have. There is no reason why someone couldn't experiment
with the basic recipe though. As long as it is a latke then
it is chanuka food. As long as it isn't chometz it is pesach
food. How would there be differences in basic recipes
between say sfardim and ashkenazim if it weren't for small
inovations that crept into recipes anyway?

regards, Ben

--
"What passes for wisdom may only be eloquent foolishness"

Cheap long distance calling using Onesuite
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for 20 free minutes.

"Sheryl" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Same thing with latkes. They are NOT gourmet food, stop
trying to fancy them up! Potato latkes need only 7
ingredients: Potatoes, Onions, matzo meal, salt and
pepper, eggs and oil of course to fry them in.

I love plain latkes, but I made them one night this year
topped with sour cream and salmon roe...yum!

Lynn Gifford said:

Erica - where are you getting kosher l'pesach powdered
sugar without cornstarch in it?

For Passover I grind mine in a morter and pestle.

--
Reg email: RegForte (at) (that free MS email service) (dot)
com

"Sheryl" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Matzo balls are not gourmet food and I'm sick of people
trying to add gourmet twists to them. They are the
humblest of peasant food,

Yeah, and the white flour matzos of today aren't what the
peasants ate... just because it's not easy to get kosher for
passover whole wheat matzos today is no reason to pooh pooh
the idea as inauthentic.

ben said:

matza meal. In fact when you add something like egg to a
matza recipe it is called "matza ashira" as opposed to
"lechem oni" - i.e. rich mans

I meant to say to the recipe that makes matzos.

regards, Ben

--
"What passes for wisdom may only be eloquent foolishness"

Cheap long distance calling using Onesuite
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for 20 free minutes.

in article [email hidden], ben at [email hidden]
wrote on 3/18/04 3:07 PM:

Quoted message said:

This is a nice personal reason for sticking with what you
have. There is no reason why someone couldn't experiment
with the basic recipe though. As long as it is a latke
then it is chanuka food. As long as it isn't chometz it is
pesach food. How would there be differences in basic
recipes between say sfardim and ashkenazim if it weren't
for small inovations that crept into recipes anyway?

regards, Ben

Hence, my stipulation that matzo balls be made "exactly as
your mother or grandmother made them". That is giving leeway
to small innovations, as you say, between cultures, yet
still keeping with family traditions.

There are as many recipes for tsimmes, for example, as there
are people who make it.

Experimentation is fine, if it truly makes a better end
result. But don't try to gourmet up the recipe for the sake
of making it fancy, when simple is perfect just the way it
is, and how it was meant to be.

"Dan Levy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Sheryl" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Matzo balls are not gourmet food and I'm sick of people
trying to add gourmet twists to them. They are the
humblest of peasant food,

Yeah, and the white flour matzos of today aren't what the
peasants ate... just because it's not easy to get kosher
for passover whole wheat matzos today is no reason to pooh
pooh the idea as inauthentic.

Oh, and the peasants didn't have Manischewitz matzo meal
either :-)