I think I can get in one more Passover recipe to share with you, this week. As you know, Gnocchi is probably my favorite pasta – the one I judge all Italian restaurants, and even cookbooks, by. So, when Amy of Ess Eppis (Yiddish for Eat Something) piped up on Twitter that she’d found a kosher for Passover gnocchi recipe, I had to give it a try.

Amy found the original recipe here, where it was originally posted in 2009.  And since Amy posted it in 2010, I thought it was time to share it with you, with my own tweaks. As Mimi said in her post that she couldn’t recall where she’d found the recipe originally, I’m going to post my version of it here, in full.  If anyone recognizes it as theirs, please feel free to pipe up!

Actually, my only quibble with the original recipe is that it specifies “medium potatoes”. Potatoes come in a number of varieties and sizes, and I frankly don’t know what a “medium” potato is. No, I don’t think I’m being dense, because, while a “medium onion” is a more forgiving measurement in, say, a sauce or a soup or a stew, when the size of the potato (or avocado, etc.) could significantly affect the texture when combined with the other ingredients, I do feel it necessary sometimes to get more specific.

I’m also not that wild about the method of boiling potatoes unpeeled, then peeling them hot. Which is heresy, I think, to the purist. I think it’s messy and uncomfortable, and just annoys me.  So, I peeled my potatoes and boiled them whole.  The recipe also didn’t indicate what kind of potatoes to use.  Gnocchi traditionally calls for a more mealy potato, such as a Russet, but I was out of those, and used reds.  The reds yielded a very silky end product, but if you like a more substantial gnocchi, definitely go with the Russets.

Passover Gnocchi  (makes approximately 120-130 pieces)

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ lbs of potatoes (russets, reds, or golds)
• 2/3 cup matzo cake meal
• 1 cup potato starch
• 2 egg
• 2 tsp salt
• ¼ – ½ tsp. pepper
• 2 Tbs olive oil

Preparation:

Peel the potatoes and boil them whole in salted water until fork-tender, about 20-30 minutes. Start poking them with a fork at around 20 minutes, to check.

Drain the potatoes and, keeping them in their cooking pot, shake them over a low flame till they are very dry, just a minute or two.  Mash well with a potato masher, while still hot.

Turn the potatoes out onto the counter or a large cutting board (or even a very large mixing bowl), add the dry ingredients, and make a well in the center.  Add the eggs, salt, pepper, and olive oil to the well.

Start mixing from the inside, out, drawing more of the potato, cake meal, and potato starch in and then mixing and kneading with your hands, until you have a smooth, silky dough. Don’t add any additional meal or starch – it will take a few minutes, but it will come together.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator, cut the dough into 4 or more pieces, and on a flat surface well dusted with potato starch, roll each piece out into a snake about 3/4 of an inch thick.  If you have small counter space for the purpose, feel free to just tear off pieces of dough that you’re more comfortable with.  Using a fork, cut the rope into pieces about 1/2 inch long, and roll them along the tines of the fork to kind of round them off and imprint them with those lovely grooves.  I got a little better at it, than I did the last time.   The process moves pretty quickly, after you get past the first few.

Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water, in batches, if necessary. When they rise to the top, allow them to cook for an additional one minute. I mean it: One minute, only. Do not overcook!  Scoop them out with a slotted spoon or spider, and if not dressing right away, toss with a few drops of olive oil, to prevent sticking.

Please note that, in the end, I doubled this recipe from the original. Who knew? I was weighing potatoes and perfected it by feel. Half of this fed the two of us, but we didn’t have anything else for supper, except small green salads.  Be assured, that you can wrap any remaining dough in plastic wrap and drop it into a freezer bag and freeze the remainder for future use.

I like a pink sauce on my gnocchi, so I made a batch of my Quickie Pasta Sauce and added 1/4 cup of cream at the end.  I like the sauce kind of chunky, but you can hit it with a stick blender at the end, if you prefer yours smooth.  You can also garnish with some shaved Parmesan, which I didn’t do here.

Verdict? This was some of the best gnocchi ever. Really. Even the husband said that, not only is this the best gnocchi I’ve ever made, he thinks I should make it this way all the time, not just at Passover!  So, if you’re jonesing for some pasta right about now, make this. You’ll feel guilty – I promise!

Congratulations! You’ve gotten past the Passover Seder meal(s) and lived to tell the tale. The pressure’s off and it’s just you and your nuclear family. But it’s only Day 2 of the 8-day holiday and you’ve still gotta eat. Time to start thinking of some more casual meals, and maybe using up those leftover matzo balls.

If the kids are back in school and you’re back to work, you’ve probably prepared a couple of batches of these Passover Rolls for your lunches. You might remember that I adapted that recipe from a 1960′s Manischewitz recipe folder that they used to give out around the holiday. One of those folders included a recipe for a meatball “stew” which used your leftover matzo balls and included a can of their Tomato Mushroom sauce. Well, if your grocery store is anything like mine, if you can find the product at all, the price has gone right through the roof (yeah, they know they’ve got you!).

I make my version of this Meatball/Matzo Ball Stew every year, but lost the actual recipe quite a long time ago, and stopped using the commercial tomato mushroom sauce even longer ago than that. You know what? You don’t need it. No leftover matzo balls? Well, if you don’t want to make a fresh batch, just cut up a couple of potatoes. It’s all good.

Passover Meatball Matzo Ball Stew
(serves 4-6)

For the Meatballs:

1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 cup matzo meal
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbs. ketchup
1 Tbs. vegetable or peanut oil

Combine everything, except the oil, in a medium bowl until well-mixed.

Heat the oil in a large (about 6 quart) pot over medium-high heat. Form the meat mixture into balls about the size of a golf ball and brown in the oil gently, turning occasionally.

For the Sauce:

1 medium onion, peeled & coarsely chopped
3-4 carrots, scraped & sliced into 1/2″ – 1″ pieces
2 ribs celery, sliced into 1/2″ pieces
1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
Water
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
Salt & Pepper

Matzo balls or 2 – 3 medium potatoes, cut into roughly 1″ pieces

Add the vegetables to the pot with the meatballs, lower heat to medium and stir occasionally, cooking until the onions are soft and translucent.

Add the diced tomatoes, fill the empty can with water and add that to the pot, as well. Season with the garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste, and stir to combine well.

Add the matzo balls or potatoes, and bring to a boil. If your matzo balls are very large, cut them in half or quarters.

Cover the pot tightly and simmer for about 30 minutes. Uncover, stir, and simmer uncovered for about another 10 minutes to reduce the liquid.

This is one of my favorite Passover dishes, and like all stews, it tastes even better the next day!

Wait. How did it get to be December, already? Here I am, going about my business searching for new ways to dispose of leftover Thanksgiving turkey, and there it is on my calendar: Latke Week! Potato pancakes, that is. Chanukah came early this year, time to light colorful little candles and to commemorate the miracle of a little bottle of oil lasting eight days, by feasting on fried foods. Yum! I thought I’d kick things off with my favorite of them all: Potato Latkes.

Traditional Potato Latkes (Potato Pancakes)
(Makes about 12 4″ pancakes, depending on size)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. white potatoes
1 small onion (about 3 oz.)
1 large egg
1/3 cup matzo meal
2 tsp. kosher salt

Canola or peanut oil for frying

Preparation:

Grate the potatoes and onion together, either in a food processor or with a box grater. Drain off any water and place in a medium glass bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and stir by hand, using a sturdy wooden spoon.

Pour about 1/4 inch of oil into a large frying pan and heat it on high, till a couple of drops of water in the oil, pop. And I mean only a couple of drops! Otherwise, you’ll start your own Fourth of July sound effects going. Seriously.

Now, choose your size of pancake: For a larger latke, scoop up 1/4 cup of the potato mixture, and place it in the hot oil. Using your wooden spoon or a spatula, flatten out the mound to about 1/4″ thickness. If you want a smaller pancake, use 2 Tbs. of the potato mixture and flatten.

Fry each latke for about 3 minutes on each side, or until crispy and golden brown, and remove to a plate lined with paper towels. If you’re making a lot of latkes, you may have to add more oil to the pan. It shouldn’t take long for it to come back up to temperature.

Serve immediately with apple sauce, sour cream, or as we did when we were kids – a light sprinkling of sugar.

Notes:

My ninety-year old mother, bless her, still uses the fine side of a box grater to grate everything by hand. The potatoes seem to release less water that way. I gave that up years ago, though, using the shredding disc on my food processor and simply draining off the excess liquid before adding the other ingredients.

Use a glass or plastic bowl to mix the latke batter. A metal bowl will instantly make the potatoes start oxidizing and turn pink. It won’t hurt the latkes any, but they won’t be white inside. They’ll be pink. Or beige.

This recipe is easily doubled, or even tripled, if you’re cooking them up for a larger gathering. To keep the latkes hot and crispy, set your oven to 200º F, line a large baking sheet with newspaper and put one of your baking racks on top of that. After draining off each batch of latkes, put them on the rack and place the whole pan in the warm oven. They’ll keep in there for a couple of hours.

You can also make these ahead! Just cook as described, and when the cooked pancakes are completely cool, just put them in an airtight container or freezer bag(s) and chuck ‘em in the freezer. To serve, heat your oven to 350º F and lay out the latkes on a baking sheet. Heat for about 15 minutes, or until hot all the way through.

By the way, I just learned a new fact about Chanukah today, by way of an e-mail I received from Jason at BlogCatalog.com. Did you know that there are 16 accepted spellings of Hanukkah in the English language? Hanukkah, Chanukah, Hanukah, Hannukah, Chanuka, Chanukkah, Channukah, Chanukka, Hanukka, Hannuka,Hannukkah, Channuka, Xanuka, Hannukka, Channukka, and Chanuqa. There is, however, only one in Hebrew:

However you spell it, Happy Chanukah! Or Hanukkah!

I love Rugelach. A soft, but crispy, pastry rolled up with a sweet filling and sliced into 2-bite pieces, to me, they’re the ultimate holiday cookies, no matter which holiday you feel like celebrating. While they’re considered a “Jewish” cookie, rugelach are a tasty addition to any cookie platter. That’s why I’ve chosen them for this installment of the 12 Weeks of Holiday (Christmas) Cookies.

One of the best things about rugelach is that you can fill them with virtually anything you like, making them really personal to you. I’ve added some flax seed meal to the dough, as I do with many of my cake and bread doughs, to give it a bit of a healthy boost.

I’m also including a “traditional” filling here, but don’t be limited by that! I filled the cookies you see here with some of my homemade Peach Vanilla Marmalade, sprinkled with finely chopped pecans. You can spread the dough with a thin layer of your favorite jam and/or nuts of choice, or even mini chocolate chips. The only limit is your imagination!

This is also a great make-ahead cookie. They’ll keep for more than a week in a sealed container on your counter and for several months in the freezer.

Rugelach

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup flax seed meal
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, cold & cut into small pieces
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, cold & cut into small pieces
1/3 cup sour cream

Preparation:

Put all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse till the dough comes together in a crumbly mass. Divide the dough into 4 roughly equal pieces. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and press into a rectangle. Refrigerate the dough for a minimum of 2 hours and up to 2 days.

“Traditional Filling”

1/2 cup white sugar
1 Tbs. ground cinnamon
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup raisins

Combine all filling ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Assembly:

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Take one of the dough packets out of the refrigerator at a time. On a well-floured surface, roll the pastry out into a 1/8″ thick rectangle (roughly 8″ x 12″, but don’t sweat it). Spread 1/4 of the filling mixture evenly across the surface of the dough, leaving about 1/2″ of clear space around the edges.

Roll the filled dough up, jelly-roll style, long-ways. Turning the roll seam-down, cut the roll into pieces about 1-1/2″ wide and place the pieces on a greased cookie sheet, also seam-side-down. Repeat with the other pieces of dough.

Refrigerate the cookies for 20 minutes before baking. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until the cookies are lightly browned.

Notes:

* If using a “wet” filling, such as jam, do make sure your cookies sheet is well-greased. Alternatively, you can also use non-stick foil or a silicone liner to line the pan.

* I don’t know about you, but I never get a nice even rectangle when rolling out my dough. If you don’t either, take a bench scraper or a knife and square off your rectangle to get nice, straight edges. By the time you’re done trimming, you’ll have a rectangle that’s probably smaller than the measurements above. Just put the scraps in a plastic bag and put them in the fridge. When re-chilled, the scraps can be re-rolled to make more rugelach!

* I didn’t write down a “yield” number because your results, as they say, may vary. I got 33 cookies out of my last batch.

It should be FALL, right? Even in Miami, it should be fall. It should be more like 80º, not 90º, but it isn’t. So to give Mother Nature a hint, I decided to bake Tamarin Cinnamon Apple Sticky Rolls. Tonight is also the beginning of another 7-day Jewish holiday, Sukkot. Since my mother is making a meat-based dinner, I decided to make these sticky rolls non-dairy.

Tamarin Spread (no, not tamarind-the-fruit) is named for a small monkey in the Brazilian rainforests, and is a creamy, slightly cinnamon-y concoction that’s making it’s way here from Belgium, where it’s known as speculoos (or spekuloos). Kind of. And it evolved from a Christmas wafer cookie. I’m still not sure how that happened. But now, it’s a smooth spread that’s lighter than peanut butter, and ever so flavorful. I won a jar of Tamarin Spread at Elle’s New England Kitchen about a month or so ago, under the condition that I develop a recipe using it. I’ve owed Elle this post for, oh, about 3 weeks now, and there’s no time like the present!

The Jewish holiday Sukkot (or Succos), translates as “Feast of Tabernacles”, and commemorates the Jewish people’s 40 years of wandering in the desert between being released from bondage in Egypt to finally being permitted to enter Israel, their new permanent home. We are supposed to build a kind of impermanent dwelling outdoors, with a roof made of branches or palm leaves (depending on what’s available in your area), so you can still see the sky through it, and eat all of our meals during the next week there.

Sukkot is also a harvest holiday, akin to Thanksgiving, and fruit and/or nuts in some form is usually on the table. Tying all three events together is a piece of cake (no pun intended – sort of ) with this version of sticky rolls, spread first with a layer of Tamarin Spread, and then with a buttery chunky layer of apples cooked with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Tamarin Cinnamon Apple Sticky Rolls

For the Dough:

1 envelope (or 2-1/4 tsp.) yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm soy milk
1/4 cup natural cane sugar
4 Tbs. Smart Balance Light spread
2 eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract

I mix this with my stand mixer, fitted with the dough hook, but you can certainly mix it by hand if you care to.

Preheat the oven to 350º F.

Put the yeast in a large bowl and pour the warm (between 110º-120ºF) soy milk over the yeast. With the mixer running on low speed, add the sugar, Smart Balance, and eggs. Start adding the flour, one cup at a time, followed by the salt and vanilla, and mix until a soft, cohesive dough is formed. The dough should not be sticky, but feel smooth and silky. This should take about 5-7 minutes.

With either a bit of oil or non-stick cooking spray, grease the bowl and form the dough into a smooth ball. Put the dough ball into the bowl, turning it over a bit, so the surface is completely oiled. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, and put it in a warm, draft-free spot to rise. Allow to rise till nearly doubled, about an hour.

For the Filling:

6 Tbs. Smart Balance Light spread
6 Tbs. organic brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1-1/2 cups apples (peeled, cored, and chopped in roughly 1/4″ dice)

1/2 cup Tamarin Spread

Melt the Smart Balance in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon, stir to combine, and heat till bubbly. Add the chopped apples, toss to coat, and reduce the heat to medium. Allow to cook for about 15 minutes, or until the sauce thickens and makes “strings” when you lift your spoon out of it. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool.

To Assemble:

Grease a 9″ x 15″ baking pan and set aside.

Roll the dough out to a 15″ x 10″ rectangle. Spread the Tamarin Spread evenly over the surface of the dough, to within about 1/2″ from the edges.

Spread the apple-brown sugar mixture evenly over the Tamarin layer. With the long side facing you, carefully roll the dough over the filling mixture, jelly-roll style. Slice the roll into 12 (relatively) even slices and place in the prepared pan, touching each other. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, and put it in your warm, draft-free spot. Allow to rise for another 30 minutes.

Remove the plastic wrap and bake for 25 – 30 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before serving.

*Notes:

Can you make these babies with dairy milk and butter? Hell, yeah! As I may have mentioned before, I keep a kosher kitchen and so does my mom. If she were making a dairy or neutral meal, I would have used milk and butter in a heartbeat. Using the soy milk and Smart Balance Light has the dual benefit of making this non-dairy and vegetarian. Can you make this recipe without the Tamarin Spread? Of course. The filling just won’t have that subtle creaminess.

*Disclosures: I won a jar of Tamarin Spread in a giveaway on the Elle’s New England Kitchen blog. Everyone entering the giveaway did so with the proviso that if they won, they would commit to creating a recipe using the product. I have received no other consideration, nor have I received any consideration in any form for the use of Smart Balance Light. I buy it and use it because it is non-hydrogenated, non-dairy, vegan, and for its specific stated healthy properties. I recommend it on those grounds for anyone needing a butter or margarine substitute. That’s my opinion.

I traditionally like to make a brisket – pan seared and oven roasted with onions, carrots, and potatoes – on Erev Yom Kippur (Yom Kippur Eve). Of course, I like to make brisket every so often during the year – holiday or no – but especially for those of us observing the fast on Yom Kippur (the Jewish Day of Atonement) this Saturday, a hearty meal will be required so we’ll be able to stay vertical from sunset on Friday until three stars are observed in the sky on Saturday night. Best of all, it practically cooks itself!

Oven-Roasted Brisket
(serves 4-6)

Ingredients:

1 3lb. brisket
2 large cloves garlic
Kosher salt
2 – 3 Tbs. olive or canola oil
Ground black pepper
4-6 carrots, peeled and cut into thirds across
5-6 medium potatoes (reds or golds are best), washed & cut into quarters
1 medium onion, peeled and cut into quarters
1 cup strong black coffee
1/2 cup water

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375º F. Rinse the brisket under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.

Peel the garlic and cut into slivers. With a sharp paring knife, cut deep slits all over the brisket and stuff a garlic sliver into each slit. Sprinkle that side of the meat with a little kosher salt.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan (large enough to hold the meat and vegetables, and able to withstand oven temperatures of at least 375º) or a roaster on top of the stove over high heat. If using a roaster, you’ll probably need to use 2 burners.

Place the brisket, salted side down, into the pan and sprinkle additional kosher salt and a little ground black pepper on the raw side. Turn it over when browned a deep mahogany color, and brown the other side. Remove from the heat.

Arrange the vegetables around the meat, add the coffee and water, and season the vegetables with a little additional salt and pepper. Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid, or if you don’t have a lid, use a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil, crimping the edges tightly.

Put the pan in the oven and cook for at least 2 hours, or when it’s fork-tender. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing thinly across the grain.

*Hint: Cook this the day or night before you want to eat it, and refrigerate it when done and cooled. The brisket is sliced much easier when it’s cold. You can then lay the slices in the pan in its own jus, cover and heat at 350º till heated through.

I find that coffee brings out the “beefiness” in beef, but no, it doesn’t taste like coffee!

The PhotoHunt theme this week is “Sweet”

I can’t think of anything much sweeter than the Macaroons I baked for Passover. Okay, there’s a sweet little giveaway for my U.S. and Canadian readers at the end of this post, too!

These wonderfully chewy almond and coconut drop cookies are so easy to make and keep so well, you should make them all year-round!

Chocolate Macaroons

Ingredients:

1 2/3 cups blanched almonds (about 8 oz)
3 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
7 oz. sweetened, shredded coconut
3 1/2 Tbs. cocoa powder

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350º F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Grind the almonds in a food processor and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Alternately fold in the sugar and ground
almonds, then gently fold in the chocolate and coconut.

Drop from a teaspoon onto the lined cookie sheets, spacing them 1/2” apart. Bake for 20
minutes. Allow to cool completely before eating or storing.

Notes:

Don’t like chocolate? Really? Okay, then simply omit the cocoa powder.

I scooped these out using a small ice cream scoop, but you can use a spoon for a more free-form shape, or if you want to get fancier, load the dough into a piping bag and use a large star tip.

I mean it when I say “Allow to cool completely.” Once cooled, they firm up nicely, giving a great crunchy texture outside and firm, chewy inside. They keep super-well in a zip-top plastic bag.

The Giveaway!

A few weeks ago, I was approached by the people at Skin M.D. Natural, asking if I’d like to try out their “Shielding Lotion” for review. With all the cooking and baking and cleaning and yard work – not to mention washing my hands a zillion times a day at work AND all the antibacterial gel to try and keep that nasty flu bug away – I was definitely ready to try something other than the usual hand lotions. So, I said “Sure, why not?”

A few days later I got a package in the mail containing a full-sized 4 oz. bottle of Skin M.D. Natural Skin Shielding Lotion, plus three little purse/pocket sized packets: two of the Shielding Lotion, and one of their Shielding Lotion + SPF 15.

I’m not easily impressed, but I have to admit that I really do like this stuff. It’s light, not at all greasy, and quickly absorbed into the skin without leaving that filmy “something’s on my skin” sensation. I’ve seen a definite improvement in the skin on my hands and those rough patches on my elbows seem to have pretty much disappeared.

Guys, you can use this too – it’s hypoallergenic, fragrance, colorant and paraben-free and dermatology tested. Even those with the most sensitive skin types can use it.

Also – and this is a biggie for me – it contains no animal products, nor is it tested on animals! So I can use it in my kosher kitchen, and even you vegetarians and flexitarians out there can use it with confidence.

I’m not going to get into all the whys and wherefores of how it works – go to Skin M.D. Natural’s website and check it out for yourself. Then come back here and leave a comment about something you learned, or some aspect of how you think this pretty cool shielding lotion could help you out.

What’s in it for you, you ask? Well, I agreed to review this product on one condition: That I can give some to one of you guys, too! Skin M.D. Natural agreed to give one of you the same exact package they sent me: One full-sized 4 oz. bottle of Shielding Lotion, plus 3 sample-sized packets, including one with SPF 15. And those sample packets go a long way, too. Each one contains enough product for 3-5 uses – I guess depending on how big your hands are. )

Here’s how you enter:

The one must, is that you go to Skin M.D. Natural’s website and check it out. Come back & tell me about it.

For additional entries, follow me on Twitter, become a Fan on Facebook, follow me on Google Friend Connect (in the sidebar), and/or follow me on Networked Blogs (also in the sidebar). Each one of those things gets you an additional entry! If you already do one or more of those things, just leave additional comments letting me know.

You can also Tweet or Re-Tweet about this contest on Twitter. Come back and leave another comment with the URL of your tweet (Just click on the time stamp under your tweet and it will open a page with just that tweet. The URL will be in the address window of the page.)

So that’s six ways you can enter! And please do enter – I’m really eager to share this with you and find out what your results are! Deadline for entering is Thursday, April 15th. I’ll submit the number of entries to Random.org and will announce the winner on Friday, April 16th! Unfortunately, only U.S. and Canadian residents are eligible.

Disclosure: I have not been compensated in any way for writing about this product, other than to have received the above-mentioned, at no charge, to test and review. I have not been directed what to write, other than to give my honest opinion. Which I have done. So there.

Continuing yesterday’s discussion, I said that we’re not permitted to eat any yeast-raised breads during Passover. But we all still have to go to work and the kids have to go to school, so what are we supposed to do about lunch?

I remember, as a kid, having to go to school with sandwiches made out of a couple of pieces of matzo with some of last night’s leftovers in between. You ever try to eat a slice of meatloaf sandwiched in matzo? Not a pretty picture. Not to mention, messy.

Manischewitz, the kosher foods company, used to put out a collection of Passover recipes every year. You’d get this big, fold-out flyer containing a list of recipes and suggested menus, for free with your Passover foods order from your local grocery store. My mom collected those things religiously every year. In fact, I think she still has the originals.

One year, appeared a recipe for Passover Rolls. They were made with matzo meal and eggs, and the answer to every Jewish kid’s lunchbox prayers! I still make them every year, but now that whole wheat matzo meal has become available, I use it half-and-half with regular matzo meal, trying to offset a little bit all that fat from the eggs and oil. Still, for the one week, a darned acceptable substitute for bread.

Passover Rolls (adapted from a 1960′s Manischewitz recipe)

Ingredients:

1 cup matzo meal
1 cup whole wheat matzo meal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white sugar
1 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs

Method:

Preheat oven to 375º F (190º C). Lightly grease a cookie sheet or line with a silicone baking mat.

In a large mixing bowl, combine matzo meal, salt, and sugar. Mix well.

Bring water and oil to a boil. Pour the boiling water over the matzo meal mixture, and stir until blended. Beat one egg at a time into the mixture. Let stand 15 minutes.

Shape the dough into rolls with oiled hands. Arrange rolls on the prepared cookie sheet.

Bake for about 50 minutes, or until golden brown and delicious.

Notes:

I’m not mentioning yield here, because you can make these into any size or shape you please, from dinner roll size to hamburger roll size. The baking time indicated is for roughly in between, but is a good guide. Adjust accordingly.

As with all breads, they’re done when they sound hollow when you tap the bottoms with your fingers.

Print this post for your Moleskine journal!

Passover starts tomorrow (Monday) night, beginning a week of probably the most food-centric holiday on the Jewish calendar.

To mark the passing of our ancestors from bondage to freedom, and the haste in which that was accomplished (read your Exodus, people… No, the Bible, not the Leon Uris novel!), we are prohibited from eating anything leavened. No yeast breads, no cakes or cookies with baking powder in them. In fact, we can’t even use flour that hasn’t been strictly supervised in its milling and processing by trained rabbis, to make certain that it hasn’t come into contact with anything that might have inadvertently begun the rising process. So, no flour.

While our kosher food companies have worked diligently over the years to provide us with acceptable options and alternatives, there’s no getting around one thing: If you’re going to get through Passover, you’re going to break a lot of eggs. Literally. Eggs are the primary source of the lightness and rise of just about every baked good we prepare this coming week, so don’t schedule a cholesterol screening till, oh, I don’t know, maybe the end of April!

Did I say Passover is a food-centric holiday? Maybe I should have said, egg-centric. (Get it? Fine. Never mind, then.) I’ve warned you – so don’t flip out when you see all the eggs in anything I post over this coming week!

Let’s begin with the iconic Sponge Cake. There’s nothing like a slice of light and fluffy Sponge Cake, torn into hunks and dipped into your glass of sweet Passover wine, to finish off a big meal, like a Passover Seder! This recipe is my annual go-to, and I’ll give you a couple of notes at the end.

Passover Sponge Cake

Ingredients:

9 eggs (at room temperature & separated)

1 1/2 cups sugar (divided)

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup matzo cake meal

1/2 cup potato starch

Method:

Preheat oven to 325º F. Prepare a tube pan by greasing and “flouring” with some of the cake meal. Alternatively, if your pan has a flat bottom, line the bottom with a piece of parchment paper, cut to fit.

In a large bowl, at increasingly high speed with an electric mixer, beat the egg whites till soft peaks form. Add 3/4 cup of the sugar and salt, and continue beating until very stiff peaks form.

In another large bowl, beat the egg yolks with the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar, until thickened and lemon-colored. Beat in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Fold into the egg whites along with with the matzo cake meal and potato starch, making sure that everything is completely blended.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about one hour, or until a cake tester or wooden skewer, comes out clean. You may need to add up to another 15 minutes baking time, depending on your oven.

Invert the cake over a rack to cool completely before removing from the pan. It may remove itself, but if it doesn’t, just run a thin-bladed utensil, such as a knife or cake spatula around the outside edge and around the tube.

Notes:

You can substitute any citrus for the lemon. Orange juice is quite nice, and this time, I used lime.

To lighten up the sugar content (I know. At this point, why bother?), I also substituted Splenda for Baking for the sugar.

Save some $$ and do what I did: Buy a bulk package of the Splenda and in a zip-top storage bag, measure out a one-to-one ratio of Splenda and sugar, and mix vigorously. Make sure to shake up the bag before every use, as sugar is heavier than Splenda and will settle to the bottom.

Happy Passover, everyone!

Print this post for your Moleskine journal!

The PhotoHunt theme this week is “Daily”

Many people joke that, if you look at a Jewish calendar, it almost seems as if there’s some sort of holiday Daily. It does seem that way sometimes! For instance, tomorrow we celebrate the holiday of Purim. Purim celebrates the story told in the Old Testament Book of Esther.

Purim has a number of traditions associated with it – carnivals, satirical plays, giving charity, and of course, food. We read the Book of Esther in the synagogue and stamp our feet, boo, and use noisemakers to blot out the name of its villain, Haman.

And we’re supposed to send gifts of food to our friends. The food that symbolizes Purim is a filled cookie called a “Hamantasch.” Hamantaschen are generally made out of a sturdy sugar cookie dough and filled with things like poppy seed or fruit pastes. I always liked almond paste best, so that’s what I’ve made here.

If you’d like to know more about Purim and some of its traditions, click here.

Have a great weekend, and please enjoy these Hamantashen with Almond Filling… I made them just for you. But please don’t eat more than one daily!