My favorite holiday on the Jewish calendar is most definitely Passover. Rich in tradition, foods and and sweet memories, this holiday has always been one I have loved sharing with my family.
As a small child I loved to go to my grandmother's and "help" her and my aunts ready the house for the holiday. The Passover dishes, used only for this holiday, were taken down from the closet and washed by hand. Pots, pans, glasses and silverware were removed from the wrappings in which they had been placed the previous year and the every day things used all year long were wrapped and put away. All traces of bread or bread products were discarded or given to the poor and a large order of passover foods was delivered. There were dozens of eggs, boxes and boxes of matzoh, fruits, vegetables, meats and all sorts of "Kosher for Passover" goodies and ingredients that my grandmother, mother and aunts would use to create our seders and foods for the entire 8 days of the holiday..
My Aunt Anna always baked a lemon sponge cake, light and fluffy (albeit a little crooked) but always delicious.
My Great-aunt, Vera made wine and was a baker of exquisite talent. From her gifted little hands came cakes and candies, side dishes and delicacies delicious beyond words.
Aunt Ethel, the "senior cook", produced succulent roasted and stuffed chickens, tzimmis*, brisket, apple sauce that was a magical pink color, assorted vegetables and often a potato kugel. My grandmother and mother made chicken soup, matzo balls and gefilte fish...
and the chopped liver, a world class version which still resonates on my palate today! This delicacy was piled onto a piece of matzoh and consumed to the "ooohs" and "ahhhs" of the family and friends gathered for the meal.
Boxes of Barton's candy were hidden from sight lest it disappear before the holiday even began...and chocolate lollypops shaped like candles were always just for me, and later on, my sister.
A super accelerated reading of the Hagaddah (the story of Passover) was followed by this glorious meal. As I grew older the story became more fascinating to me and I was thrilled to be able to relate to my non Jewish friends that The Last Supper that Jesus attended was indeed a seder...Jesus was a Jew observing the tradition of Passover.
After my grandmother passed away the household was not so strictly kosher but seder was always the same. I watched carefully, realizing that Grandma and Aunt Vera were gone and at some point it would be my job to create this meal.
When I grew up I was at my mother's side making this dinner... and then it was just me. While my home was not kosher, I did try to keep the seder traditional and pass on the joy and essence of this holiday to my own children. For many years we split the two seders between my family and my husband's. The seder at my husband's family is more remembered for the fun the children had bargaining for the "aphikomen",
than for particularly good food. Uncle David usually tried to drive a hard bargain and the children negotiated mightily...often winding up with a wonderful gift or a five dollar bill apiece.
The seder at our family is surely remembered for the fabulous recipes handed down to me from world class cooks...my grandmother, aunts and of course, my mother. Days of preparation resulted in a glorious celebration.
. All of the traditional elements were fastidiously adhered to...the special table setting... the Haggaddah (the order of the seder)...The seder plate with the symbols of the holiday...and the special foods, served in a time honored order...
The children, sitting rapt as the story of the Jews' exodus from Egypt is told... the 10 plagues recited...the youngest child asking The Four Questions... the singing of the traditional songs and finally, the search for the aphikomen and the arrival of dessert. Stuffed, filled with food and the warmth of family, the seder concludes...ready to be committed to memory...another year... and I know my girls, my daughter and daughters in law, are readying to take this over one day and then to pass it on to my grand daughters. There is a certain pleasure I derive from seeing my grandchildren participating in the ceremony...the reading of the Four Questions in English will now go to the younger children and the older boys will be reading the questions in hebrew...all seven grandchildren will be in on the search for and then the bargaining for the sale of the aphikomen and my husband will try to convince us all that he has" negotiated" good deal...the chocolate lollypops will be passed out for the children and the rainbow cookies and chocolate leaf cookies will be devoured by the adults. And my heart will be filled with the joy of family...tradition...love...
In previous blog entries I have posted recipes for roasted chicken, chicken with cherries and fried chicken, brisket and My Friend Estelle's Passover Carrot Pudding...all part of our seders at one time or another...
Below is my Tzimmis recipe and also a matzoh brei recipe that was my mother's and a special treat for a Passover breakfast or lunch. Many people make matzoh brei like a scrambled egg, but my mother made fluffy little pancakes.
Matzoh Brei
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites beaten until fluffy
6-8 sheets of matzo
water
1 tsp sugar
salt/pepper
oil
Soak matzo in water (I run it right under the tap) until it
crumbles without crunching. Crumble into
small pieces.
Add egg yolks and seasoning and sugar.
Fold in egg whites.
If too dry you can add a little water.
Saute on both sides until golden.
Serve with cinnamon and
sugar…syrup…strawberries…blueberries…
ingredients:
3 white potatoes peeled and cut in chunks
3 large yams peeled and cut in chunks
1 package frozen mini carrots
2/3 cup of prunes cut in half
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup orange juice
½ cup white wine
2 apples peeled, cored and cut up
Pam large baking dish.
Lay flanken on bottom and season with salt and pepper. Place potatoes and yams around meat and
season again.
Add other ingredients around the meat and potatoes and
sprinkle with the brown sugar.
Pour orange juice and wine over all and bake in 350 degree
oven . Baste every 1/2 hr.
and cook until meat
becomes caramelized. You can add more
juice but don’t let it get too watery...it has to caramelize......and just in case you missed it the first time, a special addition to any meal, but particularly the seder, is...
My Friend Estelle's Carrot Ring
ingredients:
2 lbs. raw carrots grated in Cuisinart 1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup matzo meal 6
tbsp. potato starch
1 cup white wine 1
cup raisins
1 cup sugar 2
tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. powdered ginger juice
& zest of 2 lemons
2 eggs
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. salt
Grease a ring mold. Dissolve potato starch in wine then
blend all ingredients well, place evenly in the ring mold (or tube pan) and bake at least 1 hour ( it usually needs a bit more)...This can be made beforehand and reheated...
blend all ingredients well, place evenly in the ring mold (or tube pan) and bake at least 1 hour ( it usually needs a bit more)...This can be made beforehand and reheated...
And for goom measure...here is the best brisket EVER...my mom's recipe with a few twerks from me!
1 whole or first cut brisket... trimmed but with some fat left on
1 med onion, rough chop
4-5 leaves of iceberg lettuce
4 carrots cut in 1/4's
1/3 cup tomato sauce or ketchup
1/2 cup good red wine
1 cup beef stock (1-2 cups in reserve) (you can use beef consomme or broth)
2 small sprigs rosemary
3-4 sprigs thyme
6 leaves basil...just tear it in
salt...pepper...garlic powder...paprika
1-Season well both sides of the brisket with salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika...then sear both sides under the broiler until brown
2- While meat is searing, spray a covered roasting pan with Pam and line bottom with lettuce leaves
3- Placed seared meat fat side up, on lettuce and place chopped onions on top of meat and put the carrots around the sides. Pour ketchup or tomato sauce on top of onions...
4- Pour in the cup of beef broth (put some broth in reserve in case it cooks out)
5- Add wine and throw in herbs
6- Cover tightly with foil and then put pot cover on. Cook ON TOP OF THE STOVE for 1 hour on medium-low to low. You may need 2 burners for a large roasting pan...make sure the flames match.
Cook for 1 hour, then turn meat over and re-cover and cook for another hour...add more stock and/or wine if liquid cooks out ...you will need the liquid for gravy. You may have to turn once more and cook additional time until meat feels tender when a carving fork is inserted...
7-Remove from liquid, and let sit about 1/2 hour...then slice. You can then wrap in foil and store if you wish.
Gravy
When the meat is done there should be a lot of liquid in the pot with the cooked vegetables...(if there is not enough liquid, just add some stock, if it is too thin reduce it over med high heat until it reduces) Place a strainer over a large bowl and just pour the liquid and vegetables into the strainer. With a potato masher or large wooden spoon, press the cooked vegetables through the strainer into the liquid and discard what does not go through the strainer (herbs, etc). Refrigerate until fat comes to top and solidifies.
When you are ready to serve, remove the fat from the gravy, place the brisket in a pan to heat and pour the gravy over the meat, Heat at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes and serve
After a meal as heavy as this we usually have a light dessert. Everyone, particularly the children, love Chocolate Fondue:
Chocolate Fondue
1 large bag Nestles' chocolate morsels
1/3 cup heavy cream, 1/2 and 1/2 or whole milk...you may need a bit more
1 tbsp butter
1/4 c. black coffee
1 tsp orange zest (optional)
strawberries
bananas sliced
pineapple slices
chunks of sponge cake
marshmallows
macaroons
In a double boiler melt the chocolate chips, add the cream, coffee, orange zest and butter and stir to blend...pour into a deep dish and set into a larger bowl filled with hot water...give each guest a cup for the chocolate and then it is every man for himself, dipping their fruit or cakes into the chocolate!
A zissen Pesach !
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