Leslie's Matzo Fritters

I know lots of people who groan about Passover food. Honestly, I don't get it. I love matzo. I love matzo balls. I love matzo brei. What's to complain about?

I don't miss bread because we don't eat it very often.

Ditto pasta.

I do miss muffins but can live without them for a week.

The rest of what we eat -- meat, poultry, fish, vegetables -- is more or less what we eat all the time, so there really aren't big changes in our meals during the holiday.

BUT ...

It is nice to find some new eats that are kosher for Passover, just to mix things up a bit. Fortunately, this year my cousin Leslie gave me her recipe for matzo fritters. They are delightfully light and crispy and take just minutes to cook. They are fragrant with cinnamon and taste wonderful all by themselves but are superb with sour cream or plain yogurt.

Perfect for lunch or a light dinner.

Thanks Leslie!

Leslie's Matzo Fritters

• 1/2 cup ground nuts (I used almonds)
• 1/3 cup matzo meal
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• salt to taste
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons butter

Mix the nuts, matzo meal, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, beat the water and egg together. Pour the egg mixture into the bowl with the matzo meal mixture and beat vigorously to blend the ingredients. Melt one tablespoon of the butter in a large saute pan or griddle over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, pour enough of the batter into the pan to make 4-5 fritters about 3-inches in diameter, leaving space between each fritter. Cook for about 3 minutes per side or until golden brown and crispy. Repeat with the remaining tablespoon butter and the remaining batter.

Makes 8-10

Quickie Ratatouille

Classic ratatouille is time consuming and labor intensive. Also fabulously delicious.

Unfortunately, I don't have the time or patience to cook the authentic recipe these days. Especially not for Passover.

So, whereas a cartoon rat might win raves for his ratatouille, and my version might not be quite so beautiful as the one in the Disney movie (Ratatouille), here are the benefits to my recipe:

it's easy: about 30 minutes prep time

it's quick (less than 30 minutes to cook)

it's a perfect dish for Seders, vegetarian meals or side dishes, any old dinner

it's fabulously delicious

So here's the recipe:

Quickie Ratatouille

• 1/3 cup olive oil, approximately
• 8 thick scallions, chopped
• 6 large cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 medium fresh chili pepper, deseeded and chopped
• 2 cups diced eggplant
• 1 cup diced red bell pepper
• 2 cups diced zucchini
• 8 large tomatoes, chopped
• 6-8 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• salt and freshly ground red pepper to taste

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the scallion, garlic and chili pepper and cook, stirring frequently, for one minute. Add the eggplant and bell pepper and cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes or until the vegetables have softened. Pour in the remaining olive oil and add the zucchini (add more olive oil if the vegetables start to stick to the bottom of the pan). Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the tomatoes and basil and cook, stirring frequently, for 12-15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft and there is little liquid left in the pan. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Makes 8 servings

Passover Chocolate Clusters

Matzo Farfel Clusters

I have been experimenting with new recipes using matzo farfel. That's because I always buy too much of it and then it gets stale and I throw it out.

It can be difficult to find fresh matzo farfel in my neck of the woods (when it isn't Passover). But matzo farfel doesn't last, it gets stale quickly, so I have to use it up while it's fresh.

Here's a good way: candy!

Don't let the cayenne pepper put you off. That tiny bit of heat brings out the best in the chocolate.

Matzo Farfel Clusters

• 2 cups matzo farfel
• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted almonds
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup shredded, sweetened coconut
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh orange peel
• pinch cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the matzo farfel on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, tossing the farfel around once. Remove the pan from the oven and let the farfel cool. Melt the chocolate. Add the farfel, almonds, cranberries, coconut, orange peel and cayenne pepper to the chocolate and mix to distribute the ingredients evenly. Spoon heaping tablespoons of the mixture into clusters on parchment paper or aluminum foil. Let set.

Makes about 3 dozen clusters

Another Seder, Another Haroset

Please see the Note below:

Although I usually like to cook new foods and experiment with recipes, when it comes to the Jewish holidays I more or less prepare the same things my mother and grandmother served in their day. For the first night of Passover that means chicken soup with matzo balls, roasted turkey, chremslich and macaroons. And several side dishes, such as braised leeks and tomatoes, roasted carrots, some quinoa dish or other -- and so on.

But I can't help myself, even for this very traditional meal -- I always add a new dish or two or three.

Sometimes it's a side dish, sometimes a dessert.

Sometimes I'll add an additional haroset to my usual one.

That's it for this year. Here's the one: Dried Fruit Haroset with Ginger and Coriander.

NOTE: I understand that not everyone eats sesame seeds during Passover (sesame seeds are kitnyiot). Please follow according to your tradition. The haroset is delicious even without the seeds. If you prefer, scatter the top with chopped toasted almonds.

Dried Fruit Haroset with Ginger and Coriander

• 1 cup chopped dried figs
• 1/2 cup chopped dates
• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander (nutmeg, cinnamon)
• 1/3 cup apricot preserves
• 4-5 tablespoons sweet red Passover wine
• 1 tablespoon lightly toasted sesame seeds

Combine the figs, dates, apricots and raisins in a bowl. Add the ginger, coriander, preserves and wine and mix until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Let the mixture stand for at least one hour before serving.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

 Makes about 2-1/2 cups

Passover Rhubarb Crisp

We are big rhubarb fans in our family. And unlike many rhubarb lovers, we like the stuff on the sour side, without the sugar overload. It's the way we got used to it as kids, the way my Mom made it.

I suppose she cut down on sweetening food as part of the need during World War II to ration sugar, and then just never went back to the old ways. In any event, she used to cook rhubarb all the time and serve it like applesauce. It was always kind of tart and wonderfully refreshing as a side dish to roasted chicken or turkey. 

Rhubarb is a natural for Passover because that's when the first of the new crop appears. You can get fresh stalks everywhere. We always have so many side dishes at our Seder that I don't cook it up the way my Mom did, to serve with dinner. But it does make a good dessert. Like in this recipe for Rhubarb Crisp.

I usually add a little less sugar than the recipe calls for, just because that's the way we like it. You can cut the sugar to 1/2 cup OR, if you have a real sweet tooth, add a bit more.

You can make this dessert a day or so ahead. It's a nice choice after a typical meat Seder meal, because it's parve (unless you switch to butter), but is also a good choice throughout the holiday.

PASSOVER RHUBARB CRISP

• 2 pounds rhubarb

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 2 tablespoons potato starch

• 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

• 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

• 2 cups crumbled coconut macaroons

• 1/2 cup chopped almonds

• 1/3 cup matzo meal

• 1/4 cup brown sugar

• 1/4 coconut oil or butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut the rhubarb into 1/2-inch thick slices and place in a bowl. Add the sugar, potato starch, lemon peel and cinnamon and toss the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Spoon the mixture into a baking dish. In a bowl combine the coconut macaroons, almonds, matzo meal and brown sugar. Add the coconut oil and work it into the dry ingredients until the mixture is crumbly. Place on top of the fruit. Bake for 40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Makes 8-10 servings

Coconut Crusted Chicken

Coconut Chicken with Mango Salsa

I don't remember when chicken nuggets became one of the stock items on childrens' menus. But it's right up there with pizza, pasta and mac n' cheese.

Of course, grownups like chicken nuggets too. I suppose it's the anything crunchy-fried-golden-brown thing.

Most recipes give chicken nuggets a bread crumb crust, but during Passover there are other alternatives. Check out my recipe below, which has a matzo meal and coconut crust. I keep the pieces bigger than standard nuggets so they feel more like dinner to adults, but you can cut the chicken into smaller chunks to make actual nuggets (which are terrific as hors d'oeuvre).

The coconut gives the chicken a lovely sweet taste, which is fine all by itself, but grown up palates might want to balance that with a refreshing, citrusy, slightly spicy mango salsa.

Coconut Chicken

• 1/4 cup potato starch
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup unsweetened packaged shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup matzo meal
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1-1/2 pounds boneless chicken
• vegetable oil for frying

Place the potato starch in a dish. Beat the eggs in a second dish. Combine the coconut, matzo meal, salt, paprika and garlic powder in a third dish. Slice the chicken into strips (about 2-inches long, 1-inch wide). Press the strips, one by one, into the potato starch, covering the entire surface. Immerse the strips in the egg, making sure to cover the entire surface. Press the egg-coated chicken strips into the coconut mixture, making sure to coat the entire surface. Place the strips on a cake rack and let air dry for at least 15 minutes. Heat about 1/8-inch vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot enough to make a matzo crumb sizzle, add the strips a few at a time, leaving room between each strip, for about 2 minutes per side, or until golden brown and crispy. Drain on paper towels and repeat with the remaining strips. Serve plain or with Mango Salsa.

 Makes 4 servings

 Mango Salsa

• 2 cups diced fresh mango
• 1/2 cup chopped purple onion
• 1 small chili pepper, deseeded and chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• salt to taste

Place the mango, purple onion, chili pepper, mint, ginger, garlic, lime juice, honey and vegetable oil in a bowl and toss the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Let rest for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Makes about 2-1/2 cups

My Husband is Addicted to Celery

For some reason Ed has been devouring celery lately, so I've had to buy a few bunches at a time just to keep up.

I guess sometimes you just get a hankering for some food or other. I remember a time when I had a craving for Banana Cream Pie. 

Celery is healthier than cream pie, of course.

Still, it can become boring to eat it as is, splashed with olive oil and freshly ground black pepper, which is the way Ed prefers to eat it. So I decided to embark on a few celery-based side dishes. Here's one for braised celery that went over well.

Consider this one for Passover because it goes so nicely with just about any main dish you might serve, and also makes a good side dish for vegetarians.

 

Braised Celery with Toasted Hazelnuts

• 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts
• 1 bunch celery
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 shallots, sliced
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh marjoram or oregano
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup sweet white wine
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes or until the nuts are golden brown and tasty. Set aside. Wash and trim the celery, peel the stalks and slice them. Set aside. Heat the vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the celery and shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6-7 minutes, or until golden brown. Sprinkle the ingredients with the marjoram, salt and pepper and pour in the wine. Lower the heat, cover the pan and cook for 8-10 minutes. Remove the cover, raise the heat to medium–high and cook for another 4-5 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to a glaze. Dish out and sprinkle with chives and the toasted nuts.

Makes 4-6 servings

My goose is finally cooked!

Every year, sometime during the Hanukkah holiday, I make a roast goose dinner for our family. The menu is almost always the same: goose, braised red cabbage, potato latkes and some green vegetable or other.

Unfortunately, for one reason or another, we just never got to it last December and so, when my kids and grandkids came up for Ed's birthday weekend, we had our Hanukkah meal. 

I cooked the bird a little differently this year, basting it with sweet white wine several times as it roasted. That tiny change sweetened up the pan juices.

A good meal was had by all.

PLUS, I made stock with the bones.

PLUS, I strained all the fat, which is snow-white when it hardens, and froze it all.

If you've never had roasted potatoes in goose fat or matzo balls made with goose fat, well, folks, you've been missing something awesome.

Looking forward to that Passover matzo ball soup.

Roasted Goose

• 1 10-12 pound goose
• lemon juice
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1-1/2 cups water
• 1 cup sweet white wine

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Rinse the goose and remove excess fat. Rub the goose with lemon juice and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Prick the skin all over with the tines of a fork. Place the goose, breast side up on a rack in a roasting pan. Pour the water into the pan. Roast for 45 minutes. Lower the oven heat to 325 degrees. Turn the goose breast side down. Pour the wine over the goose. Roast for 45 minutes, basting once during this time. Turn the goose breast side up again and roast for another 30-60 minutes, basting once or twice, or until the juices run clear when you prick the thickest part of the thigh with the tines of a fork (a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast should read 165 degrees). Let rest for 15 minutes before carving. 

Matzo Farfel Fattoush

Every year I buy a kitchen’s worth of Passover ingredients and most of it gets eaten, except for the matzo farfel. I know you can use matzo farfel for stuffing, matzo brei, granola and other foods. But I don’t. A few family members like it cooked like oatmeal, for breakfast, but that’s about it. So I always have a lot left over.

Last year I decided to experiment a bit and see how I could use matzo farfel to advantage.

Fattoush, a light and refreshing salad, was a big winner. 

The word fattoush means “crumbled bread” in Arabic and the salad is pretty basic — seasonal vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumber and greens mixed with toasted flat bread.

During the year it’s a good way to use up stale bread. During Passover, matzo farfel is perfect.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Matzo Farfel Fattoush

• 2 cups matzo farfel
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cups shredded Romaine lettuce (6-8 large leaves)
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 1 medium cucumber, chopped
• 1 ripe avocado, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 medium red bell pepper, deseeded and chopped
• 2-3 scallions, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped mint
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the farfel on a baking sheet. Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil over the farfel and toss, coating all the pieces. Bake for about 15 minutes, tossing the farfel occasionally, or until it is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let cool. Place the lettuce shreds, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, bell pepper, scallions, parsley and mint in a bowl. Mix the remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil and the lemon juice together. Pour the dressing over the salad, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and toss the ingredients. Add the toasted farfel, toss again and let rest for a few minutes before serving.

Makes 8 servings

Salmon, Potato and Spinach Patties

Salmon, Potato and Spinach Patties (Croquettes, Latkes)

It’s funny how despite the years that pass and the changes we all make to our diets, there are some foods we never give up. For me, one of those dishes is salmon latkes. Ed won’t eat them. This is a solo thing.

Salmon latkes were also my Mom’s favorite go-to dish (red canned salmon, she insisted). She made them for herself. My Dad didn’t wouldn’t eat them. 

When April comes I think about salmon latkes more because it’s the month my mom passed away and yahrzeits always conjure memories, don’t they?

So I have been thinking salmon latkes lately.

Unlike my mom, I can’t let a recipe go without thinking about how I could change it. How many salmon latke variations can I create?

Well, not as many as banana bread, but when you’ve got leftover (or canned) salmon, there’s a lot you can do with it. 

Here’s the latest version. It’s a good dish for Passover either to replace gefilte fish as a fish course at a Seder, or for lunch or even dinner (make larger burger-type patties).                                                                                                                                 

Salmon, Potato and Spinach Patties (Croquettes, Latkes)

• 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes

• 12 ounces cooked salmon

• 1 cup packed baby spinach leaves, washed, dried and coarsely chopped

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup matzo meal

• 2 chopped scallions

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 1/4 cup matzo meal

• vegetable oil

Peel the potatoes, cut them into chunks and cook them in lightly salted boiling water for about 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and place in a bowl. Mash the potatoes with a fork. Add the salmon and spinach and mix the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Add the eggs, 1/2-cup matzo meal, scallions, lemon juice, parsley, cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Mix the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Shape the mixture into 16-20 small patties. Press the patties into the remaining 1/4-cup matzo meal, to coat both sides. Heat about 1/4-inch vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Fry the patties for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown and crispy. Serve 2 patties per person.

Makes 8-10 first course servings