Passover begins at sunset on Monday, so I wanted to post a few Passover recipes. Here are six, including Honey Cupcakes and Potato Latkes. Enjoy!
For a short explaination of Passover, check out Judaism 101.
MATZO TOFFEE WITH CANDIED GINGER
This is from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Melissa wrote, “Traditional matzo toffee — a Passover-friendly spin on saltine toffee — is an addictive three-layer confection of crackers, brown sugar toffee and melted chocolate. In this version, the chocolate gets a spicy boost from the addition of both fresh ginger juice and chewy candied ginger. Or substitute a topping of cacao nibs, sea salt and/or toasted, chopped nuts. Matzo toffee will keep for at least eight days, stored airtight at room temperature, which will take you through the holidays in the sweetest way possible.”
Yield: About 2 dozen pieces.
This was featured in “Closing the Seder with Something New” and can be viewed online here.
Ingredients
4 to 6 sheets matzo, preferably salted
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ginger juice, optional (see note)
Large pinch fine sea salt
6 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate (1 cup)
3 ounces chopped candied ginger (3/4 cup)
Preparation
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, allowing it to go over the edges of the pan. Cover the bottom of the pan with parchment. Arrange matzo over parchment in one layer, breaking pieces to fit as necessary.
In a medium pot over medium-high heat, bring butter and sugar to a boil for 3 minutes, until thickened and smooth. Stir in ginger juice and salt. Quickly pour mixture over matzos. Transfer pan to oven and bake 15 minutes until bubbly.
Remove pan from oven. Sprinkle chocolate evenly over caramel. Let stand 5 minutes until chocolate is softened. Use an offset spatula to spread chocolate smoothly over surface of toffee. Immediately sprinkle with candied ginger. Place pan in refrigerator and chill toffee for 1 hour. Break into large pieces.
Tip
To make ginger juice, grate a 3-inch piece of peeled ginger into a fine-mesh strainer and press out the juice.
POTATO LATKES
Makes 10 latkes. 1 latke per serving
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Ingredients
2 cups peeled and shredded Russet potatoes, firmly packed (about 1 pound)
1/4 cup grated or finely chopped onion
1 large egg
6 tablespoons egg substitute
2 – 3 tablespoons low sodium matzo meal (a little less than 1 matzo, processed into fine crumbs)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons canola oil
Directions
Place the potatoes in a cheesecloth or double thickness of paper towels and wring to extract as much water out of the potatoes as possible.
In medium bowl, stir the potatoes, onion, egg, egg substitute and matzo meal and salt together well.
In a large heavy-bottomed non stick skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot. Make sure the oil is spread evenly over the bottom of the skillet.
Place 1/4 cup (level measure) of potato mixture into the hot oil, pressing down on them to form 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick patties. Spray tops with canola cooking spray.
Brown on one side about 3 minutes, turn over and brown the other side (about 3 minutes).
Serve these hot with applesauce, fat free or light sour cream and chopped green onions.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 71; Protein: 3 g; Fat: 1 g; Sodium: 237 mg; Cholesterol: 21 mg; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Carbohydrates: 12 g
NOODLE KUGEL
Yield: 12 Servings
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Source: The New Family Cookbook for People with Diabetes
Ingredients
8 ounces uncooked broad egg noodles
3 large eggs, beaten, or 3/4 cup egg substitute
3/4 cup low-fat small-curd cottage cheese
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large tart apple, peeled, cored, and diced in 1/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup raisins, soaked in hot water for 10 minutes and drained
1/4 cup margarine, melted
Directions
Cook the noodles according to the package directions, omitting salt; drain well. There should be 4 cups of cooked noodles.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Prepare an 8-inch-square pan with non-stick pan spray.
Combine the eggs, cottage cheese, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla in a large bowl. Stir in the noodles, apple, and raisins. Pour into the prepared dish.
Drizzle the margarine evenly over the top of the casserole.
Bake, uncovered, for 45 to 55 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Cut the kugel into 12 equal pieces (about 2 x 2 inches). Serve hot or chilled.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 156; Protein: 6 g; Fat: 6 g; Sodium: 122 mg; Cholesterol: 71 mg; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugars: 6 g; Carbohydrates: 20 g; Exchanges: 1-1/2 Starch, 1 Fat
CHAROSET
This came from the link from today's intro. It starts off, "This fruit, nut and wine mix is eaten during the seder. It is meant to remind us of the mortar used by the Jews to build during the period of slavery. It should have a coarse texture. The ingredient quantities listed here are at best a rough estimate; I usually just eye-ball it. The recipe below makes a very large quantity, but we usually wind up making more before the holiday is over. Other fruits or nuts can be used."
4 medium apples, 2 tart and 2 sweet
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
1/4 cup sweet wine
1/4 cup dry wine
1 Tbs. cinnamon
Shred the apples. Add all other ingredients. Allow to sit for 3-6 hours, until the wine is absorbed by the other ingredients. Serve on matzah. Goes very well with horseradish.
HONEY CUPCAKES (for PASSOVER)
This comes from Nichelle Stephens, About.com's Cupcake expert, who writes, "Honey cake is a Jewish traditional dessert that is often served at high holidays like Passover and Rosh Hashanah. I am not Jewish, but I had my first Seder meal at the Catholic elementary school that I attended in Alabama. Now that I have gotten your attention with the previous sentence, it is important as a food writer to sample foods from different cultures and countries. The cool thing about cupcakes is that you can be inspired to bake cupcakes from food all over the world. Honey cupcakes are a nice treat for both kids and adult that will be welcomed at Passover Seder dinner along family and friends. A Passover seder is a festive holiday meal. In some ways, it is somewhat similar to Thanksgiving where families gather, but there are prayers and a ritual that happens throughout the meal. These honey cupcakes are adapted from a Baked-Delicious.com recipe that originally had whole wheat flavor. For Passover, it is necessary to use unleavened bread like matzo for baking." Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 35 minutes; Total Time: 50 minutes; Yield: 18 cupcakes
To view this online, click here.
Ingredients
A pinch of salt
1 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup honey
1 lemon (only use the juice the zest)
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons milk
2 eggs
Preparation
Preheat oven to 325F. In a large bowl, sift the cake meal, flour, salt, spices and baking soda. In a saucepan over low heat, melt the honey and butter. Add in the lemon zest and juice and stir until well blended. Make a well in the center of the bowl that has the dry ingredients. Slowly add the honey mixture, stirring until it is well blended.
Beat the eggs and mil together in a measuring cup or small bowl. Then slowly beat into the batter. Use an ice cream scoop to pour the batter into baking cups. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the center cupcake is well risen and springy.
Set the pan on a cooling rack for 5 minutes.
Make a honey syrup with 4 tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons water and the grated zest of one lemon. Drizzle or brush honey syrup on top. For garnish you can add lemon zest and chopped almonds or peanuts on top. Honey cupcakes keep well and taste even better after two or three days.
BROCCOLI KNISHES (PAREVE)
Yield: 4 servings
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Source: Passover Lite Kosher Cookbook
Author: Gail Ashkanazi-Hankin
Ingredients
1 cup mashed potatoes
1/3 cup matzo meal
2 Tbsp potato starch
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
2 egg whites or 1/4 cup Passover egg substitute
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli, steamed and finely chopped
Nonstick cooking spray
Directions
Preheat oven to 375F.
Generously coat a baking sheet with the cooking spray; set aside.
In a bowl, combine the potatoes, matzo meal, potato starch, onion, egg whites, pepper, and salt; knead together. Divide the dough into 6 balls and flatten each.
Divide the broccoli evenly onto each circle, fold over, and press edges to seal.
Arrange the knishes in a single layer and place the baking sheet on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake for 15 minutes on each side. Serve hot. Makes 6 Servings.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 82; Sodium: 124 mg; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Carbohydrates: 15 g; Exchanges: 1 Starch
