By Phyllis Glazer
For AP Weekly Features
TEL AVIV, Israel — “Why is this night different from any other night?” Jews all over the world will recite this tonight, while gathered among family and friends to celebrate the Passover Seder.
This is one of the most important and beloved events on the Jewish calendar. Other Jewish holidays are primarily celebrated with enough food to feed the entire neighborhood, but the Seder includes food and more — a reading of the Haggadah, a traditional collection of narrative sources interspersed with ritual, legend, prayers, blessings and songs of thanksgiving collected throughout the ages.
“Remember you were slaves unto Pharaoh in Egypt,” the Haggadah reminds us, as it recalls the journey from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the Promised Land and inspires discussion of individual freedom and social justice today.
The original Passover in Egypt entailed hurriedly consuming a sacrificial lamb and unleavened bread (matzo). Generations later it included a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem. The Seder as we know it was created by the rabbis of the Talmud living in exile in Babylonia after the destruction of the Second Temple in A.D. 70.
But there’s a lot more to the holiday than just the Seder. For the observant, preparations for this Festival of Freedom may start at least a month before. Since the Bible says that during the holiday no hametz (leaven) should be found in the home, some families’ innocent zeal in “spring cleaning” might start with dusting off the books — and end up with renovating the entire house.
Then there’s thought to be given to getting that other set of dishes, flatware, cookware and utensils reserved especially for the holiday, out of storage, cleaning and switching it with its secular counterparts, but only after carefully cleaning out and relining the cabinets.
“Smell is the strongest memory I have of Passover,” a 55-year-old friend who grew up in Newton, Mass., recalled recently.
“I remember the fresh, clean smell of my parents’ house when everything was scrupulously cleaned to remove the hametz before the holiday. But, most of all, I remember the smell of plain foods, like just-washed fresh vegetables, just plain potatoes and eggs. That’s what our diet consisted of. But it was a good smell, and my kids don’t experience it today.”
Sadly, that’s right. If they’re not eating bottled gefilte fish, canned chicken soup and frozen matzo balls, youngsters today can enjoy Passover “pasta” and Cheerio-clone Passover breakfast cereals.
But growing up with Passovers that rely on prepared foods and “virtual” products can never provide the joyous memories of intergenerational teaching in the kitchen, and the sights, scents and flavors that make Passover much more than matzo.
Here are some suggestions for Passover meals that begin at home in the kitchen, including some special but not difficult-to-make dishes for all to share.
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The following scrumptious eggplant rolls would be great for your holiday repertoire. Perfect as a first course, this traditional Passover dish comes from Georgia (not the deep South, but rather the eastern European country on the Black Sea).
The rolls’ savory filling can also be stuffed into fresh mushrooms or spread on egg matzo. Feel free to vary the recipe with different nuts, perhaps macadamias and hazelnuts, or different herbs like basil, sage, or cilantro, throughout Passover week.
Note: Using long, slim eggplant will result in smaller more delicate rolls with less filling, suitable for a first course, while fatter eggplant is better for larger rolls, suitable as a main course.
Walnut and Herb Stuffed Eggplant Rolls
About 1 cup vegetable oil
33/4 pounds eggplant (2 to 3 medium)
Salt
Black pepper
11/2 cups walnut halves (about 1 pound)
2 medium garlic cloves, pressed (1 tablespoon)
1/2 teaspoon white- or red-wine vinegar
1/3 cup chopped onion
Scant 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1 small dried hot pepper, or cayenne to taste
1/2 cup packed chopped cilantro
1/3 cup packed chopped fresh Italian parsley
Cut the stem ends off the eggplant, and slice lengthwise into 3/8-inch slices. Sprinkle both sides with a little coarse salt and pepper and rub in. Let stand for 10 minutes, rinse off and pat dry.
Heat half the oil in a frying pan and saute half the eggplant slices on both sides till golden brown. Remove and place between two sheets of paper towels to absorb excess oil. Repeat with the rest of the oil and eggplant.
Grind the walnuts to a powder in a food processor. Add the rest of the ingredients, blending until the paste forms a ball. Lay the eggplant slices on a work surface and place 2 or more tablespoons of filling (depending on type of eggplant), at the base. Carefully roll up from the bottom into a compact roll. Place on a serving platter decorated with fresh greens if desired, and serve. This is best at room temperature, but it can also be served chilled.
Makes about 20 to 30 pieces. Serve 2 pieces per person as a first course, 3 or more as a main course.
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This easy and fabulous Seder recipe combines main and side dish.
Roasted Chicken With Two Potatoes, Garlic and Rosemary
One 3- to 4-pound roasting chicken, cut into 6 to 8 pieces
11/2 pounds small unpeeled potatoes, halved
1 pound sweet potatoes or yams
1 medium onion, cut crosswise in rings
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, each broken into 3 or 4 pieces
20 unpeeled cloves of garlic (about 2 heads)
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Preheat the oven to 425 F.
Wash the chicken, pat dry and place in a roasting pan.
Wash, dry and peel the sweet potatoes and cut into large chunks. Scatter the potatoes, sweet potatoes, onion, garlic cloves and rosemary around the chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the olive oil over all.
Place in a preheated 425 F oven and roast for 20 minutes. Turn the heat down to 350 to 375 F and continue to bake for 45 to 60 minutes, until the chicken and potatoes are golden and the garlic is crisp. Turn the chicken and potatoes over occasionally during baking. (If the vegetables are browning too fast but the chicken is still not done, cover the pan with aluminum foil during baking).
Makes 6 servings.
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Iraqi Jews make potato patties for Passover, when potato dishes are popular instead of grains. This very special generations-old family recipe comes from Jerusalem chef Moshe Basson.
Iraqi Chicken-StuffedPatties
11/2 pounds boiling potatoes (about 4 or 5 medium) cooked, peeled, mashed and chilled
1/4 cup matzo meal
3 eggs, beaten
Salt
Black pepper
Extra matzo meal for dipping
For the filling:
1 cup finely chopped red onions
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 butterflied chicken breasts, de-boned, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
1/3 teaspoon each black pepper, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (optional)
Olive or vegetable oil for frying
Combine the mashed potatoes, matzo meal and eggs in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and let stand 10 minutes.
For the stuffing: Heat 3 tablespoons oil and cook the onion till golden. Add the chicken, raisins and pine nuts and stir in the spices. When the chicken turns opaque, remove from the flame. Let cool slightly, then cover and chill.
Oil hands and make a ball of potato mixture the size of a large egg. Flatten it out between your palms and make an indentation for the filling. Put a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center, and fold the edges over it. Close and flatten out, making sure that there are no holes with filling peeking through.
Dip on both sides in matzo meal and deep-fry as the Iraqis do, or fry in a generous amount of hot oil till golden. Turn carefully, and fry the other side. Place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Serve hot.
Makes about 25 patties.
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This savory cheesecake is delicious as a quick lunch or dinner, or for entertaining during Passover. Serve warm or at room temperature with a salad of mixed greens. Very satisfying — a little goes a long way.
Tarragon-Scented Savory Goat Cheese Cheesecake
Crust:
2 cups matzo meal
3/4 cup melted unsalted butter
1/4 cup ground or finely chopped walnuts
Filling:
12 ounces soft goat cheese (preferably Israeli), at room temperature
Three 8-ounce packages cream cheese
4 eggs, beaten
1 and 1/3 cups sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 to 4 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh tarragon leaves
Generous grind of freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Preheat the oven to 325 F. Cut a circle and a 3-inch-wide strip of parchment paper to fit the bottom and sides of a 10-inch springform pan. Affix with a little butter.
In a bowl, blend the matzo meal, melted butter and walnuts with a wooden spoon. Press the mixture into the bottom and slightly up the sides of the pan. Chill while preparing the filling.
In the bowl of a food processor or using an electric mixer, blend the goat- and cream cheeses. Mix in the eggs, followed by sour cream, salt, tarragon and pepper, beating well. Pour the mixture into the chilled crust and place the pan on a baking sheet, to avoid dripping onto the bottom of the oven. Bake for 1 hour. Turn off the oven and let the cake remain in the oven for 30 minutes.
Cool down to just warm. Carefully remove the outer ring and remove the bottom disk by placing the cheesecake on the serving platter, inserting a flat spatula between the disk and cheesecake and circling around gently to detach it (do not attempt to remove the paper if it sticks). Place the cheesecake on a serving plate.
(Cheesecake may be prepared in advance and chilled in the pan. Just before serving, remove the outer ring and bottom disk. Serve at room temperature. To re-warm, remove the outer ring and base from the chilled cheesecake, and slide onto a baking pan. Place in a preheated 250 F oven for 8 minutes or until just warmed. Remove and carefully transfer to a serving plate. Individual slices may also be reheated in the microwave.)
To serve: Slice the cheesecake with a knife dipped in ice water and serve. Best consumed within 3 to 4 days.
Makes 10 to 12 servings as a main course, 15 to 20 as an hors d’oeuvre.
(All recipes adapted from “The Essential Book of Jewish Festival Cooking” by Phyllis Glazer with Miriyam Glazer, Harper Collins, 2004, $29.95)
Swap bitter greens for the horseradish
By Julie Wiener
For The Associated Press
For years, horseradish has enjoyed a place of privilege at the seder, the carb- and symbolism-heavy meal that celebrates Passover.
Along with its counterparts on the Passover plate, horseradish helps tell the story of the Jews’ liberation from Egyptian slavery and exodus into the desert: Unleavened, cracker-like matzoh recalls the bread the Israelites hastily made prior to fleeing into the desert. Salt water, in which parsley and eggs are dipped, symbolizes the tears slaves shed.
And horseradish generally is used to represent the bitterness of slavery.
But this year, consider adding color to the plate (and giving a nod to tradition) by substituting bitter greens — such as chicory, endive, arugula, and dandelion and mustard greens — for the horseradish.
Bitter greens have always been a common component in seders of the Middle East, says Joan Nathan, author of numerous Jewish cookbooks, including “The Jewish Holiday Cookbook.”
For some Jews this changed as they moved into Eastern Europe, where bitter greens weren’t available in early spring, she says.
Of course, Sephardic Jews — who come primarily from North Africa, Southern Europe and the Middle East — never made the switch. But most American Jews are Ashkenazi, or of Eastern European descent, and so the horseradish came with them.
This is changing, in part because bitter greens have become a darling of gourmets regardless of faith and are showing up on restaurant menus and in the produce sections of mainstream grocers.
“What’s nice nowadays is when you go to buy ready-to-eat salad greens, you actually see (a variety of greens) as options,” says Cynthia Sass, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.
“It used to be just iceberg lettuce and romaine,” she says. “Then slowly spinach was added. Now you see field greens, baby greens, arugula. Things you would only see in health food stores or gourmet specialty markets, now you see at mainstream supermarkets.”
Sarah Kagan, food editor at Epicurious.com (the online site for Gourmet and Bon Appetit magazines), said that in recent years the Sephardic recipes have been among the site’s most popular Passover fare.
“There’s a high level of interest in nontraditional recipes outside the norm of typical Ashkenazi cooking,” she says, noting that last year Bon Appetit featured a Sephardic menu for Passover and this year Epicurious is showcasing an Israeli menu.
Rabbi Elie Abadie, dean of the Jacob E. Safra Institute of Sephardic Studies at Yeshiva University in New York, says most Sephardic Jews living in the West now use escarole and endive for their seders.
Those greens often are tempered with romaine lettuce “to make it a little more palatable and yet still taste the bitterness,” he says.
Cooking also tempers most bitter greens, though they still will have bite. They also add a nutritional kick to seders. Sass says greens are low in calories and are good sources of Vitamin A, folate and dietary fiber. Many also are rich in Vitamin K and Vitamin C.
At the seder, Jews traditionally eat the bitter greens in a “Hillel sandwich” with matzoh and charoset, a sweet fruit-and-wine mixture that symbolizes the mortar used to make bricks in the days of Egyptian slavery.
For a modern take, a bitter green salad with roasted pears achieves the same effect on the palate: bitterness tempered by sweet fruit.
Much of this salad can be prepared in advance. The greens can be washed and dried a day ahead, then chilled, wrapped in paper towels in a sealed plastic bag. The pears can be roasted four hours ahead and kept at room temperature.
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Bitter Green Saladwith Roasted Pears
(Start to finish: 1 hour and 15 minutes, 30 minutes active)
For the salad:
8 firm Bosc pears, peeled, cored and cut lengthwise into 8 wedges
1½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 small head chicory
1 small head escarole
1 small head radicchio
1 bunch watercress, coarse stems discarded
1 bunch mizuna, coarse stems discarded
1 small head romaine
For the dressing:
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
2½ tablespoons cider vinegar
½ teaspoon honey
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Set the oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425 F.
Place the pears in a zip-close plastic bag and add the oil. Toss to coat, then arrange the pears in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper.
Roast pears, flipping twice, until they are tender and beginning to brown, about 20 to 30 minutes. Cool about 15 minutes.
While the pears roast, tear enough tender chicory and escarole leaves (discard tough ribs) into bite-size pieces to measure 6 cups. Tear enough radicchio, watercress, mizuna and romaine into bite-size pieces to measure 10 cups.
In a large bowl, toss the greens. Set aside.
To make the dressing, in a small bowl whisk together the shallot, vinegar, honey, salt and pepper. In a slow stream, while whisking, add oil. Continue whisking until emulsified.
Just before serving, add the roasted pears to the greens, then drizzle with dressing and toss to coat.
Makes 10 to 12 servings.
(Recipe from Epicurious.com)
