Pam R

I'm not sure if I talked about finishing them. Before eating them, they go into a pan with oil or butter until browned on all sides. If they're filled with cheese there's no reason not to use butter, right? No. I don't know why -- but maybe it's special because it's only made once a year? Yeah, I think that's it. Matzo ball soup is comforting. Each and every time I have a pot of chicken soup on the stove the aroma sends me back to my baba's (grandmother) house. I don't think I have a stronger food memory - it takes me back to family Sabbath and holiday dinners with all of my cousins and aunts and uncles around my grandparents dining room table that had to be extended into the living room to include all of us. My parents make chicken soup just like my baba did, and that's how I learned to do it. It's a connection. And it tastes great. My pleasure! Let me know if you have any specific questions.

You have to share your recipes when you're ready! That's one of the reasons why I wrote a Passover cookbook -- to share traditional recipes that I grew up that I was able to learn from my parents and grandmothers. (The other reason was to share new recipes -- a real mix of both.) I don't make kishka, though I do remember helping my parents make it once or twice when I was very young. And my grandmother made helzel (very similar, using the skin from a turkey neck rather than intestine) but I never got her recipe. What do you use for casing? I remember when we made it we used synthetic casings -- the turkey skin seems like a better option. It would add flavour that synthetic casings obviously wouldn't. I'd love to see your recipe.

Hmm. Interesting. The only thing I make that I insist on using non-stick for is the blintzes. Until your comment though, I didn't even think about discussing this Passover-related issue. If you keep a kosher kitchen, you have multiple sets of everything: dishes, cutlery (that's Canadian for silverware), knives, pots and pans. You have one set for meat and another for milk -- and at work we have, as some people might in their homes -- another set for parve (which means neutral and is neither for milk nor meat). For Passover, you have to have a whole other set of everything - in milk and meat and maybe parve (although some things can be 'kashered' or made usable for Passover). But because it's only for 1 week, I have very few pots and pans for Passover and I never really thought about it, but my Passover pans do seem to be non-stick. They are also inexpensive, bought at the grocery store pans. None of my pots are. That's so interesting. I assume it's Yiddish, but might be Polish. What dialect are we talking about?

I first heard it from a coworker about 15 years ago. She swore it was her, her mother and grandmother in the story, and that's how I always related it -- until a student told me not long ago that it was a pretty common myth. So in these classes, I not only teach, I often learn, too. I always heard it was a brisket. Great article, Dave. I felt good about my recent cook-top purchase (electric), now I feel better. Plus, my building doesn't have any gas.

I have to try it with onion. That could only add goodness to it. Occasionally I'll add fresh chives, parsley and dill, but I've never tried fried onions.

Oh, do it. And report back, please.

Have I mentioned how important eggs are during Passover? They're used a lot. And for lunch we had eggs, with salami. Once a year we make salami and eggs. Today was the day. Slice the salami and cut into smaller chunks. Into a dry pan over med-high heat. When it's nice and brown, add some eggs -- no need to add anything else. The salami will flavour the eggs. Cook until done - no runny eggs in this dish. Lunch for 4. Ketchup is optional. And, once a year is enough. Next batch is scheduled for April, 2012.

Interestingly enough, I thought you lived "out in the country!" Hey! Winnipeg is the 'big city' in these parts. Yes, unless I'm using one of the myriad fancy salts I have clogging up my pantry. Why?

Not up here, David. We get all of our schmaltz from chicken soup. We make so much chicken soup that we can usually get a couple of litres of fat from a batch. My grandmother used to make it from chicken skin, and if you were lucky you got a piece of the gribenes (what remains from the skin and fat) as a treat. The chicken soup method is easier.

You're exactly right. You menu sounds exotic - and fabulous! I'd love to cook for Passover with you -- a bit from your menu, a bit from mine.

Floaters, but not the lightest in the world. I prefer them in between. I want to be able to chew them, not have them completely dissolve. I had a cousin who made cannonballs when I was a kid. I don't want them too dense, but I don't want them heavy either. I find you can adjust the density by adjusting the amount of matzo meal in the mix. How do you like them?

My blintzes aren't really crunchy, though the potato would be considered crunchier than the cheese (even though the wrapper is the same for both, they really brown up differently). They're more . . silky? Mushy or light and fluffy? If they're too light, add some more matzo meal to the mix. Oh, chicken feet. I've never used them because we can't get them, but my grandmother always used chicken feet in her soup -- and my uncle always sat at the dinner table gnawing at it. All of our chicken comes from out-of-province and apparently they're not allowed to ship the feet across provincial borders. At least, that' what we've been told.

Thanks! Wish we had some local produce to show off. At least there's no snow on the ground here.

I use both, actually. I like David's kosher. When I'm baking or adding salt to dressings or batters, I prefer table salt -- it just dissolves better. I use the kosher salt when I seasoned the brisket, the roasted potatoes, etc. We also use it for what it's really meant for -- when we broil the livers for chopped liver, they get salted with kosher salt to pull out any excess blood. Because it doesn't dissolve completely it's supposed to rinse off better after the broiling. Do you use kosher salt only?

I've had a lot of luck finding things from Ballard Designs (Click Here) Congratulations on your new condo! Happy decorating Rhonda Ooh. I've never been to that site. They actually have one that I like that isn't too pricey. . will have to investigate shipping to Canada. Thanks! And most of the design choices have been made, thankfully. I just have to pick the counter (will be going with quartz) and the backsplash (probably glass). Otherwise, the floor will be grey (polished cement) and the IKEA cabinets have been sitting in the garage since October , and all of my stainless steel appliances are waiting in my builder's house out in the country! Everything is white and stainless, so I want to try to bring some colour in with the stools and backsplash. Counters will be white -- better for picture taking (all of the pictures for my last cookbook were taken on my kitchen table.

I just asked the same question in my eG foodblog. Why is it so hard to find good stools? I want the same things as you -- a back, they have to be comfortable, not expensive, adjustable would be good too. The only stools I've found locally that fit the criteria missed one -- they're about $500 each.

Good morning! I'm running a little behind this morning. Today we were supposed to open the store at 10 AM -- I got here at 9:30 and the store was packed and the phone ringing off the hook (my father opened the door when he got here). Lots to answer and post - I'll be back as soon as I can! PS: A couple of blintzes and some fresh fruit for breakfast.

I'm not sure what's on for tomorrow. The store is open, so I'll be at work. As I mentioned earlier, I'm waiting for my condo to be finished -- I'm hoping to get down there tomorrow if possible. If I can, I'll get some pictures of my new kitchen. I also have a non-Passover related question. I've been looking for kitchen stools for months and can't find anything I like. Anybody have good ones? They need to be comfortable as they'll probably be the only seating in the kitchen. And I'd rather not have to sell my stove to pay for them. Why is it so hard to find good stools?

I have been to Israel a couple of times, but never during Passover. I'd guess that it's easier to keep Passover in Israel than it is here. They actually have restaurants that are open during the holiday (actually, so do cities with large Jewish populations like NY and Miami). And from reports I hear there are lots of products that are available there and not here (I bring in over 1000 products that are kosher for Passover, but it can't compare.) There are different traditions and influences there. In Winnipeg, the Jewish population is mostly Ashkenazi -- from Russia and Eastern Europe. So this group traditionally doesn't eat kitniyot (discussed earlier -- no legumes, corn, seeds, etc.). This is a very simplistic explanation- Israel has a much larger mix of Ashkenazi, Sephardi and Mizrachi Jews. For the most part the non-Ashkenazi Jews eat kitniyot and their food is influenced by the countries and regions they come from: Spain, Portugal, Morroco, Iraq, etc. From what I understand, the lines are a little more blurred in Israel. In Canada, canola oil is considered kitniyot and not used by Ashkenazim. In Israel, from what I understand, it's used by many. We have a family friend here who is Israeli but her parents are from Morocco. I've been lucky enough to eat in her home during Passover and she's an amazing cook. Lots of spices and flavours that aren't used much in Ashkenazi cooking. If anybody cooks Sephardi foods please tell us more! I'd love to get the chance to spend time in Israel learning more about Sephardi and Mizrachi cooking.

Dinner was salad and blintzes (salad had a little of my favourite feta cheese in it). To finish the blintzes, they need to be browned. Use oil of your choice or butter. If I'm making potato blintzes to go with a meat meal, I'll use oil -- since tonight was dairy, went with butter. A little sour cream (also from Western Creamery) on the potato blintz and some of the strawberry/blueberry sauce I made for the matzo brei yesterday on the cheese blintzes. Delicious!

Assembly All done. Stick them in the fridge until ready for dinner.

Love me some blintzes, but please make them potato. Since you asked so nicely, I made potato blintzes for you and cheese blintzes for me. Then I forced myself to have both for dinner. For the potato filling, I use red potatoes and yellow onion. Peel and cut the potatoes into 1/4's then into a pot of cold water. Boil until tender. While that's going, brown some onions (ok, lots, not some). I used grapeseed oil. Drain the potatoes, add the onions, salt, black pepper and some garlic powder and mash 'em. For the cheese filling, I wanted to keep it simple. Pressed cheese, eggs, salt and a little sugar. You can add more flavourings to this -- I make a version with a little vanilla and orange zest, but not tonight. Now we're ready to roll some blintzes.

Blintzes First you have to make the bletlach (wrappers). I have two recipes that I like, one using matzo cake meal and one that uses potato starch. The cake meal recipe uses sugar and is closer to a crepe than the potato recipe. Today I went with the potato starch recipe. Ingredients: water, potato starch, eggs and salt. I whisk it together in a measuring cup, let it sit for 5-10 minutes and whisk again before using: Heat a small, non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Brush with oil, then pour a little batter into the pan. Swirl the batter around then pour any excess back into the measuring cup. Whisk the batter before each blettle. Cook until the edges start to release and the top of the wrapper is dry. Use a spatula to loosen the blettle and turn the pan over -- the blettle should release easily. Repeat until you've used all of the batter.

With a machine? This is the first time I've seen the round ones. Last Passover they were square. I have no idea if this is the reasoning behind it, but I wonder if they changed the shape so they wouldn't be confused with the regular, square ones.

Plenty! After a piece of matzo & butter with a few slices of fruit earlier this morning, lunch was a small bowl of chicken soup, a slice of brisket and piece of kugel. There's enough for a few more meals. The croutons are very popular. During the year they are little square-shapes and made from wheat - and called "shkedi marak" which means soup almonds. They hold the crunch a little better than the Passover potato version, and I like both, but I think I prefer the Passover circles. Thanks, Heidi. I don't do anything special -- lots of chicken, onions, carrots, parsnips & celery. Then some dill and salt. Here's my eGCI chicken soup demo . I know some people leave the skins on their onions and claim it adds the yellow colour, but I've never done that and still get yellow soup every time. First, for liver to be kosher it has to be broiled (click here for explanation). Once it's been broiled and cooked through, it's ready to go. We use a meat grinder and mix it with lots of onions that have been really well cooked in oil or chicken schmaltz (until soft and uniformly browned), hard boiled eggs and salt. Beef/calf or chicken livers can be used. Some people hand-chop the liver but we make too much for that. Even at home, making a small batch I'll use a food processor, just pulse it until it's the right texture for you. My pleasure! Thanks for reading and playing along.