bloviatrix

I can't help but wonder if the good Rabbi has been chatting with my father who, on a regular basis, extolls the joys of Concord Grape or Malaga.

Can you imagine the look on the new owner's face when they were digging up the flower beds? My mom doesn't have plants. She sprouts knives and forks and......

Clothier -- from what I know, it's easier to go out and buy a new oven. While on the subject of kashering - how many of you have mother's who hide the treyfed up cutlery in pots of dirt? My theory on the dirt is that back in the old country, they stuck the stuff in the dirt in order to minimize the possibility of mix-up. And somehow it got co-opted.

In case you haven't looked at a Jewish calendar for next year.... Passover will be the latest I can ever remember. First seder will be on April 25th which is a saturday night. This means Passover will end in the month of May!

I set myself on fire about 18 months ago. I reaching up into a cabinet about the stove forgetting the fact that I had the front burner on. A couple of moments later I smelled fire and noticed flames coming from the bottom of my shirt. Furtunately, my sink is about 18 inches to the left of my stove. I kept the shirt as a momento.

Ok...now you REALLY have to explain this to me. What do they taste like? Cardboard sandwiches? Soba The only good thing about matzo is that it's crispy. The bad thing is that it's bland and dry -- a little cardboardy. But the problem with using it as a bread substitute (in addition to lack of taste) is that it has no give, so when you bite into it, the whole thing breaks apart into shards. So, when using matzo as a base, you're best going with the open faced sandwich. Of course, you still need to eat it very gingerly otherwise you'll be wearing your food. For the past few years, my matzo sandwich of choice has had whitefish. But then, I think whitefish cures a myriad of ills. We didn't get back to chametz until this morning. Breakfast was oatmeal. Lunch was garlic rotini. I'm a very happy girl.

Can you please elaborate on this bit of information. I'm intrigued.

You've just brought back another repressed memory. The first time I ever made lemon pudding I didn't force it through a strainer and found bits of coagulated egg in my bowl. The texture was very disconcerting and ruined the dish for me. I learned my lesson that day.

Which kind did you buy? The brand is Goodmans. And I thought they only made soup mix.

I have an admission to make. I went out and bought macarroons. I was craving something sweet and unhealthy. So I went to the market and picked them up. I stuck with the plain coconut ones thinking the plainer they are the less likely they'll be screwed up. They're ok, but overly sweet. And definitely not worth the 50 calories per. My husband gave me hard time for bringing them home considering how disdainful I am of them. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. I feel better now.

You can get KP glass bottles of Coke? Cool. The only thing available in NY are the 2 litre plastic ones.

I nominate Jon for donating his taste buds to a fruit slice taste-off.

Along those lines, the matzo eaters were out in full force at Opening Day at Yankee Stadium according to one of my friends who was there. My Passover memory as a kid -- my dad taking me to see the Easter Show at Radio City Music Hall (I know, sacreligious). And bringing matzo sandwiches for lunch. As a teenager, since we were off from school the whole week, we would go shopping in Manhattan during chol moed. We were too embarrassed to eat our matzo sandwiches in public so we'd eat them in a dressing room at Saks while supposedly trying on clothes.

There's a grocery store on Kings Road about a 5 minute walk from Sloan Square which is good for staples. Near Draycott Avenue (at least I think that's the street -- it's been a couple of years). And there's Rococo, the chocolate shop -- 321 Kings Road.

Here's the announcement in today's paper regaring the the announcement: Frank Bruni new restaurant critic In response to Sam's question about the $25 and under culumn it says:

Why so long? Do you have one of those War and Peace hagaddahs? Wait there's more -- we went so long, that we didn't even bother with Achad Mi Yodeah, Chad Gadya, or Adir Hoo. And the singing is my favorite part. But, I got out of saying the 4 Questions for the first time in my life. BONUS!!

Larry, you couldn't miss the oak in the 2000. It was so strong it hit you over the head with a mallet. Based on your comments, I'll assume they've gone back to their old ways -- thank goodness.

Larry, what's the oak situation with the Teal Lake Shiraz? I loved the 1999 vintage (I cornered the market on it and still have half a case) but found in 2000 they started to go wood crazy and it overpowered the wine.

After reading the ideas here, I've got to run out and rent some Bollywood flicks.

Soba, it's funny you should ask that question because that's one of the reasons we ran so late on the first night. In Israel, Passover is celebrated for 7 days with 1 seder. In the diaspora, we celebrate 8 days with 2 seders. The reasons for this is that way back, 2000 years ago, we didn't have fancy calendars and such and the extra days were added as a precautionary measure in case the calendar got mixed up. It's kind of like widening the strike zone -- the more days you have the greater chance you'll be celebrating at the proper time. Now, you are thinking "but nowadays, we know the correct dates, why not celebrate the 7 days w/one seder?" But, the way it works is that once you're doing something it becomes part of the tradition and can't be changed -- there's no going back. At our table we were debating the "when in Israel for Passover do you hold by 1 or 2 sederim and 7 or 8 days" issue. I go by the requirements of the land -- a when in Rome attitude. My bil disagrees.

We set a record this year for ending the seder. Night 1 was about 2:15 and night 2 was closer to 3 am. And to think this is a holiday where you're supposed to involve the kids.

Soba -- matzo brei is a traditional Pesach dish, but it's very casual food eaten during the week. Some eat it for breakfast, others at lunch or dinner.

As I read this blog, one word keeps popping into my head..... ROADTRIP!!!

The perfect title for an upcoming bestseller: Briskets of My Past ..... What about Briskets I Have Known, and Loved?? GG -- how did yours turn out? Blovie and I determined that my brisket last weekend was better than his mom's for seder #2. Yeah Al!! I'm waiting for you to become brisket obsessed.

There are two schools of matzo brei making: the "scrambled egg' style, which is loose and the "fritatta"style. Blovie is the matzo brei maestro in our house. His ratio is 2 sheets matzo to 1 egg with 1.5 matzos per person. He makes it fritatta style and has been known to throw in a hidden layer of mozzerella. The only allowable fat is butter. We ate fish for lunch today and yesterday. I guess the matzo brei will come on the last days.