Passover 2002–2005

[JFLinLA]

The seders of my childhood in the '50's and early 60's included both my mother's and father's families; my mother's side of the family always ate the plain hard boiled eggs, and my father's side of the family always ate what we called "egg water," which sounds like what bloviatrix describes. I always thought it not only sounded disgusting, but tasted awful as well. I haven't thought about it in years, but appreciate the memory of it now.

I do not serve egg water at our seders. I also have to say that for some of the kids at the seder, the plain hard boiled egg is the favorite food.

Food nut -- it sounds like my house. My family comes from the "whole hard-boiled egg dipped in salt water" tradition. My husband comes from the "egg-soup" tradition. So, for the sake of "Shalom Bayit," we put out both and people get to choose.

[KatieLoeb]

We do the same thing, except my family is too lazy to dice it up.  We just shmush is around in the salt water.

I am in hysterics over this comment!!

My mother makes a point of remarking to guests that it was my father's family introduced the shmushing to our family

So, is this meant to imply that it is a genetically acquired trait passed down on one's paternal side of the family?

Or, rather a learned behavior? The scientist in me wants to know the details ... lest it be mentioned at our dysfunctional but oh so p.c. seder!!

In my family, the tradition revolves around whtether you are a "dunker" or a "shpritzer". This has to do with whether you make a pile of cinnamon sugar on your plate to neatly dunk bites of matzah meal/cottage cheese latkes or whether you sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over your matzah meal/cottage cheese latkes.

Yeah - so we're neurotic. What's your point?

[Squeat Mungry]

Why wouldn't you do both?

Merry Pesach!

Squeat

Edited to explain: I'm actually curious about both traditions, because I know very little about either one.

Edited April 2, 2004 by Squeat Mungry (log)

[clothier]

The tish-pishti is nothing like the baklava noted above. Only the syrup concept is the same.

Since we are talkin' tishpishti here, let's just note that for some Yiddish speakers, the phrase can be loosely translated as "pee on the table" .... could I make such a thing up even??

But then there is a legitimate recipe which actually looks pretty simple, and even clothier would have to admit, albeit grudgingly, that it has a marvelous sweet taste and moist texture ...

http://www.parenthood.com/recipe_display.html?ID=19464

i love tishpishti, i think i'm the real reason my mom makes it. everyone else makes fun of it.

but it's so sweet and yummy.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Why wouldn't you do both?

Merry Pesach!

Squeat

Edited to explain: I'm actually curious about both traditions, because I know very little about either one.

The dual traditions allow for one's individual nutsiness ... or rather integrity ... that's why Jews have so many traditions ... so one can point out the "one I wouldn't be caught dead doing".... it only makes sense if you know the "setup" ... and applies to all manner of things ... i.e. that's the synagogue which is a breakaway of the breakaway ... etc. etc. and I would never belong to that!

Merry Pesach to you, too, Squeat! with tidings of comfort and joy ...

[jackal10]

Some of the glories of Passover are the cakes and biscuits. My favourites are

Cinnamon Balls

Coconut Pyramids

Maccaroons

Who else makes them?

[Gifted Gourmet]

Some of the glories of Passover are the cakes and biscuits. My favourites are

Cinnamon Balls

Coconut Pyramids

Maccaroons

Who else makes them?

I make a mock oatmeal cookie which contains farfel, nuts, cinnamon, and so forth ....

It is from my husband's grandmother and never a year goes by without his requesting them ....

[Suzanne F]

So, Gifted, are you posting the "fauxtmeal cookie" recipe in eGRA?

And can someone please tell me how much cloves should REALLY be in that tishpishti? One pound seems a bit excessive, no?

[Gifted Gourmet]

So, Gifted, are you posting the "faux oatmeal cookie" recipe in eGRA? 

And can someone please tell me how much cloves should REALLY be in that tishpishti?  One pound seems a bit excessive, no?

Will post the Passover faux oatmeal cookies since you asked me so nicely, Suzanne!! Update: it is now in eGRA!

A pound of cloves must surely be a misprint!! Even the Dentyne Gum Company doesn't use that much in a year!!

research reveals: should have read "a dash of cloves"!!

Edited April 3, 2004 by Gifted Gourmet (log)

[Raynickben]

Ok, stupid question here:

Having grown up Methodist I'm kind of new to Passover (actually this will be my 12th year) and I am making the turkey and my mother-in-law just called to tell me not to forget to bring the neck bone which she uses as the shank bone. Am I suppossed to roast the bone? How long and at what temp? Just cook it along with the turkey?

Thanks.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Ok, stupid question here:

Having grown up Methodist I'm kind of new to Passover (actually this will be my 12th year) and I am making the turkey and my mother-in-law just called to tell me not to forget to bring the neck bone which she uses as the shank bone. Am I suppossed to roast the bone? How long and at what temp? Just cook it along with the turkey?

Thanks.

Not a stupid question at all! Just cook the turkey as usual and save the neckbone (I rarely have turkeys with those, just pin feathers) and roast it briefly on a piece of aluminum foil ... I use a wingbone from my cooked soup chicken and roast that briefly ... or a lamb shankbone is also used by some ... good luck with this effort!

[hillvalley]

We do the same thing, except my family is too lazy to dice it up.  We just shmush is around in the salt water.

I am in hysterics over this comment!!

My mother makes a point of remarking to guests that it was my father's family introduced the shmushing to our family

So, is this meant to imply that it is a genetically acquired trait passed down on one's paternal side of the family?

Or, rather a learned behavior? The scientist in me wants to know the details ... lest it be mentioned at our dysfunctional but oh so p.c. seder!!

Learned Behavior Currently being passed down to the fourth generation.

My mother has reminded us (my father and I) that there we are hosting strangers at our second seder and to break them in gently.

It must be almost passover because I am now craving matzah brie with sugar and cinnamon.

So who puts an orange on their sedar plate?

[Gifted Gourmet]

So who puts an orange on their sedar plate?

For those who might be unfamiliar with the concept of placing an orange on the Seder plate, there is some information here which might better explain this custom:

http://www.miriamscup.com/Heschel_orange.htm

[Pan]

That's a new one on me.

One interesting thing about Pesach is that it's celebrated in so many ways, not only by practicing Jews of various degrees of orthodoxy but by so many irreligious Jews. One of the seders I'm going to will be at my father's cousin's apartment. Until a few years before his father Shoil Gutman died at the age of 96, Uncle Shoil used to conduct the seder as a Yiddish nationalist ceremony, complete with the singing in Yiddish of the Partisan's Song and another song (In der Lant der Piramidn, if my spelling is right) which doesn't mention God but celebrates Moses as a hero of the Jewish nation and credits him with things believers would credit to God. In large part in Shoil's honor, we continue to sing the Partisan's Song every Pesach. Shoil was an atheist who tried his best to promote Yiddish secular nationalism. His American name was Saul Goodman, and you can read a description of his book The Faith of Secular Jews here:

http://www.ifshj.org/bookforum/philosophy_goodman.html

His efforts to promote Yiddish secular nationalism can be very reasonably said to have failed miserably, but he was a sincere and very interesting man, and I was certainly glad to know him.

[afoodnut]

So who puts an orange on their sedar plate?

We've been putting an orange on the seder plate for some years now.

Our first seder after I heard the (apocryphal?)story about a rabbi saying "a woman belongs on the bima about as much as an orange belongs on a seder plate," I told the story. Everyone laughed, then clamored for an orange; I went to the kitchen, got an orange, and put it on the seder plate. We've included it ever since.

[ronnie_suburban]

Cook the egg for 12 hours at exactly 60C/140F.

You will be amazed. (try one before seder, just in case you don't like it)

Maybe a sauce and a base or filling..to go with.. see the BIG EGG List

Jack, can you add anything to this? Can I store them between the cooking and the sedar? If so, what is the preferred method?

Thanks,

=R=

[bloviatrix]

Some of the glories of Passover are the cakes and biscuits. My favourites are

Cinnamon Balls

Coconut Pyramids

Maccaroons

Who else makes them?

In not familiar with cinnamon balls or coconut pyramids. Do you have recipes to share?

As for maccaroons, I make hazelnut ones (the canned ones are banned in my house).

My mom has a recipe for Pesach mandlebrodt which are really pretty good, although the texture is a bit sandy. She hasn't handed the recipe over yet.

[Gifted Gourmet]

It is all right here for your perusal:

http://www.jewish-food.org/recipes/pcoindex.htm ....

along with a lot more variations on the same theme!

You did check out my Faux Oatmeal Cookies at eGRA, no?? Enjoy ... ess, ess, mein kindt ...

[bloviatrix]

Thanks for the link. Some of those cookies look pretty good.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Thanks for the link. Some of those cookies look pretty good.

An overstatement to say the least .... they aren't Pepperidge Farms so I am less than sanguine about the results ...

[SethG]

...I love the holidays, it's my relatives that I can't stand.

So, I just found out my Mom has been lurking around the site.

Mom, I still love you, and I know it's not your fault. You didn't marry her.

OK?

This kills me. Are you forgiven, Clothier?

And another question. My aunt uses the same shank bone for her Seder plate every year. She has some story about how she had to twist some butcher's arm in order to get it. She's kept it in the freezer for decades. It emerges every year, looking... not bad, actually. Is this a common practice in any of your families?

[Gifted Gourmet]

And another question.  My aunt uses the same shank bone for her Seder plate every year.  She has some story about how she had to twist some butcher's arm in order to get it.  She's kept it in the freezer for decades.  It emerges every year, looking... not bad, actually.  Is this a common practice in any of your families?

This kills me. Are you forgiven, Clothier?

Selachti ... oops, wrong holiday!! Slicha!!!

Actually Clothier, you are still in the will, no?

Your aunt recycles a shankbone?? I can see paper and plastic recycling, but this is another story altogether!! Never knew anyone who did this .... talk about ecologically correct!

[jaynesb]

I'd like to recommend a recipe for flourless, butterless dark chocolate cookies that is attributed to Payard. I found it in the Gourmet Forum on the Epicurious website. Supposedly, it appeared in April 2002 Gourmet magazine as a "You asked for it" recipe but I couldn't find it with the site's recipe search.

The cookies were really yummy when I did a taste test with regular confectioner's sugar last month. I hope it will work as well with the Passover confectioner's sugar. (The difference is cornstarch versus potato starch.)

The one change I would make would be to make the cookies smaller. The recipe calls for making 5 cookies per baking sheet and they spread a lot. I'm not sure how long smaller cookies will need to bake but the instructions are pretty clear about how to tell when the cookies are done.

This link should get you to the forum and you just need to scroll down to posting #193.

http://eat.epicurious.com/forums/gourmetmagazine/

The Payard website has these available for sale and provides a photo of the finished cookie. Their version is not certified Kosher.

http://www.payard.com/eb2/product_info.php...&products_id=91

Wishing everybody a very Happy Passover.

Jayne

[Gifted Gourmet]

Back to the grocery tomorrow morning for more ingredients!!

Thanks for the chocolate Passover cookie recipe!! A definite thing to try for this year!!

[KatieLoeb]

I just finished making a big 'ol batch of fresh horseradish for the seder. Oooo-weeee! My eyes are still watering. Used a couple of large roasted fresh beets this year instead of the canned baby beets. I'm hoping the lower water content of the fresh roasted makes for a less "diluted" end result. I think it worked

I test drove a big spoonful on a piece of gefilte fish (there' just no other way to see if it needs more salt or not!) and it's just perfect. Hot enough to lift the top of your head off and remind you where the recesses of your sinus cavity are

Tomorrow - charoset!