This year for Passover, it will be 1 year and a month that I will be a married woman and have the first and second seder in my home. Dan and I will be having his parents and brother, and my mother and grandmother. (Our dining room won’t hold much more than that) I am excited that we are the ones hosting this year because it signifies the start to our family. Eventually as our family grows, we will continue the tradition with our children and Dan will lead the Seder. Passover has always been my favorite holiday and this year it is no different.
I will share some of my recipe plans for this year, but first I would like to highlight my friend Leah Koenig. She is a really great writer that I met while giving a rustic Italian class at the Center for Kosher Culinary Arts. Since then, she has been very kind to think of me when any culinary event would come up. She did a great interview with me when she worked on The Jew & The Carrot .
Most recently, Leah asked me to contribute to her new cookbook and I was honored. My contributions include: Sesame Seed Chicken Cutlets, Grilled Lamb Chops with Mint Chimichurri, Beer Braised Beef and Cumin & Cilantro Burgers.
The Hadassah Everyday Cookbook – Daily Meals for the Contemporary Jewish Kitchen has an array of beautiful recipes and some that are well suited for Passover: Simple Pea Soup with Leeks Pg. 109, Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon Pg. 147, Ricotta and Pistachio Stuffed Figs Pg. 206. This hefty cookbook is very convenient and easy to read with labels for Meat, Dairy and Pareve. Leah really writes with colorful words and makes you feel like you are in her kitchen talking over coffee. The photography of Lucy Schaeffer is so well done, it makes the food look like it is jumping off the pages. I am flattered that I was asked to contribute to such a great project and I highly recommend picking up a copy.
As for my Passover Menu, I plan to make traditional meals with a little updating:
Caramelized Onion Matzah Ball Soup (Onions inside the matzah balls, yum!)
Eggplant Salad with Garlic & Dill
Romaine Salad with Cucumbers, Mandarin Oranges & Toasted Almonds
Braised Brisket
Zesty Fish Cakes with Red Pepper Aioli
Crispy Roasted Chicken With Lemon, Garlic & Fresh Herbs
Smoked Green Beans
Roasted Potatoes with Citrus Gremolata
If there is one thing I must say about Passover – please stick to natural foods of the earth and don’t get caught up in substitutions because who really wants “pasta” for Passover – who knows what it is made up of. If you plan ahead and are creative, you will be able to find recipes that work for Passover without crazy ingredients. Pick up a copy of the Hadassah Cookbook and you’ll get many ideas.
I have no idea how so many bloggers got into the Pesach mood weeks ago. I only dragged my dishes up from the basement yesterday morning. Good luck with your sederim. I could never have handled that much my first month of marriage. Go you!
Hi Molly – thanks for visiting. I hope you had a nice Seder 🙂