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Passover, the eight-day-long holiday celebrating the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt, is right around the corner, extending from March 27-April 4 this year. Jewish families observe the holiday with a Seder, a traditional storytelling and feast typically performed on the first two nights. While chametz, any food made with leavening, is a no-no for the full eight days, the unleavened flatbread matzo gets its week in the sun — from chocolate-toffee matzo to matzo ball soup.
Looking for someone else to do the heavy lifting for the Seder this year? We’ve got you covered with offerings from a humble bowl of matzo ball soup to an all-out feast for six, plus a few family recipes for the DIY types.
TAKEOUT AROUND TOWN
Dinamo
An a la carte dream come true, including:
Whitefish: $28 per pound
Chopped liver $25 per pound
Matzo ball soup with chicken broth and carrots: 1 quart (6 balls), $12
Half roasted chicken with white wine and garlic, $21
Brisket in tomato (single, generous portion), $22
Order: via phone (804-678-9706) for pickup
Perly’s
Matzo ball soup ($9 bowl, $5 cup), available for pickup. Order online.
Susie & Esther
A complete feast with options that include brisket with horseradish and mashed potatoes, cabbage rolls with labneh or tahini, potato latkes with spiced apple jam and labneh, matzo ball soup, haroset (a kind of chutney of walnuts, apples and honey), chopped liver, cured salmon over labneh, and coconut macarons. All available on the night of Monday, March 29.
Jewfro
A big spread for groups of two ($75), four ($145) or six ($210) including Passover fare with African flavors, like Matzo Ball Kendjenou Soup, Doro Wat Turkey Breast and Zigni Brisket, plus a whole Seder Plate that’s ready to go! Order online for pre-sundown pickup on March 26 or 27.
Whisk
Flourless chocolate cake ($35) available by online preorder, for pickup March 27 or 28. (The cake includes a chocolate ganache that’s not kosher for Passover, which can be omitted upon request.)
Garnish, Weinstein JCC and Keneseth Beth Israel
If you’re looking for the whole kosher* kit and kaboodle, including matzo ball soup, brisket, kugel and tsimmis for six, plus all the components of a proper Seder plate delivered to your door, this is your play. Don’t sleep on the banana coffee cake. Online ordering is open until noon on March 22, with pickup and delivery available until 4:30 p.m. on March 26 and 3 p.m. on March 27. $235 plus tax and delivery.
*prepared in a kosher style but not in a kosher kitchen
LOCAL RECIPES
Braised Lamb Shank
Ari Augenbaum, chef and co-owner of JewFro
Serves 4
4 lamb shanks
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons pepper
4 tablespoons za’atar spice blend (recipe below)
10 sprigs rosemary
10 cloves garlic (smashed)
2 carrots
3 stalks celery
1 onion
3 cups red wine
4 cups beef stock
Preheat oven to 350. Chop carrots, celery and onion and eight cloves of garlic. Sprinkle with oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 15-20 minutes until carrots are soft. Remove from oven and lower oven temp to 325.
Mix all dry seasonings together, and season the lamb generously all the way around. Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil and add the remaining garlic cloves and three rosemary sprigs. Sear the lamb all the way around, about three to four minutes per side (reserve the jus).
In an oven-safe pan, add roasted vegetables, beef stock and red wine, give a quick stir. Put lamb shanks, remaining rosemary and searing jus into the pan and cover tightly with plastic wrap and foil. Cook at 325 for two and a half hours, until lamb is fall-off-the-bone soft.
Za’atar
1 tablespoon thyme
3 tablespoons oregano
4 tablespoons marjoram
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
4 tablespoons sumac
1 tablespoon salt
Directions: Mix it all up!
Cantor Family Matzo Stuffing
Yael Cantor, co-founder of Susie & Esther
16 ounces mixed mushrooms
1 stick butter or margarine (for Kosher recipe)
1 yellow onion, diced
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
Thyme, sage and rosemary
Salt and pepper
6 to 8 sheets of matzo, broken into pieces
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups chicken broth
Preheat oven to 350. Saute the mushrooms with olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat and set aside. In the same pan, melt the butter on medium-high heat and saute onions and celery until tender. Add garlic and fresh herbs and continue to cook for another two minutes.
Remove pan from heat and mix all the ingredients together in a baking dish. Bake for 30 min or more if needed.
Apple Kugel
Rachelle Rosengarten, chef at Perly's
4 large apples, Granny Smith or any tart apple, cored and cut into medium dice
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
6 plain matzos
8 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup dried apricots, medium, chopped
4 tablespoons, cut into small pieces, for casserole topping
Preheat the oven to 350. Toss the apples with the brown sugar and orange juice, set aside in a medium bowl. Break the matzoh into 2- to 3-inch pieces and soak in 1 cup of warm water until soft but not mushy. Set aside.
While the matzoh soaks, beat the eggs with a wire whisk in a large bowl until blended. Add the salt, sugar, cinnamon, melted butter, raisins, and apricots. Squeeze the liquid from the softened matzoh and add the matzoh to the egg mixture with the apples. Stir the kugel well and pour into a lightly greased 2 1/2-quart casserole dish or a 10-by-14-inch pan. Dot the top of the kugel with the 4 tablespoons of butter.
Bake the kugel for one hour. Cover with foil if the top begins to become too brown early in the baking. Remove the kugel from the oven and cool to room temperature.
Passover Chocolate-chip Cookie
Claudia Strobig, owner of Claudia’s Bake Shop
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup potato starch
2/3 cup matzo cake meal
Pinch salt
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips (or more ... I always use more!!)
Preheat oven to 375. In a stand mixer, mix butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Fold in potato starch, cake meal and salt. Fold in chips. Scoop on to parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are set and not wet looking. Cool on a wire rack before serving.
