Kiss The Kosher Cook
Passover pastries
By Malkie Hirsch
“So, you buy any dry rub, use that on the chicken, and then place the whole chicken over a half-full can of beer and keep it on the grill or put in the oven . . .”
You’d think this conversation would be happening over lunch with some girlfriends or possibly on my active Facebook food group, Kiss the Kosher Cook.
Nope.
At the doctor’s office. On the examining table. Speaking to the doctor, who happens to love four-ingredient recipes.
I find this kind of thing happening more and more often, as the weeks progress and people notice my column. I love everything to do with food, so if you happen to see me and want to tell me about the best new recipe you tried over Shabbos or if you have any food-related question, don’t be shy! I’ll always try to help, but something to know about me—I’m just like you. I didn’t grow up cooking in my childhood home. Rather, I learned “on the job” as a young mother. I make cooking mistakes all of the time. I can’t achieve edible Rice Krispies Treats to save my life, and you all know that I just learned how to boil hot dogs two weeks ago. I also compete in a “Chopped” competition nearly every day of my life with my children and their individual food likes/dislikes.
Speaking of difficult food situations, we’ve got a pretty fun holiday on the horizon. I’ve tried procrastinating as long as possible, but I have to say the word, and then maybe the actions will follow.
Pesach.
- I’ve done this before; I’ll do it again! This holiday has such a bad food rep, mainly because of all the food restrictions. But the food advances that have been made as of late are mind-boggling. Michele (my amazing editor) sent me a fascinating article about the process of making Coca-Cola, as well as other popular food products, kosher l’Pesach.
According to this article, which is written about a new book, Kosher USA, the process that the OU goes through to deem things appropriate for Pesach consumption is physically and financially exerting. It speaks about the process that Rabbi Tobias Geffen went through to take apart the ingredients in Coca-Cola and ultimately getting the company to remove high-fructose corn syrup from their formula for Pesach and substitute actual sugar. It also mentions that according to Lubicom Marketing Consulting, this past Kosherfest estimated 600 new Pesach items being sold for the kosher consumer. I am sure that as the years progress, that number will increase. But just imagine how much we have now in comparison to our parents and grandparents, who pretty much ate chicken and potatoes for two weeks!
I remember going as a child with my family to a variety of Pesach hotels. Walking into the Kiddush room and surveying the table, I noticed something that looked pretty impressive for Pesach standards—sushi made with quinoa instead of rice. In this article, it describes how the OU sends a rabbi to the mountains of Peru to check on how they’re packaging the quinoa and to make sure that it isn’t made chametz in any way. It also speaks about certain one-ingredient items (coffee, for example) that don’t require a kosher-for-Passover hechsher. That doesn’t apply to decaffeinated coffees, since there is a certain alcohol grain used in the decaffeination process.
Since we went away for Pesach for many years of my childhood, I didn’t have a full grasp of the tremendous undertaking that making this yom tov requires. It was only when my two youngest boys were born shortly before yom tov that I decided that anything was better than packing up little boys plus newborn and moving into our parents’ homes. We were going to stay home. Once you get your pots and pans and silverware that first year, it’s not as big a deal the following years. There are plenty of recipes you make during the year that can be made for Pesach as well.
What do I find the most fun on Pesach? The baking!
My mother always had the cooking down. She could make a mean roast or chicken or even dairy meals in the blink of an eye. But baking was a different beast, and most of the desserts were store-bought. When I married into my husband’s family, I knew that my father-in-law had a popular Pesach bakery called Hirsch Bros Bakery in East Flatbush. And boy, could he bake! The desserts we ate on Pesach were so much better than anything I thought possible on such a stringent yom tov. Runny chocolate cakes with the center all oozy and amazing. An incredible mix that he created and sold to companies that made pizza dough seemed too good to be kosher l’Pesach. He was a mad scientist in the kitchen and we all benefited (and gained weight) from his delicious desserts.
Once I was ready to start working on Pesach baking, I tested a bunch of recipes and, through the process of elimination, determined the favorites.
What I love about baking on this yom tov, more than any other, is that I know exactly what’s going into the desserts I’m serving. I find that a lot of the store-bought dessert items taste the same—overwhelmingly of almond paste. There are so many possibilities, so if you have the time (and the energy), why not try a cake or two and see what I’m talking about?
Amazing Pesach Brownies
Ingredients:
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup oil
- 1½ cups sugar
- ¾ cup potato starch
- 1 packet vanilla sugar
- ½–¾ cup cocoa
- walnuts (optional)
Directions:
Combine all ingredients and don’t overmix! Bake at 350°F for 35 minutes and even if it doesn’t look set, take it out of oven. Don’t overbake!
Nut Cluster Cookies
Ingredients:
240 grams (about 1½ bags) sliced almonds
2 egg whites
½ cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Directions:
Combine sugar, egg whites, and vanilla, and add almonds. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes until the top is toasted.
Chocolate Cake
Ingredients:
- 5 eggs
- 1½ cups sugar
- 1 cup oil
- 1 tsp. vanilla sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. vinegar
- ½ cup cocoa
- pinch of coffee
- ¾ cup potato starch
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Cream egg and sugars. Add cocoa, coffee, and potato starch. In a cup, mix together the baking soda and vinegar. Add to the batter. Bake in a 9”×13” pan for 40 minutes.
Chocolate Glaze
Ingredients:
- 1 cup confectionary sugar
- 3 Tbsp. cocoa
- 3 Tbsp. hot water
- 3 Tbsp. oil
Directions:
Mix all ingredients and pour over cooled cake.
This Week’s Menu
Monday night. Schnitzel sandwiches and 5-hour roast chicken (Celebrate Cookbook)
Tuesday night. Eggplant rollatini, pistachio-crusted salmon, balsamic broccoli
Wednesday night. Vegetable soup and club steaks over basmati rice
Thursday night. Pizza, home fries, and vegetable shakshuka. v