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SO WHY IS MATZOH BREAD ASSOCIATED WITH PASSOVER?

During Passover – the eight-day spring festival marking the exodus of the Jews from Egypt over 3,000 years ago – it’s forbidden to eat leavened grain products.

The tradition comes from the fact that there was no time to let the bread rise as they hurried to make their escape to freedom. So even today, for Passover meals, they eat Matzoh – special unleavened bread that must be prepared and baked in less than 18 minutes.

This is really how matzoh is made commercially today – under strict conditions – it’s mixed and baked almost instantly so that there’s no chance it will come into contact with wild yeasts in the air.

There’s even a special hand-made kind of matzoh bread that’s made using flour that has been carefully guarded, right from harvest, to make sure it has never come in contact with water.

Matzoh bread or matzoh meal stands in for flour in all kinds of Passover recipes, from breakfast dishes to desserts.

AND WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?

It’s a large square flatbread, a crisp crunchy cracker  that looks and tastes a lot like an oversized water cracker, the kind you have with cheese.

WHERE CAN YOU BUY IT MATZOH BREAD AND OTHER KOSHER FOODS?

The great thing about Kosher foods is you can buy them almost anywhere. A lot of foods are kosher – even if they’re not traditional items like matzoh.

Just look at labels when you’re in the supermarket – you’ll find everything from soup to nuts, noodles to cream cheese and yogurt, with the certified  kosher or Passover label.

When it comes to Matzoh bread there are several brands – like Manischewitz – and you can buy it ground into matzoh meal, or broken into matzoh farfel.

Most wine stores have a selection of Kosher wines.

IS IT TASTY – WOULD YOU EAT IT AS A REGULAR BREAD YEAR ROUND?

Well yes, and no. It’s not super tasty  – and there are lots of running jokes about matzohh bread, especially for people who must eat it at certain times of the year. But really matzoh bread is just a simple plain cracker bread, like a water bread or lavosh, which is perfectly nice to have with cheese or soup.

Matzoh brie is a brunch dish you’d find in restaurants all over New York and other places where there is a big Jewish community – sort of an egg and matzoh bread scramble, either sweet or savoury, with smoked salmon and dill, or asparagus and carmelized onions, or applesauce and sour cream.

And typically kids eat matzohh pizza and matzohh grilled cheese over Passover week.

But I was googling around for recipes this week and I found all kinds of uses for matzohs.

One recipe used the crushed matzoh bread with onions, bell peppers, pistachios and raisins in a spicy Middle Eastern stuffing for chicken breasts. Another recipe used matzoh bread in place of the noodles in a spinach, feta and cottage cheese pie, flavoured like Greek spanakopita but layered like lasagna – that sounds like something I would try.

I even found an Asian-inspired matzoh ball soup – with a lemongrass-infused homemade chicken broth, with ginger and shiitake mushrooms.

And a matzohh bread baklava dessert –matzoh bread layered with walnuts, pistachios and a lemon and rose water infused syrup.

Or a chocolate caramel matzoh crunch – similar to a baked brittle we make at Christmastime with a graham cracker base and a butter and brown sugar mixture poured over top and caramelized in the oven, then topped with chocolate chips, this time matzohh breads stand in.

WHAT ELSE IS TYPCIALLY SERVED FOR A PASSOVER MEAL?

Well, there is a ritual associated with the Passover meal – specific foods are included in the ceremonial Seder plate to symbolize different aspects of the story.

There is always a roasted shank bone or chicken wing, representing the eaten on the eve of the exodus. There’s a hard boiled egg, something bitter like bitter greens or horseradish, a green vegetable to represent Spring, and a mixture of dried fruits or apples, nuts and cinnamon, which resembles the mortar the Israelites used when they were slaves under the Pharoh.

But there are also three ceremonial matzohs on the table, too, along side the matzohs that will be eaten with the meal.

AND THE SEDER MEAL ITSELF?

Some Jews will not eat legumes, corn or rice during Passover, but chicken, fish, vegetables and fruit are all eaten.

A traditional Passover meal might include hardboiled eggs and gefilte fish, ground fish balls or patties made of whitefish or pickerel, or chopped liver pate as an appetizer. Then there’s usually chicken soup with matzoh balls, which are dumplings made with crushed matzoh bread , and a main course of roast chicken, turkey or beef brisket. There might also be some classice Eastern European dishes – like beet borscht or cabbage rolls, potato pancakes or latkes, or a kugel,  a baked dish made with vegetables and eggs or noodles.

Kosher wine is consumed, but never any alcohol made from grain like whisky or beer.

And dessert is typically poached fruit and sponge cake, cheesecake or chocolate cake.

But there are also more modern Passover menus, including everything from popular Middle Eastern dishes like hummus and roasted eggplant salad, to braised lamb with horseradish and grilled asparagus, or chicken with pomegranate glaze.

SO WHAT RECIPE DID YOU BRING FOR US TODAY?

I think this is the time of year to make chicken soup from scratch, so I have my own grandmother’s chicken soup recipe. We always had her chicken soup with homemade egg noodles – but for Passover, I’m including a recipe for homemade matzoh balls, big dumplings that really make this soup a meal in itself. The trick is a touch of club soda, for fluffier matzoh balls.

You can make matzoh balls from a mix, but like anything, from scratch is always tastier.

Plan to make it on the weekend, when you have time to let the soup simmer for several hours, or make it in the pressure cooker – only 45 minutes to perfect chicken soup.

Matzoh ball soup is really comfort food. A good thing for traditional Passover celebrations in Jewish households, or for anyone, anytime of the year.

RECIPE:

GRANDMA’S CHICKEN SOUP WITH TRADITIONAL MATZOH BALLS

Also known as “Jewish penicillin,” chicken soup, made from scratch by grandmothers the world over, has a reputation for curing whatever ails you. It’s dead easy – especially after you’ve roasted a bird, so ever pitch a chicken or turkey carcass. Or start with a stewing hen, then just add water, along with some veggies, and simmer for a few hours and you’ll have stupendous broth for making chicken soup. It really does cure a cold, and with homemade matzoh balls, it’s a holiday tradition. This recipe is from The Guy Can’t Cook, by Cinda Chavich (Whitecap Books, 2007)

1 4-pound (2 kg) stewing hen, cut up (or a chicken or turkey carcass)

2 to 3 parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks

2 to 3 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks

2 stalks celery, with leaves, cut into chunks

1 onion, quartered

4 quarts (4 L) cold water

2 teaspoons (10 mL) salt

4 to 5 black peppercorns

3 sprigs of fresh parsley or dill

1/2 cup (125 mL) dried egg noodles (tiny diamond or thin egg noodles are best)

Place everything, except the noodles, into a big stock pot--the tallest pot you can find--and bring to a boil over medium-high heat,  making sure the chicken is well submerged. As the water comes to a boil, a foamy scum will rise to the surface – use a slotted spoon to skim this off.

Once boiled, reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, adding extra water if chicken is no longer submerged. Throughout the simmering process, keep the heat very low:  the soup should barely bubble (this makes for the clearest broth).

After 2 or 3 hours, taste the broth – if it’s concentrated to your liking, remove from heat and strain the liquid through a fine sieve into a heat-proof glass bowl or measuring cup. Discard the chicken bones. If you’ve used a whole stewing hen, you can serve the boiled meat and vegetables alongside the soup.

As the strained broth cools you will see a layer of fat rise to the top. Skim this off with a spoon if you plan to use the broth right away or cover the broth and refrigerate overnight before skimming off all the congealed fat.

To serve, reheat the broth to boiling, season with salt and pepper to taste and serve with one or two matzoh balls per person. Or simply add egg noodles, and boil for 5 to 10 minutes or until the noodles are tender.  Serves 6-8.

TRADITIONAL MATZOH BALLS: For a truly traditional dish, skip the noodles and add matzoh balls. To make matzoh balls, combine one cup of matzoh meal with a few tablespoons of chicken stock or club (makes fluffy matzoh balls) and a few teaspoons of olive oil to moisten. Season with a teaspoon of salt, a tablespoon of chopped parsley or fresh dill, and a pinch of nutmeg, then bind with 2 beaten eggs. Refrigerate for a few hours, or overnight, then roll gently into golf-ball-sized balls. They’ll expand while they cook so don’t make them too big, and don’t work them to much or they’ll get tough. Poach in a large pot of boiling water or stock, covered, for 30-40 minutes or until the matzoh balls float to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and serve 1 to 2 balls in each bowl of soup. Makes about 16.

copyright Cinda Chavich, tastereport.com