Showing posts with label Passover. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Passover. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

No way! Yes way! Rocky Road Brownies for Passover


My cousin Rachael is famous for her Fudgy Chocolate Marshmallow Brownies. They're requested at all sorts of events - birthdays, get-togethers, catered events, and various milestones. They're essentially Rocky Road Bars on account of the chocolate and marshmallow combination. They are extremely rich and sweet with all the right textures and flavors going on. They look beautiful on a cookie tray and, well, you just can't say enough good things about them. But oh yeah, one more thing, they are NOT kosher for Passover. Doh!

So thank goodness for Marlene Sorosky, who developed a Rocky Road Brownie recipe that IS kosher for Passover. It's no cousin Rachael's, but it's good, and to think you could have anything remotely like the original during a holiday when flour is a no-no? Um, yeah, I'll take what I can get!


Rocky Road Brownies
Recipe by Marlene Sorosky in Fast and Festive Meals for the Jewish Holidays

Brownies
4 ounces (4 squares) semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 pound (2 sticks) margarine or butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 cup matzah cake meal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips
2 cups mini marshmallows, or large marshmallows, cut up
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Topping
1 cup mini marshmallows, or large marshmallows, cut up
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Place oven rack in center of oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Grease or spray with nonstick spray a 9x13-inch baking pan.

To Make Brownies: In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate and margarine on high (100%) for 1 to 2 minutes, or until melted. Stir well. Stir in sugar and cool slightly. Whisk in eggs, one at a time. Stir in cake meal and salt. Stir in chocolate chips, marshmallows, and walnuts. Pour into prepared pan. Spread evenly.

To Bake: Bake for 30 minutes, or until set.

To Top: After 30 minutes, sprinkle brownies with marshmallows. Return to oven for 3 to 4 minutes, or until puffed but not browned. Remove from oven. Place chocolate chips in a small, heavy plastic bag. Microwave on high (100%) for 60 to 90 seconds, or until melted and smooth when pressed with fingers. squeeze chocolate into one corner of bag. Cut a small tip off the corner and drizzle chocolate over brownies. Sprinkle with nuts. Cool completely. Cut with a serrated knife into 1 3/4 x 2 1/4-inch bars. (Brownies may be refrigerated up to 4 days or frozen.)

Makes: 30 brownies.


Step-by-Step in Pictures

Melt the chocolate and margarine together...

Add in the sugar...

Add the eggs...

Then stir in the cake meal and salt...

Get rid of all lumps...

Stir in the marshmallows, chocolate chips, and toasted nuts...

Spread the batter into a prepared pan...

Bake for about 30 minutes at 325 degrees F...

When the brownies are done, top with more marshmallows and return to the oven to bake until they're puffed up...

Pipe melted chocolate through a plastic piping bag or sandwich bag across the top of the brownies...

Sprinkle with more toasted nuts, then you're done!...

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Passover Recipe Roundup from the Happy Go Marni Archives

I've posted a handful of Passover recipes since this blog's incipience, and with Passover just getting going, I thought I'd remind you all of the past deliciousness. Here are my Passover recipes from days gone by, pulled from The Happy Archive! Now you'll have no excuse to go hungry on Passover, or at least, here's proof that Passover doesn't have to taste like cardboard.


Surprise Meringues --> Recipe


Strawberry Sponge Cake --> Recipe



Caramel Matzoh Crunch --> Recipe


Matzah Meal Pancakes --> Recipe



Passover Rolls --> Recipe


Pistachio Macaroons --> Recipe

Monday, March 29, 2010

Spinach Matzah Quiche for Passover


I decided that for Passover this year, I was going to make one casserole-type dish that could last me the week so I wouldn't have to cook again. I sifted through several Jewish holiday cookbooks and ultimately decided on this Spinach Matzah Quiche by Marlene Sorosky. I went vegetarian because I still haven't recovered from the barbecue overload of my recent trip to Austin, Texas.

The original quiche recipe called for 10 eggs and I wanted to cut back on all that cholesterol. Since the quiches I'm used to have milk in them, I replaced some of the eggs with a cup of milk. The result was brilliant. I gave myself a big pat on the back. This is a FABULOUS quiche! I would make this any time of year it's so good. Plus, what a great way to use up leftover matzah after Passover.

Happy Passover to you!


Spinach Matzah Quiche
Adapted from a recipe by Marlene Sorosky in Fast and Festive Meals for the Jewish Holidays

3 matzot, broken into 2-inch pieces
3 large eggs
2 egg whites
1 cup milk
2 cups regular, low-fat, or nonfat cottage cheese
2 cups shredded jalapeno Jack cheese or regular Jack cheese (about 8 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 pound trimmed and stemmed spinach, baby leaves preferred (I used frozen baby spinach and defrosted it)

Place oven rack in center of oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Grease or spray with nonstick spray a 9-inch square baking dish.

To Make Quiche: Place matzot in a colander in the sink and pour boiling water over. Let soak 2 minutes. Squeeze out liquid. In a large bowl, whisk eggs and whites together with the milk. Stir in cottage cheese, Jack cheese, matzot, salt, and pepper. Stir in spinach. Pour into prepared pan. It may seem like too much; just pack it in tightly.

To Bake: Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour, or until puffed and golden. (Quiche may be cooled and refrigerated, covered, overnight. Before serving, bring to room temperature. Reheat at 350 degrees F, uncovered, about 10 minutes, or until heated through.

Makes: 8 servings.


Step-by-Step in Pictures

Pour boiling water over the matzah pieces and let soften for 2 minutes...

Squeeze out the excess liquid from the matzah; set matzah aside...

Combine eggs and milk in a large bowl...

Add the cottage cheese and Jack cheese...

Add the matzah, salt, pepper, and spinach...

Spread the mixture compactly into the prepared baking dish...

Bake for about 1 hour at 350 degrees F...

Friday, April 10, 2009

How to Have a Turkey Sandwich on Passover: Passover Rolls


I'm giving you the secret to my semi-normal life during Passover. If you can have a turkey sandwich on this quite food-restricting holiday, you know it can't be too bad. And with this roll recipe, it's all possible!

There are actually a lot of different Passover roll recipes out there, and I chose this one because it had half the number of eggs as most of them. I also saw some versions that called for a tablespoon or so of sugar. The one below works just fine for me.

Because I shape my rolls pretty small, I might make myself two or three mini turkey sandwiches for one meal, and they're perfect to bring to work. You could also make Swiss cheese, tomato, and lettuce sandwiches, or even snack on the rolls plain. They're my brother Zachary's absolute favorite Passover food item. Consider this secret of mine, well, not so secret anymore!


Passover Rolls
Recipe by Judy Zeidler in The Gourmet Jewish Cook

2 cups matzo meal
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs

In a bowl, combine the matzo meal and salt and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, bring the water and oil to a boil. Pour in the matzo meal mixture and stir until blended. Transfer to a large bowl of an electric mixer. One at a time, add the eggs, beating well after each addition until completely blended. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

With well-oiled hands, shape the dough into 3-inch balls or ovals and place 2 inches apart on a well-greased baking sheet. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until golden brown. Transfer to racks and cool. Split and fill with your favorite mixture.


Step-by-Step in Pictures

Make the dough and let rest for 10 minutes before shaping into balls...

Shape the dough into balls and space evenly apart on the cookie sheet...
Bake for 40-50 minutes in a 375 degree F oven...
Cross-section...
Turkey Sandwich on Passover! Yes We Can!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

The Ultimate Passover Snack: Caramel Matzoh Crunch


I'm starting to wonder if all of the Passover-keeping people out there have tried this sweet snack at one point or another. It is SO enormously popular. The recipe has been floating around the Internet for years and wherever it goes, it gets rave reviews. It's hardly original for me to post it to Happy Go Marni, but on the other hand, I feel so left out! Plus, it's something my mom and I both make every year.

It's great to munch on in small doses when you need to kill that chocolate craving, and it makes a fun hospitality gift if you wrap it cutely in a tin and hand it to the person hosting your seder.


The best way to think of this is as a cross between chocolate bark, peanut brittle, and toffee. It taste everything like toffee, but it sort of resembles bark and brittle in appearance. It doesn't take long to make, its homemade caramel will knock your socks off, and it goes really far. One recipe will last you the entire week of Passover...that is, unless you're gift-giving or have zero willpower, which is actually entirely possible, even probable.

What else is fun about it is that you can change it up, sprinkling chopped nuts, marshmallows, or other Kosher-for-Passover candies on top, or using white and dark chocolate and marbleizing the two for a cool visual effect. The possibilities are endless. You could even add a flavoring to the caramel, like vanilla, or a liqueur. This Caramel Matzoh Crunch is honestly so good you will find yourself wanting matzoh at other times throughout the year, and let's face it, it's not normal to have a craving for matzoh in November.


Caramel Matzoh Crunch
Recipe by Marcy Goldman in A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking

4-6 unsalted matzohs
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter or unsalted Passover margarine
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup coarsely chopped chocolate chips or semi-sweet chocolate

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a large (or two smaller) cookie sheet completely with foil. Cover the bottom of the sheet with baking parchment — on top of the foil. This is very important since the mixture becomes sticky during baking.

Line the bottom of the cookie sheet evenly with the matzohs, cutting extra pieces, as required, to fit any spaces.

In a 3-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the butter or margarine and the brown sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil (about 2 to 4 minutes). Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and pour over the matzoh, covering completely.

Place the baking sheet in the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 350°. Bake for 15 minutes, checking every few minutes to make sure the mixture is not burning (if it seems to be browning too quickly, remove the pan from the oven, lower the heat to 325°, and replace the pan).

Remove from the oven and sprinkle immediately with the chopped chocolate or chips. Let stand for 5 minutes, then spread the melted chocolate over the matzoh. Chill, still in the pan, in the freezer until set. Break into squares or odd shapes.

This makes a good gift.

Variation:
You can also use coarsely chopped white chocolate (or a combination of white and dark), and chopped or slivered toasted almonds (sprinkled on top as the chocolate sets). You can also omit the chocolate for a caramel-alone buttercrunch.


Step-by-Step in Pictures

Line the pan with foil and then parchment paper...

Cover the bottom of the pan with sheets of matzoh...
Bring the brown sugar and butter/margarine to a boil...
Here's your caramel layer...
Immediately (because it will harden quickly) pour the hot caramel layer over the matzoh sheets, then bake for about 15 minutes. When done, sprinkle chocolate chips over the hot caramel-covered matzoh...
Don't return the pan to the oven; just let the chocolate chips sit for 5 minutes to become spreadable, then spread evenly over the caramel layer...
I recommend putting the tray in the fridge for a few minutes to set the chocolate...
Then break up the matzoh into irregular snack-sized shapes...

Notice the double layer? Caramel, then chocolate? Why not try marshmallows or nuts next time?
Yum!

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Surprise Meringues


Here's a recipe that's been in my family for many decades. My mom's mom used to make it, and now my mom and I make it. It's extremely simple to prepare, with very few ingredients and very few steps.

You do need to be familiar with how to beat egg whites. I always use my KitchenAid standmixer with the whisk attachment, though a glass bowl is probably the best material for beating egg whites. Just stay away from using a plastic or melamine bowl since it's much harder to get grease off those materials and grease will destroy your egg whites. Speaking of grease, fats in general will ruin the egg whites, so be sure you don't have ANY yolk in the bowl. You'll also need to watch the mixture as you beat it because if you're not careful and you overmix it, your peaks will come and go and then they're unsalvageable. Epicurious has a useful video on how to do this.

Surprise Meringues are great year round, but they are also ideal for Passover since, first of all, it's not a bad idea to have an egg white dessert to go with your otherwise fattening feast, and of course, secondly, there's no flour. The recipe doubles easily, and that's usually what I do since it's pretty normal to go through one batch of these in a night (er, hour).

Maybe you've had meringues before from a bakery, or at someone else's house. I'm going to make a cocky statement and say unequivocably you haven't had a good meringue until you've had this one. It's chewy and gooey, not a crispy crumbly dry mess like most meringues.


Surprise Meringues
Recipe from my bubbe

2 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup sugar
1 small package chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped nuts, optional

Beat egg whites, salt, cream of tartar, vanilla to soft peaks. Add sugar gradually and beat till stiff. Fold in chips and nuts, if desired. Cover baking sheet with parchment or a silpat. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls. Bake at 300 degrees F for 20-25 minutes. Makes 2 dozen cookies.



Related Posts with Thumbnails