Passover Menu with a Twist

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Why not try something new this year.

This innovative Pesach menu comes courtesy of my friend Dana Slatkin, a professionally trained chef and wonderful hostess. Dana made this menu dairy. The suggestion of substituting margarine for butter in the souffles is mine and so is the responsibility for the outcome!

Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger
(12 one-cup servings)

A departure from the predictable Passover matzahh ball soup. Try using different kinds of squashes and/or carrots.

4 butternut squash (about 8 pounds total), halved lengthwise, seeded
4 tablespoons cottonseed oil
4 cups thinly sliced onion
2 tablespoons golden brown sugar
4 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 cinnamon stick
10 cups (2- 1/2 quarts or more) cold vegetable broth or water
Salt and pepper to taste

  1. Preheat oven to 375 F
  2. Oil baking sheet. Place squash; cut side down, on baking sheet. Bake until squash is very soft, about 50 minutes.
  3. Using paring knife, remove peel from squash; discard peel. Cut squash into 2-inch pieces.
  4. Heat oil in large heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add onion, brown sugar, ginger, garlic and cinnamon. Cover pot and cook until onion is tender, about 15 minutes.
  5. Add squash and broth. Raise heat to max and bring to boil.
  6. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Discard cinnamon. Cool.
  7. Working in batches, puree soup in blender. Return soup to pot.
  8. Season soup with salt and pepper. To serve, bring to simmer, thinning soup with more broth if necessary.
  9. Ladle into bowls. Garnish with a swirl of chopped chives or parsley.

Roman Lasagna
(8 -10 servings)

This is a beautiful Sephardic layered vegetable dish that can be made with meat, or as a vegetable side dish to serve at your Seder.

6 matzahs
1-cup olive oil
1 lb. ground beef (to make it vegetarian leave out the meat)
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 1/2 lbs. onions, thinly sliced
2 cans artichoke hearts
6 cloves garlic
3/4 tsp. minced rosemary, or 1 tsp. dried
3/4 tsp. minced sage, or 1 tsp. dried
1 lb. fresh spinach, cleaned, stemmed, and steamed, then squeezed dry
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 lb. mushrooms, sliced
6 large eggs
3 lemons, juiced (or 1/2 cup juice)
1-cup pareve beef or vegetable broth
Roasted peppers

  1. Cover the matzahs with water and let sit until wet and almost crumbling.
  2. Warm 1 Tbsp. of the olive oil and saute the ground beef, stirring until brown. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
  3. Saute the onions in ¼ cup of the olive oil. Drain and set aside.
  4. Cut artichokes in halves. Saute in ¼ cup olive oil with 2 cloves of garlic, rosemary, sage and salt to taste.
  5. Lastly, saute the mushrooms in ¼ cup olive oil, using two more cloves garlic and salt to taste.
  6. Grease a 9" x 13" deep baking dish and cover the bottom with meat. Cover with a layer of 3 matzahs. Don't be upset if the matzahs fall apart; it won't make a difference.
  7. Cover with onions. Layer 3 more matzahs on top, then artichokes, spinach, and mushrooms.
  8. Beat together the eggs and lemon juice, and pour over the top of the dish. Add enough broth to moisten well.
  9. Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for about 30 minutes or until set. Serve warm with tomato sauce on the bottom of plate (optional) and sprigs of fresh herbs on top.

Green Salad

2 pounds mixed greens (mache, mesculun, romaine)
Olive Oil
Lemon Juice
Kosher Salad

Combine olive oil, lemon juice and salt. Toss greens lightly with dressing immediately before serving.

Perfect Chocolate Soufflé

7 ounces bittersweet chocolate
Butter (or margarine) and sugar for coating pans
1-3/4 sticks unsalted butter (use margarine if you want to make it pareve)
5 large eggs, separated
1-tablespoon imitation vanilla extract or vanillin sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
Pinch salt
2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare souffle dishes by brushing them with melted butter (or margarine) and coating them with sugar. Melt chocolate and butter together over a double boiler until melted. Cool. Transfer to a medium sized bowl and whisk in egg yolks and vanilla. Sift in sugar, salt and cocoa powder while continuing to whisk. Whip egg whites to soft peaks in a separate bowl. Fold 1/3 into chocolate mixture, then follow with rest of whites. Pour into prepared souffle dishes. Bake 30 minutes on lower rack of oven. Enjoy. Can with serves with raspberry sauce, whipped cream or ice cream.

For more great Passover recipes, check out aish.com's Gourmet Passover Cooking site!

 

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