By FAYE LEVY, YAKIR LEVYPaula Shoyer's roasted beet and butternut squash salad with pomegranate seeds and orange dressing.(photo credit: MICHAEL BENNETT KRESS)
Our principle for preparing Passover meals is to make them colorful, by including plenty of produce.We design our Passover menus with color in mind, not only to obtain attractive plates but also to get the best mix of beneficial properties. Green, red and orange vegetables and fruits have different vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. On this holiday, when dinners are copious and we tend to overeat, serving a generous proportion of vegetables is particularly important.Since Passover is the festival of spring, using greens in different ways is a good idea. Green vegetables are useful for making kugels that are lighter than those based on matza, noodles or potatoes.Paula Shoyer, author of The New Passover Menu, makes a kugel loaded with green vegetables – asparagus, spinach, zucchini and leeks, as well as green onions and fresh basil. In fact, her kugel is composed mostly of vegetables, which are held together with eggs and just a touch of matza meal. Shoyer sautés the leeks with onion, then adds the asparagus and garlic and continues to sauté the mixture, before combining it with the remaining ingredients and baking the kugel.One leafy green that has become popular in recent years is kale; when chopped finely, it contributes flavor and texture to salads, grain dishes and mixed vegetables. To pep up a Passover side dish of quinoa and mushrooms, Ronnie Fein, author of The Modern Kosher Kitchen, uses kale or chard. Fein heats the chopped greens and mushrooms with a sauté of onions, celery, garlic and fresh hot pepper, simmering the mixture briefly in a little vegetable stock. She then combines it with cooked quinoa and finishes the dish with olive oil, lemon juice and grated lemon zest.Fein also uses chopped kale to enhance traditional potato patties. For dairy meals she flavors her green-flecked potato-kale pancakes with feta cheese; for meat meals, she adds chopped cooked meat, turkey or sausage. (See recipe.)Red, orange and yellow vegetables and fruits contribute vivid colors and flavors as well as a variety of nutrients to Passover appetizers, entrees and accompaniments. To add color and flavor to her broiled eggplant dish, Shoyer tops it with diced sweet peppers and red onions sautéed in olive oil. For extra flavor, she seasons the eggplant with cumin and turmeric and finishes the dish with sugar and vinegar. (See recipe.)Red beets have long been Passover favorites in the Ashkenazi kitchen. Instead of the old-fashioned beet russel (soured beet juice) and beet preserves, modern cooks often make side dishes of beets with other vegetables. Shoyer makes a colorful salad of roasted butternut squash cubes and beets tossed with arugula, cilantro and pomegranate seeds, dressing it with orange vinaigrette. Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff Gray, authors of The New Jewish Table, combine roasted red and yellow beets with golden raisins, toasted pistachios, capers and chives to make an attractive salad that is tasty as well as healthful. (See recipe.)For a Passover dessert, the Grays recommend a medley of orange, yellow and red fruits – a mango and pineapple salad with pomegranate seeds, with a dressing of sweetened passion fruit juice and a garnish of fresh mint.When it comes to dessert, brown is beautiful – chocolate- brown, that is. Even after a hearty dinner, it’s hard to resist a treat like Shoyer’s Passover triple- chocolate biscotti flavored with bittersweet chocolate, cocoa and chocolate chips. (See recipe.)Faye Levy is the author of 1,000 Jewish Recipes.Salad of roasted beets with capers and pistachiosFor a striking color, Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff Gray recommend using both red and golden beets and baking the two separately, so the red beets’ color doesn’t bleed into the yellow ones, and dressing the salad shortly before serving. For a bigger salad, they add baby greens and for a dairy meal, they top the salad with shaved Parmesan cheese.If you don’t use canola oil on Passover, substitute grapeseed oil or additional olive oil.Makes 6 servings■ 2 medium-sized red beets■ 2 medium-sized golden beets■ 1 Tbsp. olive oil■ Salt■ Freshly ground black pepper■ ¼ cup golden raisins■ ½ cup toasted chopped pistachios■ 3 Tbsp. capers, rinsed and drained■ 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced■ 1 small bunch fresh chives, cut into 1-cm. (½-inch) pieces■ ½ cup Lemon Vinaigrette (see Note)Preheat oven to 325ºF (about 165ºC). Rub the olive oil over the beets and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Loosely wrap each type in a separate aluminum foil packet. Place them in the oven and roast until the beets are tender and can be easily pierced with a sharp knife – about 60 minutes.Transfer packets to a wire rack, unfold the foil and let beets cool. Peel beets (use rubber gloves to keep your hands from staining) and cut them into bite-sized chunks; place in a large bowl.Meanwhile, place raisins in a small bowl. Add hot water to cover and let soak for 1 hour. Drain raisins in a mesh strainer before using.Add pistachios, capers, raisins, onion slices and half the chives to bowl of beets. Add lemon vinaigrette and toss gently to mix. Taste, adding more salt or pepper if you wish. Serve sprinkled with remaining chives.Note: Lemon vinaigrette: Squeeze about 2 medium lemons, or enough to produce 1⁄3 cup juice, and strain it into a small bowl. Add 1⁄3 cup olive oil, 1⁄3 cup canola oil, 1 teaspoon salt and 1⁄8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Whisk until combined. Makes 1 cup. (You will have extra dressing to use in green salads or diced vegetable salads.) Two-way kale and potato pancakesRonnie Fein told us this is one of her favorite Passover dishes.“I think I could eat a hundred of these!” she wrote. “They’re soft and creamy inside... with a crispy, golden-brown surface. I like them plain for lunch or brunch, but for a bigger meal, I serve them with eggs or roasted vegetables.”For dairy meals, Fein flavors the patties with feta cheese. For meat meals, she adds cooked meat or sausage and omits the butter. She sometimes adds sautéed mushrooms as well.Makes about 16 to 18 pancakes, or 6 to 8 servings■ 2 cups (145 gr. or 5.1 ounces) matza farfel■ 2 Tbsp. olive oil■ 1 Tbsp. (14 gr. or ½ ounce) butter or additional olive oil■ 1 medium onion, chopped■ 2 cups (140 gr. or 4.9 ounces) chopped fresh kale■ 2 cups (450 gr. or 1 pound) mashed potatoes■ 170 gr. (6 ounces) crumbled feta cheese (for dairy meals), or cooked meat, turkey or sausage (for meat meals), chopped with a knife■ 1 large egg■ Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste■ Vegetable oil for fryingPlace matza farfel in a large bowl, cover with very hot water and let soak for a few minutes until soft. Drain farfel and squeeze out as much water as possible. Return farfel to bowl.Meanwhile, heat olive oil and butter (if using) in a sauté pan over medium heat. When butter has melted and looks foamy or when oil is hot, add onion and cook for 1 minute. Add kale, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 6 minutes or until kale has wilted.Spoon mixture into a strainer and squeeze out as much liquid as possible from the vegetables. Add to the matza farfel and mix well. Add the mashed potatoes, feta cheese or meat, and egg and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.Heat about 1.3 cm. (½ inch) vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Shape potato mixture into patties and fry for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.Roasted eggplant with bell pepper vinaigrette Paula Shoyer recommends preparing this dish in advance so it has time to marinate. Instead of broiling the eggplant slices, you can cook them on a grill.Makes 6 to 8 servings■ 2 medium eggplants, unpeeled, cut into 2-cm. (¾-inch) slices■ 5 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil■ Ground cumin (for dusting eggplant)■ Turmeric (for dusting eggplant)■ ½ sweet red pepper, cut in 6-mm. (¼-inch) cubes■ ½ sweet yellow pepper, cut in 6-mm. (¼-inch) cubes■ ½ medium red onion, finely chopped■ 2 Tbsp. sugar■ 3 Tbsp. white or apple cider vinegar■ Salt and black pepperPreheat broiler. Pour 1 tablespoon oil onto a grill pan or other baking pan and rub to coat the pan. Add eggplant slices in one layer and brush with another tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with a little cumin and turmeric. Broil for 5 to 7 minutes, or until browned.Turn eggplant slices over and sprinkle with cumin, turmeric and black pepper. Broil for another 4 to 5 minutes. Let cool for 3 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter.Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a medium frying pan over medium- high heat. Add red and yellow peppers and onions and cook for 3 minutes. Add sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and cook for 1 minute.Scatter pepper and onion mixture over eggplant slices, making sure to place some on top of all the sides as well as under them. Let the dish marinate for 2 hours or overnight. Serve at room temperature.Passover triple-chocolate biscotti“I double this recipe because these cookies disappear so fast,” wrote Shoyer of these chewy, crunchy cookies. “The outside is a little hard, but the center remains soft.” The gluten-free cookies, made with ground almonds and just a bit of potato starch, keep for five days.Makes 24 to 36 cookies■115 gr. (4 ounces ) bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces■ 1 cup (200 gr. or 7 ounces) sugar■ ½ cup (120 ml) vegetable oil■ 2 large eggs■ 3 Tbsp. (40 gr. or 1.4 ounces) vanilla sugar■ ½ cup (40 grams or 1.4 ounces) unsweetened cocoa■ 1 Tbsp. potato starch■ 1½ cups (180 gr. or 6.3 ounces) ground almonds (see Note below)■ ¼ tsp. salt■ 1 cup (170 gr. or 6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chipsPreheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line a jelly-roll pan or cookie sheet with parchment paper.Melt chocolate in a bowl set above a saucepan of simmering water over low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove the bowl of chocolate from above the saucepan, add the sugar and oil, and whisk well. Add the eggs and mix. Add the vanilla sugar, cocoa, potato starch, ground almonds, and salt and mix well. Add the chocolate chips and mix to distribute them.Divide the dough in half and shape into two loaves, each about 23 x 7.5 cm. (9 x 3 inches). Place both loaves on the lined jelly-roll pan and bake for 30 minutes. Let the loaves cool for 10 minutes (do not turn off the oven).Cut each loaf crosswise into slices 2 to 2.5 cm. (¾ to 1 inch) thick. Place the cookies, cut side up, on a parchment-covered cookie sheet (or the jelly roll pan again). Bake for another 14 minutes, or until the cookies are firm to the touch on the outside but still feel soft on the inside. Check after 10 to 12 minutes so you don’t overbake.Let cool for 5 minutes on the pan, then slide the parchment and cookies onto a cooling rack to cool completely.Note: When grinding almonds in a food processor, do not grind for too long or they will turn into nut butter.
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