Passover and An Answered Prayer

I grew up in a neighborhood in Los Angeles known as Hancock Park.  It is a beautiful area.   Our neighborhood had streets lined with sycamore trees and older gracious homes that make you feel as if you have stepped back in time.  When we moved in,  I prayed that there might be a girl my age living on our block whom I would become friends with, someone whose family had the same sort of values as mine did and who would understand the role that faith played in my everyday life.  I prayed for and was hoping for a friend with whom I had these things in common.

Looking out the big picture window in our living room on the day we moved in, I was  surprised to see people coming and going from the house directly across the street who were dressed in what looked like some kind of 1800’s costume.  They looked so strange and almost ancient to me.  I called to my mother and father to come and see what I was seeing.  We all stood there staring at the sight of men dressed in long black coats with wide brimmed hats trimmed in some sort of fur and they all had long beards and long curls for sideburns.  With hands flying around gesturing as they spoke, their language was one I had never heard before.

I can still hear my mother wondering aloud to my father “Bob, what in the world?  Have you ever seen anything like that before in your life? “  “No I have not”, is all he could muster back.  “Who are those people?”, my younger brothers had wandered in and saw what we were staring at, and wondered, themselves, what was going on.  So the five of us stood, amongst a sea of unpacked moving boxes and furniture somewhat askew, with our mouths wide open, gawking out of the window, a little curious and a little anxious as to what sort of place we were moving into.  We must have looked like a drawing out The Cat in the Hat, all staring out of that window together.

Little did I know that right across the street was an answer to my prayer.  It was just wrapped a little differently than I had expected.  We had moved in across the street from one of the most prominent Hasidic Jewish rabbis in the United States, in fact, he was known worldwide.  And he had only one child, a daughter my age whose birthday was exactly one week before mine.

Over the following years I came to not only know and love my new friend, but Jewish people in general.  I learned to have a deep respect for the life these Hasidic Jews live.  They are the most orthodox of all Jews and strive to live everyday by the letter of the law, and to keep all 613 commandments of the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament.

My friend Bea and I spent many, many hours as children and then as young women talking about our faith and trying to understand each other’s faith.  I was the only non-Jew she really knew or was allowed to associate with.  Her parents loved my family,  as we did them, and they had a great respect for our faith and values as a family. That friendship and growing up in that neighborhood was truly a gift.  I could not have known when we forged our bond of friendship , and she taught me so much about Jewish life, that many years later, my oldest daughter would marry a man from a Jewish family.

When Sara married Jeff, understanding his background and celebrating the Jewish holidays was not a stretch for me but rather a coming full circle to my childhood and the people I had grown to appreciate and love so much.

One of my favorite holidays was Passover.  Every year I would watch with amazement as the rabbi’s whole house was scoured top to bottom and swept clean so as to rid the house of any bit of leavening or chametz.  Then there was shopping for the meal, and the cooking would begin for the seder.   The Passover meal is one of elements of great significance that tell the story of sacrifice and redemption.  Not to mention some really good food!  I am including some of my favorite Passover recipes here for you to try, as Passover is quickly approaching.  It is a beautiful holiday celebration.  If you aren’t familiar with the story of Passover or the celebration of remembrance you can read more about it at What is Passover?

As the years went by, Bea and I would talk more and more about how her Jewish celebration of Passover related to my Christian celebration of Holy Week and Easter.  I think we were both all the richer for being friends.  I learned from my Jewish neighbors a joy in celebration that I had never quite seen before.  They taught me so many things about faith and devotion.  I learned so much about Jewish laws and customs and holidays that I could have told you what time of year it was just by what holy day they were celebrating.  Jews are wonderful at celebrating, perhaps because historically they have had so much pain and loss and hardship and persecution, that when there is a joyful event to be celebrated they REALLY celebrate! Our Jewish neighbors were people of great joy.  As one writer puts it “with Hasidim, the whole Jewishness comes with a happiness, with dancing and with singing.”  Sounds a lot like “love, joy and abundant living” don’t you think? 🙂

Passover Seder Menu

My sister-in-law’s mother Margot was famous for her brisket.  It couldn’t be more simple or more delicious!  Her husband was an Emmy award winning cinematographer who, in the early years of his career, brought home dozens of  ‘would be’ actors for dinner.  Margot made her brisket, they ate it and they all became big stars.  Even the Monkee’s ate Margot’s brisket when nobody knew yet who they were, and they eventually sold more albums than the Beatles.  All after eating this wonderful brisket.  Just imagine what could happen to you!

Margot’s Brisket

1 large brisket (I figure about 1/2-1 lb per person)
1 box of Lipton Onion soup mix

Buy about twice as much brisket as you think you need.  Two reasons: 1. there is a lot of fat on brisket which is why it has so much flavor but it also means you are getting a lot of weight that you can’t actually eat and  2. you will want plenty of leftovers…I promise:)

In a roasting pan lay out two long pieces of aluminum foil.  Place the meat on top of the foil with the fatty side facing up.  If the brisket is 4 pounds or more use both packets of Lipton Onion Soup.  Sprinkle the dry soup mix all over the meat.

Wrap the meat tightly like an envelope in the foil.  Place in a  350 degree oven for 3 1/2 hours for a 3-4 lb. roast or up to 5 hours for a 10 lb. roast.  Remove from the oven and cool completely.  Unwrap and cut away as much of the fat from the top as possible.  Save the fat and place in a baking dish or cast iron skillet.  Drain and save the pan juices for gravy.  Slice the meat against the grain.

Then re-wrap the meat and refrigerate until ready to warm.  This can be done the day before your dinner.  Warm the meat in the sealed package at 350 degrees for 1/2 hour.  Serve on a warmed platter with gravy.

Gravy

Pan juices
2 cups beef broth (I prefer the Better Than Bouillon brand)
3 T. cornstarch

Stir the cornstarch into the beef broth and add to pan juices.  Heat until mixture bubbles and begins to thicken.  Taste and adjust seasoning.

Render the fat that you cut away by placing the baking dish or skillet with the fat in it in a 350 degree oven for about 2 hours.  The fat will melt down to a liquid form that is perfect for cooking the potatoes.

Roast Chicken
1 whole chicken
1 lemon, cut into wedges
2-3 cloves garlic
1 bunch Italian parsley
salt and pepper
olive oil

Rinse and pat dry the chicken completely.  Be sure to remove the  neck and liver and heart from the cavity of the chicken before you rinse it.  Place the chicken in a roasting pan or dish, breast side up.  Stuff the cavity with the lemon wedges, garlic cloves and parsley.  Drizzle olive oil over the chicken and then sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.  Roast in a 375 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours or until the juices from the chicken are clear if you poke a fork between the leg and thigh.  The leg should also wiggle easily when the chicken is done.  The skin will be browned and crisped.  Take the chicken out of the oven and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Roasted Potatoes
1 potato per person (in my family we do 1 1/2 per person because we LOVE potatoes)
olive oil and/or beef fat
salt and pepper

Peel and roughly cut up potatoes into irregular large chunks.

Boil potatoes in salted water for about 5-6 minutes.  Drain and place on a baking sheet.  Drizzle the beef fat and/or some olive oil over the potatoes to coat them completely.  Sprinkle with Kosher salt and pepper.  Roast in a 375 degree oven for about 1- 1 1/2 hours turning the potatoes at least a couple of times to allow then to brown on all sides.  Serve in a warmed bowl.

Roasted Asparagus
1/4  lb of asparagus per person
olive oil
salt and pepper
lemon pell grated

Cut the bottom 2 inches off the asparagus stocks.  These are usually a bit tough so it is better to cut them off.  Lay them out on a baking sheet like soldiers lined up in a row.  Drizzle with olive oil and toss them around to coat them in the oil.  Sprinkle with Kosher salt and pepper.

Roast in a 375 degree oven for about 5 minutes.  They will be bright green when you remove them from the oven and may feel a bit underdone but they continue cooking even after you remove them so do not over cook.  Before serving grate a bit of lemon rind over the top and toss or sprinkle finely chopped walnuts.

Chicken Liver Pate
(from A Little Jewish Cookbook by Barbara Bloch)
1 lb. chicken livers
1 onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 T schmaltz* or butter
2 hard boiled eggs
2 T Madeira

Melt schmaltz or butter in a skillet,

add onions and cook until transparent.  Add livers, garlic, salt and pepper and saute until livers are thoroughly cooked.  Spoon mixture into a food processor and add chopped hard boiled eggs and Madeira.

Process about 1 minute.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  Put into a serving bowl and refrigerate until chilled.  Garnish with a sprig of parsley. Serve with crackers or matzoh.

* Schmaltz is just chicken fat that has been rendered from chicken skin.  Save the skin from chicken when you are cooking it and when you have about 1/2 lb. or so place it in a baking dish and cook at 300 degrees for about 2 hours or until the skin is crisp and the fat is liquified.  Pour into a storage bowl and save.  This can be used in place of butter or olive oil and adds wonderful flavor.

Charoseth
This is one of those foods served at Passover that is very symbolic…and delicious!  It is meant to represent the mortar used by the Jews when they were enslaved and forced to build monuments for their Egyptian masters.

2 apples, finely chopped
1 cup walnuts coarsely chopped
2 T grated lemon rind
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 T sugar or honey
Splash of red wine

Mix all ingredients together.

Chill until ready to serve… and enjoy!

Nancie’s Matzo Ball Soup
My son in law Jeff, has a wonderful mother, Nancie,  who makes a very yummy Matzo Ball Soup which my daughter and grandson, Jeremy,  rave about.  Now you can try it too.  Chicken soup is also known as Jewish penicillin so if you are under the weather you can always try this first before you head to the medicine cabinet:)

Chicken Soup
water
whole chicken cut up
celery stalks
carrots cut in slices
onion
garlic cloves ( at least 3)
Knorr suiza
parsley
dill
Everything is to “taste” on this one.  Boil everything together until the chicken is well cooked and the broth has a rich taste.  If needed you can always add more seasonings like the knorr suiza, parsley and dill.  You can’t have enough parsley and dill for my taste!  Take out the chicken pieces, celery, garlic cloves and onions.  Serve the soup with carrots or keep the carrot slices to serve with the Gefilte Fish

Matzo Balls
4 eggs
1C matza meal (you can make this in your blender by crushing pieces of matzo until very, very fine)
1/4 cup canola oil
salt and pepper ( I use Mrs. Dash Original Seasoning instead)
Mix together.  Let stand in the refrigerator for 1/2 hour.  When ready to “roll” oil your hands and drop rolled ball into salted boiling water for 20-30 minutes.  Don’t crowd the pot too much.  Serve the matzo balls in the chicken broth.  Prepare to feel really well!
Makes about 10-12  balls.

Macaroons

4 egg whites
1 1/3 cups of sugar
1 cup almond meal*
2 bags of shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Beat egg whites until frothy.  Add sugar slowly and continue beating until stiff peaks form.  Add in vanilla and almond extracts.  Stir in almond meal until blended into egg whites.  Stir in coconut.  Using a small ice cream scoop place scoops of coconut mixture on a silpat baking liner or on parchment paper.

Bake at 325 degrees for 18-20 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to “set up for 2-3” minutes before removing from the pan.  Make about 3 dozen cookies.

*Almond meal is just very finely ground up almonds.  You can buy it at Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods or make it yourself by putting whole almonds in the food processor and grinding until they become a course meal.

Passover Toffee

Jeff’s cousin, Andrea, was kind enough to share this very simple and very addictive recipe for toffee.  It is intended for Passover as a treat but this is wonderful anytime!

Line a 11×17 baking sheet with 6″ squares of matzo.  Cover baking sheet completely.  Melt 1 cup of butter in a pan and add 1 cup of brown sugar.  Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes stirring regularly.  Pour this butter sugar mixture over matzo and spread evenly.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for five minutes.  Let sit for five minutes after you remove it from the oven.  Pour a 12 oz bag of chocolate  chips over top and spread chocolate as it melts.  Sprinkle with chopped nuts.  Refrigerate until well set – about 30 minutes.  Break into pieces and try to control yourself 🙂