Passover Musings

Passover 2013 is in the books, and it was a huge success. As you may have gathered, I really love this holiday, and thankfully this year was no exception. It was lovely having my family here for the seders. It's hard to believe this is our last year with just the five of us. Next year Baby Levin will have to brush up on her rendition of the Four Questions :)

Second seder with the family and the Kings

Some people have the misconception that Passover requires sacrifice when it comes to food. On the contrary, I eat way better/worse-for-me than I do any other time of year. There's just so much to eat! I had all my usual favorites, plus I tried some new recipes. Here's what worked and what didn't:

Old Favorites:

• Dad's Brisket: Easily one of my all-time favorite foods. He did an outstanding job this year making the meat melt-in-your-mouth tender. LOVE!
• Noodle Kugel: This is my mom's only signature dish. It was different this year because we couldn't get wide egg noodles like I normally use (we had to use shells), but I think it turned out pretty well. Dan said it was his favorite food this year.
• Chicken Soup: Again, one of my dad's classics. It was absolutely perfect. Dan made more matzah balls during the week and those were amazing. So soft and flavorful. I could eat this every day.
• Matzah Pizza: So simple; so tasty. We broke Passover with real pizza, and I have to say I actually prefer the matzah pizza! Ha!
• Matzah Brei: Served with a drizzle of honey, this makes the perfect breakfast.
• Chocolate Mousse: Even though I'm pregnant and am not supposed to eat raw eggs, I can't resist a couple of spoonfuls of this. It might be one of my favorite desserts ever.

New Recipes:

• Martha Stewart's Tzimmes: The flavors of this were delicious, but the cook times were so far off it's ridiculous. She recommended cooking for 30 minutes. I cooked it for almost 3 hours! It's not pretty to look at, but it sure is tasty.
• Leek and Pea Quiche: I loved this so much I plan on making it during the rest of the year too. I added in mushrooms and shallots since I was short on leeks. Good decision.
• Passover Gnocchi: I wouldn't call this a failure, but I wouldn't call it a success either. I think it could have been really good if I had the right equipment, but I don't have a potato masher for passover so my potatoes were lumpy. They tasted OK, and it was fun eating gnocchi on Passover, so maybe I'll buy a cheap masher and try again next year.

Mmm...I'm getting hungry just thinking about all this food. Is it too early to start the countdown for next year?

P.S. Let me know if you want any of these recipes. I'm happy to share!