Around Purim time, my phone starts buzzing with 'Pesach Questions'. In fact I have a new version of the 4 questions which are my most commonly asked:
"What do I give my children / grandchildren for breakfast?"
"What do I serve for lunch the day of Leyl ha Seder?"
"Can you give me a 'nut free' dessert recipe?"
"What dish can I serve on Seder night that will still be palatable at 10pm?"
I really hope some of these recipes answer your questions.
Every year seems to have a 'food favorite'. Remember last year when every dessert had salted caramel, and the year before every salad was sprinkled with pomegranate seeds?
This year it seems to be cauliflower is THE food of 2019. We're making it into pizza bases, we're slicing it into steaks, we're making it into 'rice' – it seems to be the most versatile ingredient on the planet!
Here's my cauliflower recipe for Passover that everyone will LOVE.
Roasted Cauliflower with Red Onion and Garlic
Serves 6-8
Preparation time 15 minutes
Ingredients
1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
2 red onions, cut into small wedges
1 head garlic, peeled – but keep the cloves whole
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
4 tablespoons matza meal mixed with ½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
Method
Soak the cauliflower florets in salted water for an hour and then drain well
Preheat the oven to 190°C
Dip each floret first into mayo and then into the matza meal. Continue until all the cauliflower is used up
Place the cauliflower florets on a cookie tray
Scatter the garlic cloves and red onion wedges on top of the cauliflower
Brush everything with olive oil and bake for 40 minutes
Zesty Seder Night Chicken
Serves 6-8
Preparation time 25 minutes
This is delicious, not just Seder night, but all year round. Because there is plenty of the zesty juice, it doesn't matter if your Seder overruns a little … it really shouldn't dry out!
Ingredients
1 chicken cut into 8
1 cup orange juice
4 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 cm fresh ginger root
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 onions, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 orange, sliced
Salt and pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C
Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the onions until brownish
Add the orange juice, honey, brown sugar, ginger and ketchup and let this simmer for a while to reduce down a little
Arrange the chicken pieces in a casserole and grind salt and pepper over them
Pour over the sauce and cover cook at 200°C for an hour, removing the cover for the last 10 minutes
Check the chicken is cooked by piercing the thickest part of a thigh to see if the juices run clear
Arrange the orange slices around the chicken. Put back in the oven for 10 minutes
For reheating – place in oven at 150°C half an hour before serving. Alternatively, place on a Shabbat plata
Coconut Lemon Tart
Serves 8
Preparation time 30 minutes
Ingredients for the Tart Shell
85g desiccated coconut
100g matza cake meal
100g sugar
6 tablespoons margarine
Ingredients for the Lemon Filling
4 eggs
150g sugar
150ml coconut milk
Juice and zest of 3 lemons
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C
In a large mixing bowl use a wooden spoon to mix together the coconut, cake meal, sugar and margarine until it forms a ball
Press into a 9 inch (23cm) pie dish or a foil pie dish and bake at 180°C for 25 minutes
In a jug, whisk up the eggs, sugar coconut milk, lemon zest and juice
Carefully pour into the cooked pie crust
Reduce the oven temperature to 140°C and bake for 30-35 minutes
Allow to cool – refrigerate until serving
As for the kids breakfast question…? Here's my answer
1 banana sliced
6 strawberries
1 teaspoon honey
4 tablespoons Greek yogurt
Mix all together
YUMMMMMMMMMMM
If that doesn't cut it then I suggest sheets and sheets of matza slathered in salted butter with 4 cups of 'Shocko' … you just can't beat it!