Pesach Desserts Don’t Have to Taste Like Garbage

If you like sweets during the year, Pesach can be something of a challenge. There is nothing made with cake meal—especially shmura cake meal—that doesn’t taste like exactly what it is. The first few years I made yontif, I was mildly shell-shocked by the depressing desserts I produced, and we ate an awful lot of fruit. From there, I graduated to ices, and then Chaya introduced me to the wonders of potato starch. Her Aunt Marilyn’s brownies (note to self: the best Pesach recipes come from people who don’t eat gebrokts!) disappeared more quickly than I could make them.

Aunt Marilyn’s (a”h)Pesach Brownies

1/2 cup of cocoa
1/2 cup oil
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup potato starch
1 cup chocolate chips

Combine in a mixing bowl and bake in a 9X13″ pan at 350 till done.  (Sorry, the original recipe doesn’t say how long, and I just eyeball it.) Figure 35 minutes, but know that they don’t set up like regular brownies do until they cool.

Don’t double the recipe, just make a second (or fifth) batch if you need to.  For some reason, this doesn’t seem to take well to doubling.

Several years after the Pesach Brownie Enlightement came the Flourless Chocolate Cookie Revelation. These are idiot-proof, which is always a factor in my recipe selection, and are super quick to make. The recipe calls for 2-4 eggwhites, and I respect that. Being a creature of moderation, however, I staunchly stick with three, and haven’t been disappointed yet.

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Pesach Cookies


3 cups powdered sugar
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Combine the dry ingredients thoroughly, then add eggwhites and vanilla and stir until there are no lumps. Add the chocolate chips and deposit on silpat/parchment-lined cookie sheets.

Bake at 350 till glossy and set, about 15 minutes. Bear in mind that these spread like crazy when you’re placing them on the cookie sheet, and spray the silpat/parchment with a little bit of cooking spray, because they’ve been known to stick a little, especially if you’re in a hurry to grab one and it’s not cool.


This next one is an all-year recipe that tolerates a swap from cake flour to potato starch and loses nothing in the translation. Top with strawberry sauce, jam, whipped cream, or whatever you happen to have handy.

Angel Food Cake

1 cup potato starch
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups egg whites
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt


Sift the potato starch and sugar together three times.
Set aside. Whip the egg whites until foamy. Gradually beat in the rest of the sugar. Add vanilla and salt. Beat just until stiff peaks form.
Fold the potato starch/sugar mixture into the egg whites.
Pour into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until
cake is golden brown and springs back to the touch. Invert to cool. Remove
from pan and serve.

Last one up: meringues. They’re a little bit fussy, and I usually made them overnight as soon as I’d flipped the kitchen. They freeze beautifully, look impressive, and taste just as good on Pesach as they do all year long.

Ridiculously Easy and Equally Delicious Meringues

8 eggwhites
1.5 cups granulated sugar
1 t. flavored extract (vanilla, mint, raspberry, orange…)
nonpariels, colored sugar, melted chocolate, etc. to decorate

Preheat oven to 250. Your eggs should be at room temperature and your mixer bowl should be chilled when you begin. First, use the wire whip attachment at full speed to whip your eggwhites till they form soft peaks. Add the sugar VERY slowly while continuing to beat the mixture. When all of the sugar has been added, the mixture should be glossy, and hard peaks will form when you remove the beater. Don’t do that just yet, though. Add the extract and beat for a half a minute, still at full speed. Now, drop by dollops (or go all fancy like I do and make pretty swirls with a pastry bag or decorator) on a parchment lined cookie sheet. If you’re adding sprinkles or the like, do it now.Bake for 90 minutes in a 250 degree oven. Let cool in the oven, then drizzle with melted chocolate, if desired, and transfer to an airtight container or a Ziploc bag. If you don’t need them right away, freeze them and enjoy later.


I’m too tired to cook, but we’re not having noodles again.

Shani’s newfound ardor for scrambled eggs has become something of a joke around here, but it makes suppertime awfully convenient.

If we need something a little more substantial than eggs and toast/a bagel/a wrap, there are two crowd-pleasing go-to meals that keep us out of the Noodle Zone.

Grilled Cheese and Egg Sandwiches

This is a no-brainer, but it’s super-filling and feels like a treat. If you have two frying pans going it’s a little less tricky, but I usually make everything in one.

First, scramble your eggs in butter with a little salt and pepper. Your heat should be waaaaaaaay low and the eggs should be moving pretty much constantly. I like them slightly moist, but you do you.

Transfer the eggs to a bowl and wipe out the frying pan. Melt enough butter to make the sandwiches and but the bread and cheese in the pan as you would for a regular grilled cheese. Add a layer of scrambled eggs and cook as you normally would.

Egg Bowls

russet potatoes

yellow onions

butter

salt

pepper

granulated garlic

sweet paprika

Make eggs as above.

Dice onions and potatoes. (1.5 per person usually works)

Melt butter and fry diced onions on medium heat until browned. Add potatoes (and more butter, if necessary) and season with salt, pepper, garlic, and paprika. Cover and cook, stirring as needed, until potatoes are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

Transfer potatoes to individual bowls and top with eggs.

You’re welcome.

Eat It or Wear It: My Postpartum Homage to Farley Drexel

One erev Shabbos, when Mojy was tiny enough that we were still referring to him as “Baby Mojo,” I came this close to getting my Mom Card pulled. (Not really, but I was pretty sure at the time that someone would come knocking at the door with an outstretched hand and a deeply disapproving expression.) Nursing a voracious newborn and a slightly baffled two-year-old, making regular Shabbos preparations, and trying to maintain some outward semblance of normalcy had taken their toll on my normally mild demeanor. (I’m guessing this was Shabbos numero dos for the big-headed-boy—the first one was out of my hands entirely.) Anyway, I was four pots in and it was well past lunchtime. Esti had made it abundantly clear that she didn’t want anything but pasta salad for lunch, and it was in pot number four. She was hungry. I sang the praises of bagels with cream cheese. Nope, pasta salad. I tried to convince her that hot pasta salad was a less-than-appealing option. She held firm. I pushed PB&J soldiers and cut-up grapes across the table. She pushed them right back. Resigned, I told her it would be a little while before the pasta was ready, and she went into the living room to play.

I mixed and chopped and stirred and swept and finally drained the damned pasta. Baby Mojo slept in the sling as I hastily combined the ingredients, squished everything together in zip-lock, and called my starving waif to the table. She abandoned her toys readily and stood beside me.

“Pasta!” she grinned.

“Yup!” I obliged her, scooping a kid-sized portion into a red plastic bowl. I found her a spoon and watched, thunderstruck, as she inspected her spoils briefly, then nudged the bowl back in my uncomprehending direction.

“No pasta,” she said softly, having found some grievous, noodly flaw she dared not disclose. She folded her hands on the table and placed her chin dolefully upon them, meeting my gaze and waiting, it seemed, for the proverbial other shoe to drop. It didn’t take long.

“Eat it or wear it,” I murmured, in unchoreographed solidarity with Warren Hatcher. I dumped the pasta on her head.

Janice’s Pasta Salad

1 bag rainbow rotini

1 bag plain rotini

1 cup mayo

2 cans white shoepeg corn with canning liquid (It doesn’t work with regular corn. Don’t bother.)

Salt and pepper to taste

This is one of those rare and wonderful recipes that is infinitely greater than the sum of its parts. Cook the noodles according to the directions on the package and drain. Chill the noodles before adding the mayo, corn and liquid, and seasonings. Mix and chill some more. This is best the next day, and there’s no legitimate reason for it to taste as good as it does. The girls like to take it to school for lunch (yay, carbs!) and it makes a great side for Shabbos lunch if you’re doing the whole, “challah, fish, salads,” shtick. Don’t dump it on anyone. The mayo did make her hair extra-shiny, but it was a pain in the hind end to get it off the floor.

The Banana-Eater’s Dilemma

I buy bananas with the best of intentions, but I only really like them when they’re on the very brink of going bad. So there’s this one-day window of not-a hint-of-green-deliciousness, and then they languish in the freezer till I get around to making smoothies or banana bread. Fun fact: smoothies are expensive, and I don’t actually like banana bread. I still make it, though, and this recipe is the closest I’ve gotten to masking that old-banana vibe. (Ringing endorsement, I know. But my banana-bread-loving peeps assure me that this is good stuff, so I feel comfortable passing it along.) Added bonus: chocolate for breakfast.

Chocolate-Chocolate-Chip Banana Muffins

3 overripe bananas (pro-tip: If you, unlike some people I know, only have the occasional overripe banana to deal with, peel it, throw it in a ziplock, and stick the bag in the freezer till you have enough bananas/time/motivation to bake.)

1 cup sugar

1 cup flour

2 eggs

1/3 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

This is one of those fancy recipes where you just mix everything together and bake it. No specific order (although my mixer is a little wonky, so I leave the flour till last, when I know that everything else is well and truly blended.) Then ladle it into muffin cups (3/4 of the way full—I use a cookie scoop—and bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes, or until the middles are set. You can also bake this in a loaf pan, or a brownie pan, if you’re into that kind of thing.

What just happened?

With the three Bigs out in the world—and messaging me at odd hours looking for recipes—I’ve decided to bring The Book of Yum online. This way, you’ll each have 24/7 access to everything you need, neatly tagged and titled for your meal-making convenience. Also, you’ll avoid the ever-present challenge of reading around the spills and water stains that plague my IRL cookbooks. Here’s the plan: unless someone has a specific request, I’m posting things as I cook them. I’ll also throw in adorable pics from the good old days, links to the recipes I’ve already posted over at LGB, and occasional commentary on all manner of kitchen-y goodness.

Beef Vegetable Barley Soup

This is a fairly new recipe in my soup rotation, but I’m a little obsessed. It’s hearty and filling and pretty freaking delicious, and when you pair it with my challah rolls or Marci’s Onion Rolls, it’s the perfect, carb-heavy dinner for a chilly January evening. (Given my personal soup sensibilities, though, it’s also an excellent breakfast on a sweltering July morning. Don’t judge.)

1 pound stew beef

6 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2″ chunks

2 onions, diced and browned

3 carrots, peeled and diced

1 cup pearl barley

1/2 t. celery salt

1 T Montreal Steak Seasoning

salt and pepper to taste

Brown your onions (really well) in a little coconut oil. Add carrots and cook until tender. Meanwhile, cut your stew beef into small pieces (stir-fry-size) and add to vegetables.

Once the meat is browned, fill your pot about 3/4 of the way full. (I use a 10 quart pot for this recipe—we really like it.) Add the spices and barley, put everything on a medium flame, and start peeling your potatoes. Rinse and chunk the potatoes and add to the pot. This is a long-simmering soup; I like to put it on in the morning when I have a bunch of things to do in the house and just let it go. If you try to serve it too soon, you’ll be disappointed (and wonder what I’ve been raving about.) You want to let it cook for at least a couple of hours—the meat should be melty, not chewy, and the potatoes will reached a level of done-ness that makes you want to eat them all directly from the pot.

Serve with a salad if you’re fancy, and rolls (duh).