So a while back there was this holiday called Passover. Passover is a holiday filled with tradition and lots of delicious food.... Passover and Easter fell on the same week this year. So obviously that must mean that an apology is in order. I apologize that I took three weeks to write this post. I now have posts stockpiled for the next few weeks...
Midterms, finals, work, blah blah blah. Excuses will get me nowhere and you to boredom-ville. In any event, SEDAR. This "normal" sedar is an oxymoron. First of all, there is no such thing. Jewish families make different recipes, depending on their origin (Sephardic vs. Ashkenazy), read different haggadahs, and celebrate in different ways. (Sephardic Jews are those who come from the Medittereanen area, spanning from North Africa to the Middle East to Southern Spain. Ashkenazy Jews are those of Eastern European descent and some of Northern Europe, as well.) However, something that transcends all sedars:
1. There must always be a sedar plate.
... It includes a bone, an egg, bitter herb, parsley, lettuce, horseradish (in a bottle not pictured above), and charoset (that bowl to the right).
Each item is a traditional symbol to remind us of when the Chosen People--no controversy intended--fled Egypt to their homeland in Israel. If this were a political blog, I would probably go on about the current political situation vis à vis Israel vs. Palestine, but it's not. Let's get some culinary action going.
2. There will/should always be a sedar, whether yours lasts five minutes or five hours (no joke. I've heard stories of hours of being crowded in a small room in the Bronx, shvitzing up a storm, waiting for food and praying in the meantime).
3. No leavened yeast allowed. (While passing through the desert, Moses and his followers lacked such amenities, so you must suffer in his pain as well)
Well for my sedar, which I prepared in one day (quite a feat if you know any Jewish mothers...), I made Yemmenite Charoset, Iraqi-Jewish Chickpea Chicken Soup (with Matzoh balls), Roasted Carrots and Yams, and Honey-Glazed Lemon Roast Chicken. You are about to be hit with all of these recipes. I hope you're ready... The Charoset and Soup are not super cheap to make, although with a little price-tag checking, aren't too much of a splurge. The cheap recipes are the roasted vegetables ($5) and Honey-Glazed Lemon Chicken ($8). So for $13.00, you can make a very good and substantial meal for 5 people. Sticking it to the recession!
Yemmenite-Inspired Charoset
You eat Charoset with Matzoh. It's meant to symbolize the mortar used by the Jewish slaves for building. It's SWEET and DELICIOUS! This recipe is Sephardic, in case you were curious.Ingredients:
1 package of Dates
1 spoon of Fig Jam (or preserves.)
1/2 cup Orange Juice
1/2 cup Golden Raisins
1 tsp Hot Pepper Powder (or chili powder)
1.5 tsp Turmeric
1.5 tsp Cinammon
1 tbsp Honey
1 Apple, cut-up into squares
1/4 cup Pine Nuts
DISCLAIMER: This is a messy recipe. If you don't want to have pine nuts, you can use any other type of nuts, or none at all. I honestly made this recipe up based on yemmenite charoset, a recipe my aunt used to use, and tid-bits of leftover ingredients from other recipes. -Pit the dates. This is a messy job and will require you to get your fingers covered in dates. It doesn't matter how you pit the dates. As long as you put the flesh of the date into a bowl withOUT the date, then you'll be fine. You're mashing them up, anyway.
-Ideally, you would use a food processor to mix the dates and fig jam. However, if you're like me and thus, lacking in such technological advances, you will have to roll up your sleeves and use a wooden spoon (or anything that will get the job done) to mash the dates.
-Once this job is done, stir in everything else. You can change up the ingredients to have more of something you like or less of something you don't. Make sure you keep tasting it along the way. As long as it's tasty, then it's a success. Also, it's supposed to look like mortar.
-Voilà! Eat it with matzoh or bread (once your week of no-leavened-yeast is done) and enjoy!!
(Here, I am performing a tradition of the sedar, where you make a sandwich out of horseradish and charoset. The horseradish is the bitterness of the slaves and the charoset is the sweetness of freedom. I recommend only doing this during sedar and enjoying charoset by itself, in the meantime)Iraqi-Jewish Soup (Oshee Kifte)
Traditionally, this recipe does not have matzoh balls, but I decided to add Matzoh balls because what's a sedar without Matzoh Ball Soup? Without the matzoh balls, this is a Sephardic recipe.
Ingredients:
Soup:
2 1/2 quarts Chicken Stock (preferably clear)
1 1/4 cups Chickpeas
1 large onion (chopped into medium-sized chunks)
1 can Whole Tomatoes (chopped into medium-sized chunks)
Salt and Pepper
1/2 cup Dried Apricots (chopped into quarters)
around 1/8 cup Coriander Seeds
Meatballs:1 small Onion (chopped into small squares)
1 package Ground Chicken
1 bunch of Cilantro
2 pinches of Flour
Matzoh Balls (Buy a box and follow directions):
1 package of Matzoh Meal
1-2 eggs (depending on the Matzoh meal you buy)
1/2 cup water
-In a large pot, allow the chicken stock, onions, and chickpeas to simmer for a bit. On a low heat, you can allow it to simmer for as long as you want. The longer it simmers, the more tender the ingredients are and the more the flavors come out. This can be 10 minutes to over an hour. Add some salt and pepper.
-In the meantime, make the chicken meatballs and matzoh balls.
-Start with the matzoh balls, as once you mix all the ingredients (matzoh meal, eggs, water), it needs to be refrigerated for 30 minutes to an hour. BE CAREFUL: Let it sit for too long and the matzoh meal gets harder. (This happened to me. so beware!)
-For the Chicken Meatballs, mix the ground chicken, onions, chopped cilantro, and add some salt and pepper.
-Then form the mixtures into small balls. Matzoh balls are traditionally larger.
-Add in the matzoh balls to simmer for 20 minutes or so. (Again, follow the box's directions!)
-Do the same for the Chicken meatballs, except only for 10-15 minutes. When you add the chicken meatballs, add the apricots and coriander seeds.
-You can keep the soup warm by keeping it on a very low heat. SERVE and ENJOY.
Roasted Yams and Carrots-Yams (Sweet Potatoes)
-Carrots
-a drizzle of honey (optional)
-Paprika (optional)
-Chili Powder (optional)
-Cut up the yams and carrots as seen above. The carrots should be julienned--culinary jargon for stick-like--and the yams should be sliced into circles.-Set the oven to 425 degrees.
-Place the vegetables on baking sheets. There should only be one layer of vegetables on each baking sheet.
-Sprinkle paprika and chili powder on the carrots and yams. IF YOU ONLY WANT TO GET ONE SPICE, I RECOMMEND CHILI POWDER. (It's more versatile and you will more likely use it more often. However, if you get your hands on paprika... go for it!)
-Drizzle some honey (very little) on the yams.
-Put in the oven for 15 minutes for the carrots and 20-25 minutes for the yams. The Yams take a little longer. The important thing is that the vegetables are tender when you poke them with a fork!
-Enjoy! (This recipe is delicious, VERY healthy, and the easiest way to cook vegetables. All the work is in the chopping... which isn't very much)
(The carrots are surrounding the chicken. Sprinkle some cilantro for garnish!)Lemon-Thyme Honey-Glazed Roast Chicken
(I doubled this recipe. But this should be enough for 4-5 people!)
Ingredients:
1 Chicken for Roasting
1 package of Thyme
1 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup honey
a little olive oil
-Marinate the chicken in lemon juice for at least an hour. (Ideally, six hours... but who has that much time?) Do this by putting the chicken and lemon juice in a plastic bag and refrigerating for your choice of time.
-Preheat the oven to 450 degrees fahrenheit. Take the chicken out of the plastic bag and place on a roasting pan lined with foil. Pat down the chicken so it's dry with a paper towel.
-Cover the chicken with thyme. Ideally, try to cover as much of the chicken as possible. (and yes, that means even the insides... See below picture) Also, sprinkle some salt and pepper on the chicken.
-Place the Chickens breast-side down and roast for 15 minutes.
-Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Roast for another 45 minutes. -In the meantime, heat the honey with a little olive oil so the consistency is more liquid-y. It needs to be pourable.
-Take the chicken out, turn them breast-side up and pour the honey over it. Try to cover the entire chicken with the honey-glaze! (You want every single bite to be equally delicious).
-Put the chicken BACK into the oven for another 25-30 minutes.
-Take the chicken out. The skin will be darkened. Pour any juices in the pan over the chicken.
-Let stand for 15 minutes, then serve!
This recipe is amazingly delicious and every single bite was tender and juicy. If the breasts aren't dry, then you know you cooked a delicious chicken!
The "normal" sedar was complete and delicious. Here are some lovely photographs taken by my friend, Lora Ngai, of the during and after of the sedar!
Here I am, acting as the master of the ceremony, reading the sometimes tedious haggadah. The Haggadah is what outlines the sedar: prayers, stories, questions, and songs included. We printed ours off the internet. (Judaism, welcome to the 21st Century)
Alex and Jenna helping describe the ten plagues brought on Egypt. You use your finger to put a drop of wine (or grape juice if you're not yet of age) on your plate for every plague.
Brandon acts out/tells the story of the Jews and their escape from Egypt... It's a thumbs up, according to Laura.
Willie, Adriana, and Lora make the charoset/horseradish sandwiches. (as described in the charoset recipe)
After math of our feast. Notice the empty plates and smiling faces. And those who are planning the rest of their evenings (Brandon).
The main reason for the success of this sedar was not only the food, but the great company. It's always important to stay in good company. We welcomed both good friends and new friends. Jewish, not jewish, it doesn't matter. Celebrating freedom is something everyone should be able to relate to and want to celebrate. We also talk of how to help those who lack this basic human right. Our love and hope goes out to all of these victims across the globe. Go read some MLK or Jefferson to find inspiration if you haven't found it already.
This sedar kept old tradition alive in a new environment with our student communal lounges, and our diverse attendance. We had Christians, Jews, a Muslim, and a Buddhist attending. I'm sure this is not how my Jewish ancestors pictured sedar, but it's how I do.
So welcome to the 21st Century where we welcome friends and family, tradition, diversity, freedom, and good food!
Did I mention that while eating we were listening to the tribe and ghostface?
(p.s. Live well. Eat well.)
