Sounds wonderful. Photos if you got 'em please!

I was a guest at in-laws' Seder. I brought wine and chocolate-caramel matzo brittle (to be eaten later because it contains butter), so my job was 1/20th yours.

A blessed passover to all my Jewish friends!

Plllog, the eggs sound like the best part of that whole delicious meal, yum. I have one of those decorator things, I got it in an auction box and haven't used it, I'm glad to know you liked it and thought it worked well.

And I wouldn't turn down that cake, either!

Annie

Thank-you, All! Friedajune, I'm sorry, I don't have any pictures. Too much going on for that. Perhaps some of the locusts will send some. Sometimes I make the chocolate-toffee-trailmix matzah, which sounds like it might be similar to your brittle. Problem is it's too tempting to eat and it's one of the few sweets I have poor will power over, so as long as the brownie cousin is bringing her specialty, and chocolate is covered, I don't do that one. :) I'm sure your in-laws are enjoying their treat.

Annie, it's genius! The plunger is well balanced and fits snugly, and there's a hook for your finger, so it's dead easy to control precisely. And best of all, for me, the hard sided, transparent cylinder is dead easy to load, and corrects air pockets without splats.

I'm glad you like that, I was thinking of using it to make potato "nests" or those pretty duchess potatoes.....

Annie

I'm exhausted reading that. You deserve a medal! Sounds quite amazing though I don't have any idea what a lot of it is LOL

That sounds like a fantastic meal for your special occasion. You worked very hard and I'm sure everything was delicious.

Sounds like even I could use that dessert decorator thing. I've seen them might give it a go.

wow, this sounds hearty! And it kept you plenty busy! I'd have loved the seder foods, the lox, the eggs, the soup, the ribs, the asparagus, the "spaghetti"! (I'm not much of a dessert eater, alas!) Glad this turned out such a success!

Salivating here!

I keep meaning to do the egg pasteurizing. And now that i can cook an egg in the steam oven perfectly i want to make some deviled.

I really like reading about all the quick thinking and problem solving. You did so much work and kept your sanity. Interesting how you handled the short ribs, I recall we talked about that.

Wow, Plllog you are a marvel. What a lot of work, and everything was a success.

I'm pretty simple, and what piqued my interest were your simple roasted potatoes. They sound so good. Can you tell me how you cooked them? Every time I try making them, they don't turn out as I'd like.

Thank-you All for the kind words. This is my annual foray into multi-course sit down (family style passing) feast for the dozens.

Jasdip, the trick is finding PeeWees or Marbles that are nice and firm. It works fairly well with the tiny fingerings (like 2"x1/2") but the little balls crisp up better and have a better ratio of skin to center. You can do the same treatment with cut potatoes, but the results are different--still good though. The marbles come in and out here and I haven't detected a particular season. They may actually time them to holidays. I saw mine just after Easter and grabbed four bags knowing that one must buy them when one sees them. I kept them in the meat drawer so they'd stay firm and nice. Only about five were squishy, which is the same as spot on fresh from the store.

They come pretty darned clean, so I rinse them well, then check for stems, obvious eyes or flaws, etc., and the squishy ones. The pink ones are most likely to be squishy. The white and purple ones are much more reliable, though the purples come in the funniest shapes. Anyway, that's the hard part done. Put them in a sheet pan in a single layer with a little extra room. It's okay if they touch, but there should be room for another handful in the pan, not tight. Drizzle with Extra Light Olive Oil or any other that roasts well. Fling mixed dried herbs over them (Fines Herbes, Herbes de Province, Italian herbs, Greek herbs, whatever you fancy). Get your spread fingers under them and fluff them around to distribute the oil and herbs (some of which will stick to your hands, but it works better than trying to use a fork or something). Roast at 350-360° F for about 50 min. Serve hot from the oven and do try to get them on the table before they're all gone.

So that's the whole story. Most of it isn't about the cooking, which I realize now was your question but I'm too tired to go back and cut the blather. There really isn't any more to it. I don't specifically dry them, but sometimes they're dry before I put the oil and herbs on, and sometimes they're still damp, and I haven't noticed any particular difference. I don't use S&P, but if you like your potatoes salty, you might do like with French fries and salt just as they're coming out of the oven.

IC, feel free to ask if there's anything you want defined or explained. :)

Sleevendog, I pasteurized the eggs with my immersion circulator, but I bet you could do it in the steam oven too! While I use an egg steamer to cook my eggs (have since I was a child), I did them once in my steam oven just to see, and they did come out perfectly. Deviled eggs would be perfect for a Spring picnic!

Yes, John, that thread about browning many short ribs was very helpful! It took me awhile to wrap my head around it, and when I was considering it again for the Seder, that idea of doing it in the oven kept coming back to me. 450° F was a good suggestion. The sugar didn't burn (I was keeping a watch), nor did the spices, and there was good caramelization of the meat. I had to do the onions in a separate pan, of course, but deglazed with some of the wine so got most of the onions in with the ribs. And with the turkey, fifteen short ribs (i.e., single pan packed close) was enough (I think there were two left and I aim for at least 1.5 portions of everything to tell me that there's enough). Was this your suggestion from your estimable daughter? It worked better than I would have imagined.

Sounds wonderful, JC. Thanks for your write-up. And the idea of little marble crispy potatoes is yum. Appreciate your good advice re the prep. I was a guest and brought salmon gefilte fish (Sorosky recipe), flourless chocolate cake (King Arthur recipe) charoset-my friend Sue's recipe and chopped chicken livers. We ate outside in the garden, lovely.

Hi Westsider! Your contributions were no small doing! Outside sounds fab, but we have the damp right here, so it's never as pleasant as on TV. :) I've never heard of salmon gefilte fish before--it sounds like the way I make meatballs with the FP minced vegetables. Since I had the virus in December, I've been more allergic to fish than ever (can't even eat more than a bite of the previous exceptions), and I never could cook it, but if someone would make it, I'd be happy to serve it next year! Wanna come? What was your charoset like? How do you do your livers? We've been having a liver shortage. Since December none of my chickens have had giblets (because they've been raiding them for the livers), and then the last one finally did, but the butcher took them out to check the weight for me, and didn't put them back!

A very naughty butcher.

The salmon gefilte fish recipe is by Marlene Sorosky and its a nifty recipe that I would hope is popularized and used by future generations. It is baked in a 9x 13 pan, freezes well, is pretty, tastes good, serves 16, cut in rectangles, a bit of sugar but otherwise healthy, a winner in my book. No stock with fish heads! It is a tad messy and does stink up the kitchen, ha. Food processor is necessary. Unfortunately the last two times I over baked it and learned my lesson. I had posted the recipe here in the past. It would be fun to join your gang but we are just settling into our new Arizona snowbird home. Ergo, outside!

Charosis was simple- apples, nuts, wine, cinnamon, sugar but labor intensive in cutting apples

.Hard boil 8 eggs and cool. Sauté 2 lbs chicken livers til slightly pink with 2 med onions,sliced in a bit of oil. Chunk up the peeled hard boiled eggs. Pulse the livers and onions til chopped, not puréed. Mix the eggs and liver mixture together adding salt and pepper. My dirty secret is to add mayo til it is the consistency you like. Some may add butter.

Enjoy the rest of the holiday and put your tired little tootsies way up. You earned it.

Thanks for all the details! I've never heard of butter in chicken liver, but my father does put in the chopped egg. But schmaltz! I get the mayo if you're short of schmaltz. :)

In defense of the butcher, I think he just forgot to put the giblets back. It's the grower who'd been holding back the giblets until then. According to my butcher, most people don't want them. (!!!!!!????)

Thank-you for the good wishes. Today we washed the chargers and stems, and put away a lot of stuff. The table guys asked if they could pick them up tomorrow. Things are getting back to an unleavened normal, and I did put my feet up this evening. And fell asleep!

I'll check those poor wonky crêpes tomorrow and see if they're still good enough to bother with since they weren't quite frozen. Meanwhile, I've been dreaming of Pesach moussaka for next year (maybe because of the taramasalata thread (now wouldn't that be a fantastic fish course!)). Almond milk for the béchamel?

Thanks, Pllog. What are :

Matzah

Charoset

Watermelon radishes

Easter egg radishes?

No problem. :)

Matzah (matzo, pl. matzos, matzot--Hebrew so no standardized English spelling) is the unleavened bread we eat during Passover to commemorate the Israelites' "bread of affliction" that they ate in Egypt, and the story that they grabbed up their dough in their haste to flee when Pharaoh said they could leave, lest he change his mind. It's said that the dough, carried on their backs, baked in the heat of the sun to form flat cakes. We eat no leavening during the weeklong festival, though there are some who hold that it only means yeast and will use chemicals (baking powder). Most will use eggs. It's the push-pull of harkening to simpler times on the one hand, and marking a feast with all of one's best. Passover is also a time when we are supposed to live simply and in equality, so other than for the feasts, many keep the meals very simple. Some hold a requirement that an entire sheet of matzah must be eaten at every meal, so come up with many creative ways of preparing it. Others just use it as they would bread.

To avoid wild yeast, the last of the wheat harvest, before the rain, is, by tradition, gathered and kept very dry and watched over, and this is used to make the matzah. There is a very specific method, done quickly so yeast won't develop in the baking. It looks like a plate sized, big cracker (savory biscuit in England?), made without seasoning, just flour. No other flours are used during the festival, but starches from non-grain plants may be, and matzah is ground into crumbs or flour for cooking. A certain segment don't cook with matzah, however, preferring to keep it dry at all times, but the majority consider the commandment fulfilled when the matzah is baked, and it's fine to use at any time, including with water in cooking and baking. Some cultural divisions do eat boiled rice during Passover, but as far as I know, they're still not supposed to use it as flour. Exceptions are made for those who have wheat issues. Spelt matzah is available for those who can eat it instead, and "gluten-free matzah-like squares" are made for those who can't have any wheat at all. That's something of a misnomer, however, since there's no developed gluten in matzah. I know Celiac sufferers who stock up their freezers on Passover baked goods.

Charoset is one of the symbolic ritual foods eaten at the Passover dinner, called "Seder" (translates as "order" designating the 15 ritual elements of the service which is conducted at the dinner table). It doesn't photograph well but the one I linked from a blog is pretty typical for the apple and nut kind--even so, it's much more attractive in person. There are a zillion recipes for it. It must be sweet, because it's used to counter the bitterness of the bitter herbs (often horseradish) that it's eaten together with. A common explanation is that it symbolizes the mortar the Israelites used in building the great storage "cities" in Egypt, and it also, combined with the horseradish, symbolizes the hope that tempered the bitterness of bondage. It is made of fruit, nuts and seeds, wine and spices. One of the most common recipes is chopped apples and walnuts or pecans, with sweet concord grape wine (or grape juice) and cinnamon. My father's famous charoset, chopped by hand with his very big knife, is more pecan than apple (reverse of how many do it), and positively dripping with wine. He chops the wine and cinnamon into the apples and nuts so they get into the cuts. Lowspark posted her Egyptian version years ago, which has dates, raisins and walnuts. There are tropical ones with guava and coconut. Some are more like a paste, others have big chunks. There's a lot of latitude there.

The radishes are just funky produce. Watermelon radishes are green on the outside and pinky red on the inside. Very radishy tasting but a bit sweeter than the usual, and juicier as well. They look beautiful when spiral cut and made into ribbons, and tasty too. :) Easter egg radishes are just a bunch of medium sized radishes (small to medium chicken egg sized) in many colors from white to pink to magenta to red to purple. They sell the seeds as a mix so you can plant them that way. Other than the colors, and a tendency to be round rather than oval or oblong, they're just ordinary radishes.

I need to add that both Westside and Plllog omitted honey from their charoset recipes which I have never seen. Honey should be in charoset because it provides the stickiness and sweetness necessary for its symbolic representations of both mortar and the sweetness of freedom. Having said that, there are a million recipes for charoset so of course there are variations.

Friedajune, that's an interesting take on it. In the recipes I've seen that use honey it's only enough for sweetening, and I've never heard of choosing it for the sticky before. We don't add any sweetening because the apple and wine are so sweet. The people I know use dates, which is very common, when they want sticky smooth (rather than chunky), though I rolled mine in matzah cake meal to keep the chopped dates from sticking together, and to help bind together with the avocado, making them less sticky. :) I'm guessing that the addition of honey or sugar probably came at a time or place where the early apples were tart. Some charosets are very loose, others are very sticky pasty, some are lumpy chunky, and others are almost puree smooth. There's no particular right way to make it.

You are right Plllog. There are so many variations all over the world, and no particular right way to make it. With one exception. My mother's. Which I haven't tasted in 25 years. (wistful)

You're absolutely right, Friedajune. The right way is the way your mother, may her memory be a blessing, made it!

And the way my father does. We treasure every Pesach he's with us to make it.

I found a kind of dark picture of the table, though not the food (that's the box for the books in the background). The tablecloths come with the tables and chairs so I get a different color every year. It's so warm and Springy this year, hence the pink:

I did make the pastry cream and raspberry sauce, finally, and put together the douzaine de crêpes (is that the right way to say it? It's certainly not the mille crêpes I was originally aiming for). The top crêpe in the package turned into a frisbee, but the rest were just fine, but only 13. Given that they had some problems to start with. Judicious stacking and patching actually made for a fairly round cake, I used a bit of pastry cream to ice the sides to make it look better, then ringed the whole with raspberries and edible flowers. There may be unevenness, and some overbrowning, and it's more cheesecake high than cake high, but it tastes great, and the raspberry sauce is awesome. Using arrowroot starch was expensive because I didn't have enough and had to buy it in a little glass jar, rather than the pound bag. Sigh. It made for a divinely smooth custard, however, that was still strong enough not to ooze under the weight. I took it to a family dinner, and this is the remains on its way back in to the fridge.

JC. It is very beautiful. You are lucky to have so many people to share Pesach with.

Plllog, thanks for all the explanations. The Matzoh I think I've eaten but am still having trouble getting my head round the charoset!

Your table was just lovely and your gateau de crêpes looks divine!

That is a most beautiful table. Your china is gorgeous. I agree with Westsider - you are so blessed to have so many to share the holiday with.

Thank-you All for the kind words! I am indeed very fortunate in the family, and I have to remember that when I miss the dozens who have moved away. I truly am grateful for those who are here.

Plllog, I agree, that is one beautiful table. There is nothing I love better than surrounding myself with family and friends for a holiday meal, and I'm sure you feel the same. Treasure them, for you never know who will be with you next time. Families seem to be moving away from big family dinners, with members being so far flung, and I think it's both good and bad. Good when our younger generation(s) are becoming independent and self-reliant, and bad because we miss them!

Annie

plllog, just saw this thread-Happy Pesach!

Your traditions create so many meaningful memories for those lucky enough to share in them. And you are so right, my mom's charoset was the best (all others seem "off"). Never heard of using honey though-she just used walnuts, apple and wine.