PASSOVER SUBSTITUTIONS
It happens every year. You wish you were able to make your fantastic lemon or apple cake for Passover.
Well,
you can!!!!!
Just use these substitutions and you will find you will be able to recreate your prized recipes any time you wish to during Passover.
5/8 cup potato starch equals 1 cup flour
3/4 cup matzo cake meal equals 1 cup flour
1 cup matzo cake meal equals 1 cup breadcrumbs
1 cup ground nuts equals 1 cup flour
7/8 cup potato starch equals 1 cup matzo cake meal
3/4 cup matzo cake meal equals 5/8 cup potato starch
To replace vanilla extract in baking, place a vanilla bean that has been broken in half in a jar with a cup of granulated sugar. Allow this mixture to stand for at least one week. You will have vanilla sugar. 1 teaspoon of vanilla sugar is equal to 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
To make confectioner's sugar for Passover, place1 cup of sugar and 1/2 tablespoon of potato starch in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Process for 2 to 4 minutes until very fine. The texture will be grainier than regular confectioner's sugar. It makes 1 cup.
Use finely ground almonds, walnuts, pecans or pistachio nuts to coat chicken, fish or veal that has been dipped in egg whites.
Use a grated white potato in place of bread crumbs when making meatloaf or hamburgers or in kugels other than potato if you don't wish to use matzo meal.
Now, for some different recipes for Passover!
Matzo Scallion Latkes
Perfect when you want something different to serve as a side dish or an appetizer.
Makes approximately 3 dozen latkes
1 cup thinly sliced scallions, the white and pale green parts
1 cup scallion tops, the dark green part
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups matzo meal
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Oil for frying
Heat the 1 tablespoon of oil in a 12" sauté pan over medium heat. Add the sliced scallions and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, until tender. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the scallion tops. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs well and the add the water and mix until well combined. Whisk in the salt, pepper, oregano, cardamom and pepper. Add the matzo meal and scallions and mix until well combined.
Heat the oil in a 12 inch nonstick fry pan over medium heat. Drop 2 tablespoons of batter for each latke into the pan and spread to form a 2 inch circle. Cook until the bottoms are a golden brown, about 2 minutes. Turn and cook until the second side is golden brown and the latkes are cooked through, an additional 1 1/2 minutes. Place on paper towels to drain. As needed, add more oil to finish frying the latkes.
The latkes can be made ahead and reheated at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Passover Tart Dough
A parve Passover dough for your favorite tart.
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon ice water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla sugar
1 1/2 cups matzo cake meal
3 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 stick
cold parve margarine cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup shelled almonds, toasted and finely chopped
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Grease and flour with matzo cake meal a 9" round tart pan with removable bottom.
In a small bowl, mix the egg yolk, water, and vanilla together. Place the cake meal, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a food processor and mix until combined. Add the margarine and pulse until the pieces of margarine are no longer visible.
With the processor running, add the egg yolk mixture in a stead stream. Then pulse the mixture until the liquid is evenly distributed, about 15 seconds.
Place the mixture in a large bowl, and using your hands, mix in the chopped almonds, evenly.
The dough will be fairly crumbly at this point. Transfer the dough to the tart pan, and starting at the sides, press the dough firmly agains the pan to make a crust about 1/4 inch thick. Dock the bottom of the crust with a fork, and place in the freezer for 10 minutes. Remove from the freezer, place in the oven, and bake until golden brown, about 10 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
When cool, fill with your choice of fillings.
Passover Pecan Cookies
Non-gebrokt for everyone!
Makes approximately 24 cookies
1 cup pecan halves
3/4 cup potato starch
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter or parve margarine, at room temperature, cut into small pieces
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper
In a food processor pulse pecans, potato starch, sugar, cinnamon, and salt until the mixture is the texture of coarse corn meal.
To the pecan/potato starch mixture, add the butter or margarine (for parve) and pulse until a dough forms.
Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour.
Measure 1 tablespoon of dough for each cookie and roll into a ball. Place on the prepared baking sheet, about 1 1/2 inches apart.
Bake, turning the baking sheets halfway through, until the cookies are golden at the edges, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
If you would like, you can make jam sandwich cookies by spreading either apricot or raspberry jam on the bottom of a cookie and placing a second cookie on top.
The information on this page can be find in my cookbook:
Kosher Salt and Exotic Spices.
