Passover Menu

Photo: flickr user Carly & Art

Preparation

Charoset (eaten before the meal, with matzo). I'm making my version of Joan Nathan's Egyptian Charoset - see recipe Ellen's Mid-East Style Haroset.

Matzo, of course - store bought.

Salad of raw vegetables with dressings of our choice to be added individually. I'll be bringing my usual mixture of olive oil, lemon juice, and dried herbs (not low fat, but I'm allergic to vinegars, even to the ones allowed for Passover)

Chicken Soup (cooked under pressure) and Matzo Balls (the recipe on Manishewitz matzo meal boxes)

Gefilte Fish (bought at a Jewish specialty store) with horseradish (also purchased)

Roasted Free-Range Turkey with bread-free stuffing. I make the stuffing of dried apricots, almonds, sauteed onion and celery, plus half the spice amounts of the original bread-containing recipe from which this originated. In my view, the only purpose of this is to flavour the turkey from the inside out, but my husband actually will eat this.

Spinach Pie. This is a very low fat recipe I found at a fatfree site several years ago and have posted here before. I made this last Sunday and froze it. I will let it thaw tomorrow, then reheat it in the oven shortly before dinner.

Carrot Baked Pudding. This is a dish that a guest brought to our Seder last year. She got the recipe from her physiotherapist, and I don't think I have permission to post it on the internet. At any rate, it's too high in fat to qualify for this list. The main ingredients are grated carrots, chopped dates, raisins, matzo meal, potato starch, and brown sugar. I'm making this today, for the first time. I hope it turns out.

Steamed fresh asparagus. We have a tall steamer pot designed especially for cooking asparagus upright. First we rinse the spears and snap off the tough ends, then boil water, put the spears in the steamer basket and cook at high for about 10-12 minutes, until the asparagus is tender but not mushy.

And, if we have any room left after that, bakery-made macaroons.