Passover

[Wilfrid]

Not the Passover thread I expected.

[small h]

Why is this Passover thread different from all other Passover threads?

[StephanieL]

On 4/11/2024 at 3:29 PM, StephanieL said:

The original shipment of Passover goods I'd ordered got damaged by UPS so badly that they discarded it.  Hoping the replacement shipment gets here in time.

Second shipment arrived safely, though one of the boxes of matzoh is a little k'naiched (as my parents would say).

[Diancecht]

Founded in Cincinnati in 1888 and now based in Bayonne, New Jersey, Manischewitz is a Passover cottage industry unto itself, with products ranging from matzo and macaroons to carrot cake mix and the jarred gefilte fish that so reliably stokes fear and loathing in many a Jewish digestive tract. Just in time for Passover 2024, the world’s top matzo producer rebranded its logo and packaging, creating a new visual identity that goes heavy on warm orange hues and incorporates cute illustrated characters and eye-pleasing typography. There is no indication that this makeover extended to what’s actually inside of Manischewitz’s packaging. Its matzo, as one taster noted, “tastes like childhood.” That, however, is not necessarily a compliment: While tasters appreciated the matzo’s crunch, little air pockets, and “burn and char,” they also noted that it tastes, well, like flour, and is “kind of hard to get out of your mouth.” More specifically, it “turns into wet sand.” Which is unappealing! But also, given the origins of matzo, perhaps entirely appropriate.

the great matzo taste test

[Diancecht]

hubby, who grew up in a reform household, exclaimed when i sent him that eater article:

Oh yeah!
I love egg, flavored, and onion

But for the Passover Seder, you’re really supposed to use the plain ones that are approved Passover kosher…. A slightly different level than regular kosher.

[small h]

22 minutes ago, Diancecht said:

the great matzo taste test

You can't really compare egg to plain to schmura, though. 

[bloviatrix]

They don't even bother to try the matzoh brand that my cousin's started (Aviv - made in Israel)

Edited April 18 by bloviatrix

[StephanieL]

I just got 2 boxes of Yehuda whole wheat.  Hoping it's decent.

N loves matzoh, but that's because, as I often tell her, "you're not obliged to eat it for 8 days".  (She does anyway, at least in the house.)

 

Edited April 18 by StephanieL

[relbbaddoof]

Treading carefully into the matzoh issue, why don't you all roll your own? Buying a boxed product made months ago (being optimistic) for what's a hasty flat bread seems somewhat counterintuitive. A matzoh is akin to a plain chapati, without the resting time. Flour, water, a hot griddle (and not so hot if you want a crisper product for eggy delights later) and there you have it.

ETA: I believe in nothing but celebrate everything. Consider the Chou Parsi I made for Nowruz. I've gefilte fish coming in from a nearby Boston deli -- who has the bathtub for carp anymore? --  but my accompanying matzoh will be mine.

Edited April 19 by relbbaddoof

[Orik]

On 4/17/2024 at 10:08 PM, bloviatrix said:

They don't even bother to try the matzoh brand that my cousin's started (Aviv - made in Israel)

How old is your cousin? Iirc Aviv is 19th century.

It should be no surprise that my one surviving memory from Pre-K is they made us make matzoh and eat it and I refused to eat the burnt tasting yucky cracker. Generically predisposed to feinschmeckerism for sure.

[bloviatrix]

15 hours ago, Orik said:

How old is your cousin? Iirc Aviv is 19th century.

It should be no surprise that my one surviving memory from Pre-K is they made us make matzoh and eat it and I refused to eat the burnt tasting yucky cracker. Generically predisposed to feinschmeckerism for sure.

I should have used the word relatives. When they arrived in the community that predates Tel Aviv, (late 19th c) they were told there was a need for matzoh bakers which is the origin of the company. There was a family history commissioned when the family celebrated a century in Israel which is a fascinating document.

[bloviatrix]

I did my Passover shopping yesterday. Two states, 5 stores. And there's still stuff that I need. The back seat was also covered.

Edited April 19 by bloviatrix

[StephanieL]

Oh my.

[Diancecht]

supposedly these actually have flavor. hubby bought some because nostalgia.

[small h]

3 hours ago, bloviatrix said:

I did my Passover shopping yesterday. Two states, 5 stores. And there's still stuff that I need. The back seat was also covered.

How many people are you hosting, like 87?

[bloviatrix]

8 minutes ago, small h said:

How many people are you hosting, like 87?

We're a family of three. But excluding the meals we've been invited out for (second seder and one lunch) there are a total of 14 meals I have to shop for. It's all spreadsheeted out.

Edited April 19 by bloviatrix

[small h]

Ah, I thought this was a single seder's worth.

[voyager]

I salute you!    I can't imagine a spreadsheet of meals that I would actually stick to.    I can see having to plan to incorporate required traditional foods/dishes and certainly the avoidance of forbidden ones, but beyond that my meal planning mindset is strictly from the hip.

(When I taught and when I bought, lesson and merchandise plans were constructs I submitted to appease management.    Once done, I free-styled.)

[splinky]

1 hour ago, bloviatrix said:

We're a family of three. But excluding the meals we've been invited out for (second seder and one lunch) there are a total of 14 meals I have to shop for. It's all spreadsheeted out.

buddhism is still an option.  The kid asked if i was doing passover this year. i laughed and laughed and laughed, then mentioned that she'd need to part with the bagels and the mac and cheese she requested

[StephanieL]

On 4/19/2024 at 2:34 PM, Diancecht said:

supposedly these actually have flavor. hubby bought some because nostalgia.

Except those aren't K for P.

I was shopping in my local Eastern European grocery store today, and saw a whole pile of gift boxes containing shmurah matzoh.  They were free to take, courtesy of the local Chabadniks down the block.

[bloviatrix]

On 4/19/2024 at 6:44 PM, small h said:

Ah, I thought this was a single seder's worth.

I'm crazy. But not that crazy.

[bloviatrix]

On 4/19/2024 at 7:18 PM, voyager said:

I salute you!    I can't imagine a spreadsheet of meals that I would actually stick to.    I can see having to plan to incorporate required traditional foods/dishes and certainly the avoidance of forbidden ones, but beyond that my meal planning mindset is strictly from the hip.

(When I taught and when I bought, lesson and merchandise plans were constructs I submitted to appease management.    Once done, I free-styled.)

The menus are somewhat flexible - especially the vegetable dishes. The thing is, based on years where I bought stuff that I never used I've learned to plan to I don't have a ton of stuff left over that we don't want to eat after the holiday.

[small h]

2 minutes ago, bloviatrix said:

I'm crazy. But not that crazy.

Hey, no judgments.

[bloviatrix]

The chicken soup is done! (Cleaning the 16 qt stock pot will be a bitch)

[small h]

My only job is charoset. I bought apples. I am on schedule.