Passover Sponge Cake

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

For the record, I am fully aware that Passover is long over. But I took some perfectly good pictures and this Passover sponge cake deserves its time to shine.

Sponge cake is usually the center piece dessert of our family Passover feasts. Gram was the queen of sponge cake, so she was always the the supplier of this airy treat as well as the the bowl of sugar-drenched strawberries and whipped cream that topped it all off.

Because I am inexplicably determined to uncover family recipes and food pearls, I naturally had an interest in recreating her sponge cake magic for this year's Seder.

Yellowed and coffee-stained notes were tucked gently between the pages of her cookbooks, but most of her scribbles were simply lists of ingredients with no instructions.

It seems as if Gram's sponge cake was a work in progress year after year. And I can understand because
my cake came out of the oven tasting like hers, but it didn't rise much or reach it's fully desired height.  I am thinking maybe the eggs I used were too cold. Perhaps, room temperature eggs next year?

It won't be long until tiny scraps of paper start getting tucked in to my cookbooks. Some recipes are just a continual work in progress. Next year, if my family gives me another opportunity, I swear I am going to get it right!

Tell me, which recipes are you still working to perfect?

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

Gram's Passover Sponge Cake

Ingredients:
9 eggs (room temp)
1 1/2 cups of sugar
3 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 cup potato starch
3/4 cup cake meal
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Separate the egg whites and yolks in to two separate bowls.

First, gradually beat sugar into the egg white bowl until egg whites are light colored and thick (almost stiff, but not quite).

Next, sift the potato starch and cake meal together into the bowl of egg yolks.

Fold the egg whites and sugar into the egg yolks/dry ingredient bowl and gently fold together.

Pour the batter into an angel food cake pan (do not grease the pan!). Bake until the cake is golden brown and springs back when touched in the center, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes.

Immediately invert the pan onto its feet or the neck of a bottle and let cool completely. Run a thin-bladed knife around the outer sides of the pan and around the inside of the tube to loosen the cake. Invert the pan onto a cake plate and lift off the pan. Dust with powdered sugar. Serve with strawberries and whipped cream.

Passover Brownies

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

Today is the last day of Passover, and I am here to report that I failed the no leavened bread rule that goes with the holiday. Big, f-a-t, epic fail. But let’s be honest, I wasn’t really trying – hehe. :) Pizza, anyone?

Nonetheless, we celebrated Passover with family dinner at sundown on the first night of the holiday (April 18). Aunt Julie hosted. The feast entailed gefilte fish, matzo ball soup, matzo, charoset, matzo rolls, salmon, compote, asparagus, and Manischevitz wine (mmm...all the good Jewish food I keep posting about).

I contributed to the evening’s dessert menu (what did you expect?) with Passover brownies and Gram's Sponge Cake. Funny how I am the go-to brownie girl considering my history with these baked little squares. How did that happen? I guess this is the dish I've been practicing the longest.

Well, I messed up the sponge cake (more on this later), but I think I have these brownies nailed down. I'd like to think that the secret to a delicious brownie is Drostie's cocoa. Have you ever tried it? I prefer it over Hershey's.

Anyway, while I get an "F" for giving into leavened bread this year, these brownies get an A++. Next year, give them a go. Or, if you are just in the mood to mix up your usual brownie recipe, this is a sure bet. They taste great!

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

Passover Brownies

Ingredients:
4 eggs
2 c sugar
1 c melted butter
½ t salt
7 T cake meal (Passover flour substitute)
1 c Drostie’s cocoa
1 t vanilla
1 c walnuts (optional)

Directions:
Beat eggs and add sugar gradually. Add butter and beat well. Mix in dry ingredients and add to mixture. Stir in nuts. Pour into 9 X 13 inch greased pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes (depending on your oven). Cool completely before removing from pan.

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

Matzah Brei



Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

 Think of matzah brei (pronounced MAHT-zoh BRY; Hebrew: מצה ברייט) the same way you would think of French toast, but sans the bread. But isn’t bread the point of French toast, you ask? Yes, but matzah is the point of matzah brei.

Typically matzah brei is a breakfast dish enjoyed during Passover, when Jews forgo all leavened bread. The meal is simply matzah briefly soaked in eggs and pan-fried in butter.

It can be savory or sweet, as the fried delight is usually served with a sauce or topping. Sauces can range from salsa to apple sauce to cinnamon and sugar. I, for one, have grown up with cinnamon and sugar dusted over the top.

A great way to start the day following the Passover seder is with matzah brei. We are a reform Jewish family, meaning we interpret Judaism and its traditions as culture and tradition-based and understand Jewish law as a set of guidelines to strive for. We are not orthodox (consequently, Mom recently discovered Gram’s Passover carrot ring has been made with flour all these years). We do our best to stay away from leavened bread, and matzah brei is a great attempt to do so....but we are not perfect!

Growing up, Mom would occasionally cook up a batch for us kids, and we’d sit with our legs dangling from the stools that nestled up to the kitchen bar facing towards the stove. Pajamas and bed head were not discriminated against. Matzah brei was for all, along with a large cup of our beloved “coffee milk” (coffee, milk and lots of sugar).

Since I decided to delve into family and food history, I’ve had my eye on the Jewish section of every grocery store I enter. On my last trip to the store, I picked up a box of matzah and decided to give matzah brei a stab for Saturday morning breakfast, coffee and newspaper consumption. It turned out great!

If you have ever been curious about matzah – what it is, how to eat it, what it tastes like – give this super simple matzah brei recipe a try. It’s easy to make and impossible not to devour. Try a cup of “coffee milk” alongside it. Make sure to bring your bed head and pajamas to the kitchen table too!


Matzah Brei


INGREDIENTS
1 sheet of Matzah
2 tablespoons hot water
1 egg
1 tablespoon butter or canola oil
Cinnamon and sugar for topping (or try apple sauce, salsa, or jam if you wish)


INSTRUCTIONS
 1. Break matzah into small pieces and put in bowl with hot water

2. In another bowl, beat the egg with a fork

3. Melt butter or heat oil in frying pan over medium heat

4. Pour over matzah and that pour into hot pan

5. Let mixture become golden brown. Flip and cook the other side to golden brown as well.

6. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar and serve immediately

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson