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Pesach For The Rest of Us: Making the Passover Seder
Your Own
Marge Piercy; 2007
283 Pages; Hard Cover
59 Recipes
Reviewed by Lisa Lovezzola Smith for Good Cooking, Inc., Early Summer 2007 |
The review---
This book is not just a book of recipes, but is an instructional
guide of the Jewish Holiday, Pesach, or Passover. It is an easy
read from which you will learn the tradition of this holiday and
many simple recipes as well as poems and blessings that together
will provide a contemporary interpretation of Tradition. All the
recipes are written in a casual way, interwoven into the text of
the author’s story. This book is not just for those who are
Jewish, but can also serve as a wonderful read for someone
interested in food history where you will learn the integral role
that food can play in the history and traditions of a religion.
Sample Recipes:
Braised Lamb Shanks with White Beans: This dish was absolutely
delicious!! I cooked it on the stove rather than the oven for
about 3 hours and it was delightfully flavored and the meat fell
right off the bone. It was hard to find lamb shanks in a typical
grocery store, so you may want to find a Jewish butcher.
Cinnamon Lamb: This was tasty, but not my favorite dish. No
roasting directions were included with this recipe so I had to
seek this information from another cookbook. It was also tricky to
cook as the end result had some portions well done with the meat
nearest to the bone quite rare. Some roasting tips and advice
would be helpful. The egg and herb coating on the lamb was
supposed to form a crust, but to achieve this, you will want to
add in a bit more matzoh meal than the recipe suggests.
Carrots and Almonds: Slightly sweet and acidic but still quite
tasty. I would recommend lightly roasting the almonds and adding
them at the end to create a nice crunchy texture.
Potato Kugel: This dish was also great and is a good starch option
for those who prefer a kugel that is not sweet.
Passover Apple Sort of Crisp: This was yummy. The apples were nice
and crunchy, but I would add more nuts and nutmeg for added
flavor.
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Recipe tested---
Braised Lamb shanks with While Beans 1 tablespoon
olive oil
1 lamb shank per person 1 onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced 2 large carrots, diced 6 cloves
garlic, minced
1 can cannellini beans-this is a good amount for 2 or
3 1 cup dry red wine (I often use wine left over from
other meals.)
'/2 cup chicken broth 1 jar tomatoes Some tomato sauce
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or '/2 teaspoon dried
thyme
1 bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 1 tablespoon
grated lemon zest
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
If you are cooking for more than three, you want to
increase amounts according to the number of people. On
medium high heat, warm the olive oil. Brown the lamb
shanks on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Take them out,
turn down the flame, and add the onion, celery, and
carrots to the pan and sauce 8 to 10 minutes, till
tender. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2
minutes.
Add beans, wine, broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce, thyme,
bay leaf, and salt and pepper. Stir to mix. Add the
lamb shanks, bring to a simmer, and reduce heat to
low. Cover and simmer until the beans are tender and
the meat is nearly falling off the bone, 2'/2 to 3
hours. If you keep the heat low or put it in a medium
oven-325°F or so you can go off and do something else.
It's not a fussy dish. You put it on and, as long as
you don't have the heat too high, it will take care of
itself.
Five minutes before you're ready to eat, add lemon
zest, lemon juice, and parsley. Serve immediately. You
can use bread to sop up the sauce.
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