Pizza Bagel. Schmaltz.

Chocolate Mousse for Passover

I’m always looking for a good Passover dessert and my litmus test for whether something is ‘good’ is whether you would alsoeat it the rest of the year. My chocolate mousse recipe, inspired by this recipe fromThe New York Times achieves just that: good enough to eat all year round, but no chametz (leavened bread products)!

You can either make the chocolate mousse plain and serve with berries, or make it into a trifle as I have done here.

All Year-Round Chocolate Mousse

For dark chocolate mousse:

11 ounces bittersweet chocolate

8 large eggs, separated

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon orange zest

1-2 tablespoons kosher for Passover alcohol (optional)

raspberries or strawberries for garnish

For white chocolate mousse: Use this recipe by Claire Robinson. (optional)

In a double boiler, melt chocolate over low heat or melt chocolate in batches in the microwave, stirring after 30 seconds. Cool slightly. Beat egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until light. Whisk in olive oil, brandy, orange zest and melted chocolate.

Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, whisking until stiff but not dry.

Fold whites into chocolate mixture so that no white streaks remain.

If you’re making a trifle, add first layer of dark chocolate mousse (about half) to glass bowl. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Add layer of white chocolate mousse. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Add last layer of dark chocolate mousse and garnish with berries, candied orange peel or mint. Keep in the fridge until serving.

Enjoy!

By Popular Demand: Passover Desserts

Passover desserts really suck, eh? And while flourless chocolate torte is a tried and trustworthy favorite, sometimes you need to mix it up.

Both of these Passover-ideal dessert recipes have been inspired by other recipes, and require almost NO alteration from the original, which is why they are so good! When I look for Passover recipes, I look for things that won’t require a complicated, mad scientist approach to replacing flour. Instead, I look for things that don’t require flour in the first place! I promise you won’t be disapointed…

Flourless Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (inspired by THIS recipe)

• 1 cup almond butter
• 1 egg
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together first four ingredients until smooth. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts. Bake for 11 minutes, and then let cool for 5 minutes while cookies remain on the baking sheet. Tranfer to baking rack to cool completely.

Cheesecake with Almond Crust (inspired by THIS recipe)

For crust:

• 1 cup almonds
• 2/3 cup walnuts
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp melted butter

For filling:

• 4 packages of cream cheese (not Temptee)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
• 2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line your springform pan with extra aluminum foil.

In a food processor, mix the almonds and walnuts with 3 Tbsp sugar. Add melted butter until slightly wet, resembling small crumbs. Pat into bottom of spring form pan, and bake for 11-12 minutes, just until golden.

In a large bowl, whip cream cheese with hand mixer until smooth. Add eggs, sugar, vanilla, zest and lemon juice.

Pour filling into prepared crust, and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, or until the center moves just slightly, and the edges start to brown lightly.

Refrigerate until completely chilled. Serve with berries or whipped cream (optional).

Passover Menu 2011

Our menu for second night seder. Chag Sameach and Happy Passover. More recipes coming soon!

Gefilte Fish

Candied Walnut Charoset

Tuscan Style Liver Spread

Dill Matzo Ball Soup

Citrus-Rosemary Roast Turkey

Osso Bucco with Quinoa

Roasted Aspargus

Chocolate Dipped Macaroons

Not your mom’s Chopped Liver

I hate Passover. I hate the boxes of processed disgustingness and dark chocolate jelly rings (which my husband loves). I hate overpriced bottles of mayo and meat prices jacked up just because. I hate Passover for lots of obvious reasons.

But I do view Passover as a culinary challenge, one that I’ve been working on for many years.

One of my favorite recent Passover recipes is an Italian style liver spread, instead of traditional chopped liver. This recipe is….unctuous. Rich, sweet, flavorful, and will blow your traditional mom’s chunky liver out of the water (with all due respect to your mom and her liver, of course). This recipe is NOT for the faint hearted, or those who are looking for a healthy alternative. This recipe is best for people looking for an indulgent dish, because yes, it has fat in it.

Traditional Tuscan style liver spread calls for a special wine made in the region called Vin Santo, which of course is impossible to find kosher. If you find it, please let us know how. So instead of using the elusive sweet Vin Santo wine, I reccomend using a sweet red wine, or even dare I say it. ok, I’ll whisper: Manischewitz.

I like to broil my own livers, but there is no reason you can’t use already broiled livers from the butcher.

Tuscan Liver Spread

• 1 lb chicken livers (raw or already broiled)
• 1 Tbsp chopped thyme leaves
• 3/4 cup sliced button or bella mushrooms
• 1 Tbsp capers, minced
• 1 Tbsp minced anchovies or anchovy paste
• 1 1/2 cups sweet red wine
• olive oil
• chicken or duck fat
• 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest

If livers are not already broiled, spread out the raw livers on a roasting pan and broil in an oven until they are just no longer pink inside.

In a skillet on medium, heat a few Tbsp of olive oil, and add 1 tsp of chicken or duck fat. Saute the mushrooms in oil until soft and caramelized. Add capers, thyme and anchovies and saute for another minute or two, so the flavors have the chance to marry.

Add the sweet red wine, scraping any “good bits” on the bottom of the pan. Let the mixture reduce for 2 minutes, and then add the livers to the mixture. Allow the livers to cook in the wine and mushroom mixture for  3-5 minutes, until the sauce has a reduced to half and livers are fully coated.

Allow the livers and sauce to cool for a few minutes, and then add to a food processor along with 1-2 Tbsp of chicken or duck fat. Mix until desired consistently. Fold in lemon zest at the end.

Serve with matzah or tam tams during Passover. Serve with a crusty baguette and a big glass of wine the rest of the year.