• 1 pound apple slices, peeled
• 3/4 pound boiled chestnuts, peeled
• 1/2 pound walnuts, shelled
• 1/2 pound pitted dates
• 1/2 pound dried apricots
• 1/2 pound raisins
• 2 small bananas
• 1 small seedless orange, only the zulp
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves (if liked)

Put everything in the blender and process until combined, but it shouldn’t be too smooth..
Cook on a low flame for 15 minutes, stirring. Add some sweet wine or grape juice right before serving.

Charoset from Livorno (Leighorn), courtesy of my friend Lea, 
(who also taught me how to make Tuscan Cous-Cous):

• 2 or 3 apples, depending on the size (peeled, cored and chopped)
• 1 pear (peeled, cored and chopped)
• 4 dates, chopped
• 2 dried figs, chopped
• 4 dried prunes, chopped
• 2/3 cup blanched almonds, whole or split in two
• 1/4 cup pine nuts (or blanched hazelnuts)
• 1/4 cup pistachios (or walnuts)
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 4 cloves (if liked)
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoons cinnamon, or to taste

Combine all ingredients except for the sugar and spices in a heavy or non-stick saucepan, add about 1/2 cup water and cook on low heat for about 15 minutes. Add the sugar and spices, and cook for 5 more minutes. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Charoset from Acqui Piemonte – very easy, it doesn’t require cooking!

• 2/3 cup blanched almonds
• 6 pitted dates
• 1 matzah
• 1/2 a cup or more Marsala or sweet wine, or grape juice for a non-alcoholic version
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• cinnamon powder to taste

Coarsely grind the almonds, the dates, and the matzah. Combine with the sugar and add the wine or grape juice, adding the liquid slowly until the desired texture is desired. Place in a serving bowl and sprinkle with cinnamon.

A great matzah-free option if the first Seder has left you feeling stuffed like a Passover turkey and you need a break! You can also serve this at the seder as an alternative to your matzah balls for gluten-intolerant guests.

Ingredients (serves 6)

4 eggs
a tablespoon of chopped parsley
4 slices Hungarian salami, very finely chopped (optional)
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil or to taste
salt, and pepper to taste
1/2  teaspoon of nutmeg (if liked)
3 quarts (or to taste) chicken or beef broth

In a bowl stir together the eggs, the parsley, salt, pepper, the salami, and the nutmeg.  Heat some olive oil in a non-stick skillet, pour the mixture in, and once one side is cooked flip it over and cook the other side.
if you prefer and if the skillet is oven-proof, you can also cook the second side by broiling in the oven (if you are nervous about the flip!).  Let it cool down and cut it into small cubes that you will place into a bowl and cover with steaming hot chicken or beef broth.
Instead of making a thicker frittata and cutting it into cubes, some people like to prepare very thin ones (crepe-like), and slice them thinly to resemble fettuccini.
Enjoy!

This recipe participated in the Passover Potluck 2012: to see it click here:

Ingredients
(serves 4)

• 10 matzahs, broken into small pieces (or 2/3 lb matzo farfel)                                                  *** in Italy we use a thicker type of Matza that comes from France. If using the French matza about 6 should be enough. Use 10 or 11  standard “thin”  matzahs.
• half a salami, coarsely chopped
• 3-4 spoonsfuls of matzah meal, plus more to dust the gnocchi
• 2 eggs
• Freshly chopped parsley
• A pinch of nutmeg
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

Soak the matzah in cold water or broth for about 4 hours till soft.
(if using European/French matzahs, which are thicker, 6-8 should be enough).
Drain it, squeeze it, and place it into a clean bowl; add the eggs, salt and pepper to taste, the parsley and nutmeg, the salami, and 3 or 4 tbsps. matzah meal. Combine all the ingredients well. The texture should be similar to a matzo ball mix: if it’s too liquid and doesn’t hold together, add a little more egg; if it’s too dry and crumbly, add a little matzo meal.
In a second bowl place some more matzah meal. With a wet tablespoon or a wet ice-cream scooper (kept for non-dairy use), take some of the mixture and place it on top of the matzah meal; using your hands, or by shaking the bowl you should be able to cover this “gnocco” more or less evenly with matzah meal and to shape it into a ball (the size of a ping-pong ball, or smaller if you prefer).
Proceed with the rest of the mix and place the gnocchi on a piece of paper towel.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; drop in the gnocchi, and scoop them out as they raise to surface using a slotted skimmer.
Dress with a light tomato sauce or a “Bolognaise” meat sauce.

The Jewish community of Rome dates back to the second century BCE. Its history is known from several Latin and Greek sources, the Talmud, and inscriptions found in the catacombs.
“Rabbinical” Judaism, whose core thoughts are collected in the Babylonian Talmud, originated towards the end of the first century CE, after the Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed. Its center was the academy of Yavneh, which in theory was also in charge of the Jews in the Diaspora. We know from the Talmud that at the beginning of the 2nd century CE, a certain Rabbi Matthias was sent from Yavneh to Rome. However, the Romans did not always accept his authority: the Talmud reports that the leader of the Roman community, Theudas, refused Yavneh’s instructions to modify the way the Passover lamb was butchered.  We infer from these passages that in Judaea the ritual must have been changed after the destruction of the Temple. In most communities around the world, the custom of eating lamb at the seder was eventually abolished “until the Temple will be restored”. However, because of Theudas’s  refusal to follow the dictates from Yavneh, the Roman community continued to prepare the Passover lamb as always (until even Yavneh gave in and accepted the difference). 
To this day, Roman Jews (who are very proud to be neither Ashkenazic nor Sephardic) serve lamb at their Seder. 

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

• 1 leg* of lamb or lamb shoulder ( about 3 to 4 pound)
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled
• 4 fresh rosemary sprigs
• pieces of lemon peel, or chili peppers, or sun dried tomatoes, if liked
• 5 tablespoons dry white wine (pinot gris, riesling or chardonnay)
• extra-virgin olive oil
• salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

*Lamb shoulder is more widely available than leg, because of how labor intensive removing the sciatic nerve is (a requirement of Jewish dietary laws). One of the few kosher butchers in the US who carry lamb leg is Bisrakosher in NY (and their lamb is grass-fed).
Preheat oven to 400 F:
Rinse the lamb, dry with paper towel, and make some small incisions  into the meat with a small pointed knife. This technique has a not-so-kosher name, it’s called “larding” the lamb 😉
Remove the leaves from 2 of the rosemary sprigs and cut the garlic cloves into 4 parts length-wise. Cut the lemon peel or sun dried tomatoes into pieces if using. Insert 3/4 of these rosemary needles, garlic and the lemon or tomato into the cuts. Combine the remaining 1/4 with about 1/2 cup oil and some pepper.  Brush the lamb all over with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with 4-5 tablespoons dry white wine (or a mix of lemon and wine), and place in a roasting pan. Roast for about 1/2 hours or until cooked inside and golden-brown on the outside. In general, lamb should be roasted for about 25 minutes per pound, or until a meat thermometer inserted in the roast reads 150. Turn the lamb halfway through the cooking, and baste every 15 minutes with the herb/oil emulsion and the pan juices. Remove the lamb from the oven and allow it to rest covered for at least 15 minutes before serving.

• 2 lbs mushrooms
• extra-virgin olive oil
• fresh garlic
• thyme
• white wine
• 2 lbs potatoes
• 4 eggs
• 5 tablespoons grated parmigiano reggiano or grana  padano
• 1/4 teaspoon
• nutmeg
• 3 ounces mozzarella
• 2 ounces smoked cheese
• butter
• matzah meal
• salt and pepper

First prepare the mushrooms. In a pan, heat 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil, add 2-3 cloves of garlic. After a couple of minutes,  add the sliced mushrooms, salt and pepper. After another 2-3 minutes add half a cup of dry white wine and let it absorb. Cook until soft, stirring, adding more salt and water if necessary.
In the meantime, boil the potatoes till soft. When they are still quite warm, peel them and mash them. Stir in the eggs, the grated parmigiano or grana, the nutmeg, and add salt and pepper to taste. Add a couple of tablespoons of milk if it still looks too dry or crumbly.

Grease a baking pan with the butter and dust with the matzah meal; pour in half of the potato mash. Add a layer of mushrooms and the sliced mozzarella and smoked cheese. Top with the rest of the potato mash. Sprinkle with a little more parmigiano and a few slivers of butter, and bake in a 350 F oven for about 30 minutes.

This dish is also delicious if you substitute other vegetables, similarly prepared, for the mushrooms (I love it with peas or  zucchini), or if you skip the vegetables altogether and just indulge in a lot of cheese.

• 1 lb fresh spinach
• 4 tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ an onion, finely chopped
• ½ a cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained
•  ½ a cup pine nuts
• 4 eggs
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp matzah meal
• a dash of cinnamon
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Confectioner’s sugar to sprinkle on top

This Venetian dish reflects its Spanish-Turkish origins in the merging of sweet and savory flavors.  The combination of pine nuts and raisins appears in several Jewish Italian specialties, including a saffron risotto and several fish dishes.
Cook the spinach in a covered pot with 4-5 tablespoons of water and salt. Once it’s soft, drain, squeeze, throw the water out, and set aside.
Heat the olive oil and add the chopped onion in a skillet.
After less than 5 minutes add the spinach, salt and pepper and a touch of cinnamon. Cook for 10 minutes stirring frequently.
In a bowl, mix the eggs with the raisins, the pine nuts, the matzah meal, the sugar, the cinnamon and a pinch of salt to the egg mixture. Add the cooked spinach (after letting it cool off) to the egg mixture.
Grease a frying pan with olive oil, and once it’s hot pour in the mixture. Cook for a few minutes over medium heat, then flip over and cook the other side you’re your pan is oven-proof you can also cook the second side under the broiler, avoiding the flip.
Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar and serve as a side – or dessert, or even breakfast!

• 1.5 cups of granulated sugar
• 2.5 cups of ground almonds
• 9 ounces carrots, grated (use small organic carrots for a rich flavor)
• 6 eggs
• A pinch of salt
• Amaretto liqueur or 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• butter, or parve margarine and matzah meal for greasing the pan

Did you think carrot cake was an American invention? Think again: in the Veneto region, Jews have had many versions of this dessert for centuries (and all without cheese frosting!).

Beat the yolks with the sugar, add the grated carrots, the almonds, salt, cinnamon and almond extractIn a separate clean bowl beat the egg whites till foamy.
Gradually fold the whites into the rest.
Pour the mixture in a greased pan dusted with matzah meal and bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees F.

• 1 heaped cup (6 oz) blanched pistachios or almonds
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• a pinch of salt
• 1 large beaten egg white, or a little more as necessary
• 1/4 tbsp amaretto liqueur or almond extract
• matzah meal for dusting (GF matzah meal for a GF version)

FILLING

• 8 oz high quality bittersweet chocolate, grated (or chocolate chips)
• 3 tablespoons almond or seed oil (or 1/2 stick margarine)
• 2 small baskets of fresh mixed berries
• a few tbsps of raspberry or blueberry preserve

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 inch springform pan with aluminum foil or parchment (you can also use a disposable aluminum pan). Grease the parchment and the sides of the pan with margarine or oil, and dust with matzah meal.
Grind the pistachios (or almonds), then add the sugar, almond extract and salt in a food processor. Add the egg and blend. Remove from the food processor and knead with your hands until the mix holds together (it will still be very crumbly), adding a spoonful or two more egg white if necessary. Press the dough onto the bottom of the pan with your fingers or knuckles.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Take it out of the oven and press it down quickly again with a ball of paper towel or the back of a spoon (it will be too hot to touch), trying to make it slightly concave . Put it back in the oven and bake for another 3-4 minutes Take out again, press down again, and allow it to cool down and harden.
Remove the parchment or aluminum lining, put the crust back into the pan. Melt the chocolate chips in a bain-marie (or in your microwave) without letting it boil or burn, and add the oil or margarine; stir until smooth, pour the mixture on top of the crust, and refrigerate for at least 2 hrs. The crust and filling can be made several days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.
A few hours before serving brush the chocolate top with a little  preserve and arrange the fresh berries on top. Leave out of the fridge for at least one hour before serving to make it easier to cut, and use a sharp knife.
*** Tip: this type of crust can be hard to cut, so don’t serve the cake in a delicate platter unless you pre-slice it!

• 1 ½ cup (7 oz) blanched almonds (for a more rustic texture, use unpeeled almonds)
• 2 medium organic lemons, juice and peel (if large use 1 1/2)
• ½ cup potato starch
• 1 ½ sticks parve Passover margarine, OR ½ cup oil
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• pinch of salt
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 tablespoon kosher for Passover baking powder (if available)*
• Passover Confectioner’s sugar (if not available see my recipe)

*kosher-for-passover baking powder can be hard to find, but this year my kosher supermarket carried two different brands. The baking powder will make this cake even fluffier, but if you can’t find it the egg whites are enough to make it soft.
** to make kosher for Passover confectioner’s sugar, just process 1 cup granulated sugar with 2 teaspoons potato starch for 3 minutes in your food processor.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Grate the lemon zest and set it aside; squeeze the lemons and set the juice aside.
Combine the potato starch with the baking powder (if using) and sift, or pulse a few times in your food processor. Set aside in a large bowl.
Grind the almonds in your food processor (I never buy ground almonds, I find that the flavor and texture are too ‘dry’: it takes seconds to grind almonds in a food processor). Remove from the food processor and add to the bowl of potato starch.
In the same food processor, beat the egg yolks with the sugar and a pinch of salt until foamy.
Melt the margarine in your microwave or in a small skillet (if using oil, skip this step).
Combine the oil or melted margarine with the beaten yolks and sugar, then start incorporating the mix of almonds and starch gradually,; keep pulsing and add the lemon juice and lemon zest. Remove the batter from the food processor and pour back into the large bowl.
In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites with a handheld electric whisk until they form stiff peaks (to make this easier, I add a couple of drops of white vinegar or lemon juice to the bowl). Incorporate the whites into the batter with a spatula, using delicate upward movements.
Pour into a 9” baking pan, lined with parchment and greased well (you can also dust it with matzo meal if you are not keeping gluten- or gebrokt-free). Bake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out almost clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack without removing from the pan.
Once cool, carefully remove from the baking pan and dust with confectioner’s sugar.

My first encounter with this concept was in Giuliana Ascoli-Norsa’s beautiful collection “La Cucina nella Tradizione Ebraica”: I immediately loved it for its uniqueness, and because I was already partial to carrot cake. However, the original recipe used more than a pound of spinach and no potato starch or liqueur, and the result was disappointing. It wasn’t until several decades later, after I moved to the US and tried zucchini muffins, that I remembered this unusual combination and decided to try my hand at it again. This time I emailed all my friends from Tuscany (the area where this Passover dessert is supposed to have originated) to see if they could offer any variations. Unfortunately the spinach cake turned out to be a sort of culinary chimera, a mythical dessert that everybody had heard about but nobody had tasted or knew how to make (on the other hand, I did gather top-notch instructions for spinach fritters, and a sweet spinach and ricotta tart). At this point, though, I had become obsessed and decided to bring out the big guns: for four days I baked two spinach cakes a day, tweaking and fine-tuning, until I was finally happy with the result. And here you go! You might still want to keep the main ingredient a secret if your kids are picky eaters: they’d probably rather think it’s a colorant…

Ingredients

1 ½ cup (7 oz) blanched almonds
12 oz baby spinach (2 bags)
½ cup potato starch
½ cup almond or seed oil OR  1 ½ sticks parve Passover margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
pinch of salt
4 eggs, separated
3 or 4 tablespoons kosher for Passover anise liqueur or amaretto
1 tablespoon kosher for Passover baking powder (if available)*

(for the icing)

8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet parve chocolate (grated or chips)
3 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar** (optional)
3/4 stick margarine
1/3 cup Passover almond milk or water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

(you can also skip the icing and sprinkle with cocoa powder and confectioner’s sugar)

DIRECTIONS
*kosher-for-passover baking powder can be hard to find, but this year my kosher supermarket carried two different brands. The baking powder will make this cake even fluffier, but if you can’t find it the egg whites are enough to make it soft.
** Kosher for Passover Confectioner’s sugar can be also hard to find, but it’s easy to make by processing 1 cup of granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon potato starch in your food processor for at least 3 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Cook the spinach for 10 minutes in a covered pot with 4-5 tablespoons of water. Once it’s soft, drain, squeeze, diwcard the liquid (I usually line a colander with cheesecloth or paper towel, place it in my sink and press the spinach down in it with a bowl.
Grind the almonds and the spinach together finely in your food processor (I never buy ground almonds, I find that the flavor and texture are too ‘dry’: it takes seconds to grind almonds in a food processor).  Set aside and wipe the food processor, then place the egg yolks in it with the sugar and a pinch of salt and beat until foamy. Add the spinach and almond, and the liqueur, and keep pulsing until combined.
Melt the margarine in your microwave or in a small skillet (if using oil, it does not need heating), and add to the mix. Keep pulsing and slowly add the potato starch, sifted with the Passover baking powder (if using). Process until smooth.
Remove the batter from the food processor and pour back into the large bowl.
In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites with a handheld electric whisk until they form stiff peaks (to make this easier, I add a couple of drops of white vinegar or lemon juice to the bowl). Incorporate the whites into the batter with a spatula, using delicate upward movements.
Pour into a 9” baking pan, lined with parchment and greased well (you can also dust it with matzo meal if you are not keeping gluten- or gebrokt-free). Bake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out almost clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack without removing from the pan.
Once cool, carefully remove from the baking pan and cover with chocolate icing, or simply dust with a mix of cocoa and confectioner’s sugar.
To make the icing, Combine almond milk and sugar in a heavy saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract, chocolate and softened margarine. Stir vigorously until combined and spread on the cake using a large spatula.
Decorate with rose petals or red berries, or cherries.

Obviously, this is not only for Pesach! Ask any Italian child and they will probably name chocolate salami as their favorite dessert, any time, anywhere.

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons water (or oil, for a softer texture)
• 8 tablespoons sugar
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate, grated (or semi-sweet chocolate chips)
• a few drops of vanilla or almond extract (you could also use a couple of tablespoons of a sweet liqueur such as Amaretto, but your kids will really want to eat this!)
• 1 cup shelled walnuts, or pistachios or hazelnuts
• 1 cup broken Passover cookies
• 2 tablespoons candied orange (optional)

Melt the chocolate with the sugar in your microwave or in a bain-marie. Add 4 tablespoons hot water and stir until smooth. Add the cookies, nuts, liqueur or extract,  candied peel. Taste and add a couple of spoonfuls of honey if you would like it sweeter, and one or two more tablespoons hot water if it’s hard to stir. Allow to cool. When it’s lukewarm,  shape it into a salami and wrap tightly in plastic wrap or aluminium foil. Let it rest in the refrigerators for at least 6 hours. About 30 minutes before serving, unwrap and cut into slices. For a softer texture, replace the water with almond or seed oil.