Passover.

This past Saturday I spent the first Jewish holiday with my family in more years than I can remember. Every year I go to two Passover Seders. One that is quick, funny and laid back. And one that is progressive, feminist and political.

Every Passover Seder's mark is made by the chosen Haggadah. This is the story of our escape from Egypt and the Pharaoh. It is a holiday about freedom and depending on which Jewish fence you're on, this is only Jewish freedom, or a metaphor for everyone everywhere who continues to be oppressed.

The Seder can be a little bit like the Rocky Horror Picture Show: 8th street playhouse circa 1982. A Seder plate sits on the table with foods representing different parts of the story, and during the meal re-enactment occurs while someone reads the tale.

Passover Seders can be excruciating for children. You sit at a dinner table and it can be hours before eating commences. The Seder plate begins to look delicious even though there's a bone, a piece of bitter root, a stem of parsley, a bowl of salt water and one hard boiled egg on it. And then you're starving and freezing because there's also a tradition to leave one place setting and chair empty for Elijah. It's a long story but basically he's an angel that might decide to come and eat and drink with you. The empty setting isn't hard, but keeping the door open for him can be. {you would think that he could pass through walls, right?} Because growing up in NY meant that it might be 20 degrees outside during Passover.

This year we followed the loosest of traditional terms for the holiday. We made the foods we loved and invited family over, (22 total!) There was kasha varnishkas, two hiroset: one alcoholic and one not, brisket, roast chicken and kugle. I made a side dish of various roast vegetables and there was a rare fillet Mignon. For dessert I made devil's food cake with my famous hot fudge, and a Meyer lemon & raspberry sauce.

Not coming from an observant family meant that I didn't go  to Hebrew school, and my nose is the one I was born with. It means that being with my family on a holiday infused with strict and specific traditions we can mish-mosh favorite dishes from my grandmother's repertoire and eat them all, enjoying the slightly mischievous freedom of that.

{the Gordon siblings: my uncle R, my sweet mama, and their sister S.}

Comments

[Amy]

Wow! A Passover Devil's food cake! Did you use Matzah cake meal? Care to post the recipe? Please?

[Fatemeh]

Thanks for sharing, Shuna. It's so much fun to see how different seder can be for every family.

[shuna]

Amy,

I am sorry to say that I made a leavened cake. I was trying to say that we are not at all observant except that we are observing our own personal family's tradition of food items.
My grandmother said to me last night, "You know it was so wonderful to eat the dishes that I used to make!"
And for me this summed up why we formed the meal the way we did.

[julie]

Hi Shuna,
I just love your blog. Your Passover sounds fun, something that I don't usually associate with the holiday after enduring those eternal seders as a kid. Thanks for sharing, and thanks also for posting the very first comment on my blog!
Julie

[Dixieday]

But kasha varnishkes? On Passover?? Sounds like you had a great family time, though, and loved the post. Check out some more Passover musings over on Adventures of the Pie Queen, too!

[john]

I love kasha and kasha varnishkes. I've had trouble getting the kasha to come out tender without reducing it to mush. Any suggestions?

[shuna]

John,

I have emailed my aunt who may shed light on this deelish recipe as I did not make it. It is really light, nutty and flavourful and I look forward to understanding how that works myself!

Shuna