Flour and water are all that`s needed to make the unleavened bread called matzo.
Nothing less-and most importantly-nothing more. No yeast, no baking powder, not a bit of flavoring.
For a food that is intrinsically simple, though, the religious significance and traditions surrounding matzo are substantial.
Matzo plays a dual role in the eight-day Passover observance, both as a religious symbol and as a cooking ingredient. It is an important element of the seder plate. Tucked in a napkin and hidden by an elder, matzo becomes afikoman, a surprise children look for during the seder. And it shows up in foods as diverse as matzo balls, gefilte fish, matzo brei and chocolate cake. ”Matzo can be eaten all year round, but there is a biblical commandment to eat it during Passover,” says Rabbi Benjamin Shandalov of the Chicago Rabbinical Council.
”Matzo or unleavened bread represents the bread that was hastily baked by the Jews fleeing slavery in Egypt,” adds Rabbi Yoses Schanowitz of North Suburban Lubavitch Chabad, a Jewish educational organization in Highland Park. ”Because of the swift exodus of the Israelites, there was no time to let the bread rise. It is for this reason we are prohibited from eating a leavened product or chometz during Passover.”
THE RIGHT TRACK
Because matzo is so important to Passover, its preparation is carefully controlled. Rabbinical supervisors track the making of matzo from the moment the grain is harvested on through the baking to be sure that all laws are followed.
”The difference between Passover matzo and matzo eaten the rest of the year is that the method of preparation for Passover matzo goes back to the Bible,” says Robert Starr, president of the B. Manischewitz Co., a 100-year- old manufacturer of kosher foods in Jersey City, N.J.
Matzo for Passover can only be made with one of five grains: wheat, rye, barley, oats or speltz (an ancient wheat), with wheat the most common. Most importantly, no leavening can occur.
According to Starr, whose firm just finished baking several million pounds of Passover matzo for shipment around the world, natural leavening occurs 18 minutes after flour and water are mixed.
”Because our ancient sages determined it took that long for the leavening process to set in, that`s the time in which matzo must be mixed and baked,” Starr says. For this reason, care is taken to make sure no liquid comes in contact with the grain or flour before it is ready to be mixed.
Although technology has updated the preparation of Passover matzo-machines mix and knead the dough then feed it through rollers into a traveling oven-there are some traditional rules which remain. Rabbis and their supervisory assistants clock the mixing, rolling and baking of matzo with stop watches to make sure it doesn`t exceed the 18 minutes and begin to rise.
”The mixing process actually takes less than four minutes and the baking takes about a minute. But there is always the possibility of a mechanical breakdown,” he says. More than a few batches of dough have been discarded when it wasn`t finished within the 18-minute time frame. ”If there is any doubt, we toss it out.”
In its simplest, most traditional, most common form, matzo is a thin cracker-like bread with a perforated surface usually baked in a 6-inch square to a thickness of 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick.
”Some countries make matzo thicker,” says Rabbi Schanowitz, ”And, if matzo has been made by hand in small bakeries it may actually be round.” In New York, some matzo bakeries still prepare the bread in ovens fueled by wood or coal.
Long before big factories and modern technology simplified matzo preparation small-town bakeries took on the task, often getting the local children to help, according to Rabbi Schanowitz. Because so few children get involved in matzo preparation these days, four years ago he decided to bring the concept of a model matzo bakery to North Suburban Lubavitch Chabad.
”We were the first to introduce the model matzo bakery here,” he says.
”We got a pizza oven and made it kosher, using a blow torch to purify it.
”Then we invited area schoolchildren to attend. We give them a rolling pin and a chef`s hat,” he says. ”We tell them about the mixing of the flour and the water and the rules of matzo preparation. They set a timer for 18 minutes, stir up the dough, roll it out then bake it.”
NOT THE REAL THING
”We emphasize this matzo is only a model and that for Passover, they should only eat matzo baked especially for the holiday,” Schanowitz says.
”But this is a unique, fascinating opportunity. It gives children a chance to experience the holiday first hand.”
Once matzo is baked, many families will eat it only in its cracker-bread form during Passover, sometimes adding liquid only on the final night and day of Passover. When liquid-water or juice, for example-is added to matzo it is then called gebruchts. Others incorporate commercial matzo products into family Passover meals.
While matzo products vary by manufacturer, in general there is the 6-inch square cracker-bread, a somewhat thinner product called a tea matzo and a smaller octagonal shape called a cracker. There are also whole wheat matzo products. (Egg matzo, a more tender product with egg in the dough, cannot be used during Passover except by the sick and elderly.)
When the simple matzo square is broken up into small pieces, it becomes matzo farfel. Lightly moistened, matzo farfel may be used as stuffing for poultry or in vegetable casseroles. If the matzo cracker-bread is crushed to a somewhat coarse meal, the resulting product is called matzo meal. This product is most commonly used as the bulk in matzo balls, as the binder in gefilte fish and as breading for everything from cutlets to chicken Kiev.
When matzo meal is ground further, it becomes matzo cake meal. This product, usually available only during Passover, is as fine as flour in consistency and is used just like flour in the preparation of cakes, cookies and the thin pancake called a blintz.
”The origins of matzo are the same,” says Starr, ”but what has developed is that matzo has been adapted to different cultures and local food habits. People have taken traditional foods and dressed it up.”
While one family may make the egg-matzo dish called matzo brei with onions, others may serve it plain with syrup. The classic sponge cake has been flavored with chocolate. Manischewitz`s Starr says the matzo brownie mix is a big seller.
At the Kosher Gourmet, 3552 W. Dempster St., Skokie, owner Joel Jacobs rattles off a dozen dishes prepared with matzo for Passover. The catering-retail operation mixes up such classics as matzo balls, matzo kugel and gefilte fish, but also chicken Kiev, sweet-sour meatballs, honey cake and carrot souffle. ”For this holiday, people like the traditional dishes,” he says.
TOO MUCH FUSS
Paul Carnahan, party consultant at George L. Jewell Catering Service Ltd., says that while some people have responded favorably to the red pepper garnish on the firm`s matzo ball soup and the mushroom stuffing in the capon, others have asked to have the poultry simply roasted and the fancy soup garnish removed.
”The menu we`ve created reflects some of the religious significance of Passover itself-a meal put together in haste for people who are going to travel,” Carnahan says. ”That makes any extremely fussy products
inappropriate.”
From the ceremonial plate, on through matzo ball soup, gefilte fish, brisket and potato kugel, the special Passover menu from Jewell will be served to more than 1,500 people this holiday in private homes and at temples.
”Although its predominant use is as a cracker-bread,” says Carnahan,
”when I consider matzo as an ingredient, I think of it like a flour.
”But the image of matzo as an ingredient has changed, especially with desserts. People have discovered you can do much more than sponge cakes.”
Jewell`s Gan Eden Torte, a flourless fudge cake, filled with a fluffy raspberry filling and finished with a coffee glaze is a luscious example.
Once Passover observances have ended, matzo will continue to be nibbled by those who tuck it in bread baskets, spread it with butter, crumble it into tomato soup and stir it into matzo brei. And why not?
”Matzo is a natural product and while most eat matzo for religious or ethnic reasons,” says Starr, ”others eat it simply because it`s low in calories and tastes good.”
HOLIDAY FOOD
The recipes for Passover mushroom pudding and chicken blintzes with hot cranberry sauce have been adapted from ”The Best of Jewish Cooking,” edited by Phyllis Frucht, Joy Rothschild and Gertrude Katz with the Ladies Auxiliary of Temple Beth Israel (out of print). The potato buns are adapted from ”The New Portal to Good Cooking” by the Greater Chicago Coordinating Council Women`s American ORT (out of print). The luscious torte is the creation of the cooks at George Jewell catering.
PASSOVER MUSHROOM PUDDING
Six to eight servings
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Baking time: 40 to 45 minutes
1 pound matzo farfel
1 1/4 cups each: finely chopped onion, finely chopped celery
1 pound mushrooms, trimmed, sliced
4 tablespoons pure vegetable oil or kosher Passover margarine
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
6 eggs, separated
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1. Place farfel in a sieve and pour hot water over it; squeeze dry at once. Farfel should be semi-crisp. Place in a mixing bowl.
2. Saute onions, celery and mushroom in oil or magarine for 5 minutes;
add to farfel along with parsley. Slightly beat egg yolks. Stir in. Add salt and pepper.
3. Beat egg whites until stiff, but not dry. Fold into mixture.
4. Pour into a greased 10 by 12 inch baking pan. Bake in a 325 degree oven 40 to 45 minutes. Serve warm.
CHICKEN BLINTZES WITH HOT CRANBERRY SAUCE
Six to eight servings
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Filling:
2 1/2 cups cooked chicken, skin removed, diced
1 egg
2 medium onions, peeled, chopped
1 tablespoon chicken fat
Kosher salt, coarsely ground white pepper
Batter:
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup water
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed clear chicken broth, undiluted
2/3 cup matzo cake meal
Chicken fat for frying
Cranberry sauce:
1 bag (12 ounces) frozen cranberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1. For filling, combine ingredients to blend and set aside.
2. For batter, combine eggs, salt, water and broth. Add liquid gradually to cake meal, stirring constantly to avoid lumps.
3. Pour about 3 tablespoons batter on a hot lightly greased 6-inch skillet. Rotate pan so batter covers bottom. Fry over moderate heat until edges pull away from pan. Turn out onto a clean cloth, cooked side up. Repeat until all batter is used. You should have about 16 pancakes.
4. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling on the center of each pancake. Fold in edges and roll tightly. Fry each blintz until golden brown in a small amount of chicken fat, turning to brown lightly. Drain on paper toweling and keep warm.
5. To prepare cranberry sauce, cook cranberries with sugar and water for 10 minutes. Skim froth from top. Serve hot with blintzes. Or use a can of jellied cranberry sauce, heating with 2 tablespoons water until melted and smooth.
PASSOVER POTATO BUNS
20 buns
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Baking time: 40 to 50 minutes
5 pounds potatoes, peeled
2 onions, grated
1/2 cup kosher Passover margarine
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
3 eggs
1 cup matzo meal
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon water
1. Cook potatoes until tender; mash well. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Saute onion in 1/4 cup of the margarine. Add to mashed potatoes with remaining 1/4 cup margarine, salt and pepper. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Gradually add enough matzo meal to make a soft dough. Let dough stand 15 minutes to make it easier to handle.
3. Grease a large baking pan. Shape dough into 20 balls; flatten slightly and place in a baking dish. Mix yolk with water; use mixture to brush tops of buns. Bake until tops are nicely browned, 40 to 50 minutes.
GAN EDEN CHOCOLATE TORTE WITH RASPBERRY FILLING AND COFFEE GLAZE
Eight to ten servings
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Baking time: 35 to 40 minutes
Cake:
1/2 cup whole, blanched almonds
1 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
8 eggs, separated
1 cup sugar
1 cup sifted matzo cake meal
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup each: honey, orange juice
1/2 cup sweet red kosher wine
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
Raspberry filling:
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup raspberry juice
2 stiffly beaten egg whites
Coffee glaze:
2 tablespoons cold strong coffee
2 cups confectioners` sugar
Almond slices
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Put nuts and chocolate in a food processor and grind until finely chopped.
2. Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon colored, adding sugar gradually.
3. Sift matzo meal with cinnamon and salt.
4. Gradually beat honey, orange juice, wine and rind into eggs. Beat in chocolate-almond mixture gradually. Slowly beat in dry ingredients.
5. Beat 8 egg whites until stiff; fold beaten egg whites into batter just until blended. Spoon into 4 parchment-lined 9-inch cake pans. Bake until cake tests done and is springy, 35 to 40 minutes. Loosen sides of cake with spatula and turn onto racks to cool.
6. For filling, combine sugar and raspberry juice. Heat to a boil and cook to 242 degrees. Slowly pour hot syrup into stiffly beaten egg whites, beating constantly. Continue beating until mixture holds its shape. Use to fill and frost cake layers.
7. For glaze, blend coffee into confectioners` sugar. Glaze should be thin enough to drizzle over cake. Drizzle frosted cake with glaze; garnish with almond slices.
