Remembrances of Passover food past

NEW YORK, Feb. 13 (JTA) — Ruth Reichl, Gourmet magazine´s editor in chief, reminisced about the versatility of matzah brie in her memoir "Tender at the Bone." Likewise, Elizabeth Ehrlich wrote of her longing for the salty gefilte fish of her childhood, comparing it to her mother-in-law´s sweeter variety in "Miriam´s Kitchen," her memoir on kosher cooking. Although neither of these dishes achieved the renown of Marcel Proust´s madeleines, the memories of these authors resonated for millions of readers. Many people feel passionately about foods associated with Passover, the Jewish holiday claiming the largest number of courses per meal, but not everyone has the talent to weave tasty morsels into literature. Although gefilte fish and matzah ball soup are most often linked to the holiday, there are other foods connected to peoples´ cherished memories. Family and friends who gather for Passover at attorney Lorraine Abraham´s apartment in Fort Lee, N.J., anticipate a tangy treat when she ladles soup from a tureen on her table. "I decided to make borscht two decades ago when I started hosting seders on the second night of Passover," she says, explaining that she didn´t want to duplicate the menu of the night before. Borscht was a natural choice because this beet-based soup with its dramatic garnet hue was favored by her mother-in-law. Hailing from Eastern Europe, borscht can be prepared entirely with vegetables or, like Abraham´s recipe, can include marrow bones and meat. She begins with bottled Russian borscht but heightens its sweet-and-sour punch by adding sugar and vinegar, which intensify when the soup rests for a couple of days before serving. "My borscht is such a hit that if I were to serve matzah ball soup, people would be upset," she says. "If one of my nephews doesn´t get a quart to take home, it ruins his whole Passover." Abraham also initiated another Passover tradition-pickled salmon. Her recipe is practically foolproof. It entails freezing salmon for 48 hours to knock out dangerous organisms, before submerging fillets in pickling brine for several days. Juggling a demanding career with Passover preparations, Abraham makes the salmon the weekend before the holiday; it holds for at least a week. It is faster and easier to finesse than its competition, gefilte fish. "I gravitated to pickled salmon 20 years ago because it´s delicious and I´m forever pressed for time." She describes a zesty marinade of spices and thinly sliced onions, claiming she whips up twice as much fish as she needs. Not one spec goes to waste, because her sons, 30-something bachelors, consume leftovers with gusto. "They even love the onions, which they pull from the marinade and place on plain matzah." While some people dedicate certain foods exclusively to Passover, other families partake in dishes they enjoy all year. "If you like the crunch of freshly fried latkes, you´ll love my potato kugel," says Nelly David, a retired shopkeeper living in Boca Raton, Fla. "When I was a girl in Germany, my mother taught me how to make this recipe." By now it has been passed down through four generations of women in her family. When David´s daughters were growing up, she lit Shabbos candles every Friday night and also served roasted chicken, chicken soup, and because her family loved it so much, potato kugel. This delectable dish always graced her seder table. "My children would die if they didn´t have potato kugel at Passover," says Manhattan resident Lynda Sobel, one of David´s daughters. She prefers it when her mother visits at Passover because she prepares the Holiday kugels. "If my mother is not here, I make her kugel recipe, but it never tastes the same," says Sobel, explaining that her mother sprinkles in love as she grates potatoes by hand. Sobel cheats and uses a food processor, which turns potatoes watery. During the flourless chocolate cake craze of the 1980s, I began baking a chocolate almond torte, which achieves its loft from whipped egg whites instead of starch of any kind. Although I always cover my sideboard with a variety of homemade desserts, my torte is so popular that I must bake two of them to get through one Seder. My daughter claims that she could survive without the four kinds of charoset I serve, the special way I brown hard boiled eggs and soften matzah so it tastes like pasta in vegetable lasagna. "But it wouldn´t be Passover without the bittersweet chocolate of your almond torte." Yet before I introduced this dessert, she had adored my marzipan macaroons, meringue cookies and lemon chiffon sponge cake, too. Over the years, I kept collecting recipes and adding more marvelous foods to our family´s Passover traditions. Between ridding the household of leavened foods and the amount of cooking Passover generates, the holiday is labor intensive. This accounts for the popularity of bottled gefilte fish, canned macaroons, and packaged foods on supermarket shelves, although manufacturers can never duplicate the magic that people infuse into delicacies they prepare at home. The events of the past fall have catapulted home-cooked foods to the front burner, as people have become increasingly nostalgic for a less stressful past. Passover, the most cherished of Jewish holidays, is the perfect time to please loved ones by renewing castoff culinary traditions or by adding new recipes to your repertoire. Tantalizing aromas and warm feelings will fill your dining room and if you´re lucky, a budding writer at the table will immortalize your Passover fare. PICKLED PINK SALMONMarinade:21/2 cups white vinegar11/2 cups water6 Tbsp. sugar2 Tbsp. salt3 cloves garlic, whole1 stalk celery, halved1/8 tsp. white pepperPlace ingredients in a saucepan and stir. Boil for five minutes. Cool to room temperature. Remove garlic and celery. Reserve.Salmon2 lbs. salmon, skin and bones removed2 Tbsp. pickling spice5 bay leaves2 medium-sized Vidalia onions, sliced thinGarnish: one seedless cucumber and 3 Tbsp. minced dill1. Freeze salmon for 48 hours. 2. During defrosting, while fillets are still partially frozen but slightly flexible, cut into 1-inch-by-3-inch pieces.3. Spread a layer of fillets on the bottom of a large glass bowl. Sprinkle with half the pickling spice, bay leaves and onions. Repeat for a second layer. Pour marinade over the top. Cover. Refrigerate for four days.4. Drain salmon and remove bay leaves and pickling spice. Serve cold on a platter surrounded by sliced cucumbers. Sprinkle dill over fillets and cucumbers.Yield: 20 piecesMEATY BEET BORSCHT2 32-ounce bottles kosher for Passover borscht (made from beets, not from concentrate)3 141/2 ounce cans beef stock12 small pieces of marrow bones3 pounds of short ribs for flanken, sliced lengthwise between bones2 bay leaves2 medium-sized onions, diced6 cloves garlic, minced16 peppercorns2/3 cup red wine vinegar1/2 cup sugarSalt to taste1. Three days before serving, place ingredients in a large stockpot. Stirring occasionally, simmer covered for one hour, or until meat softens. Cool to room temperature. 2. Check seasonings. If too sweet, add vinegar to taste. If too tart, add sugar to taste.3. Refrigerate and skim fat from top. Remove bones, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Serve hot.Yield: 3 quartsCRUNCHY POTATO KUGEL6 Idaho potatoes, peeled and grated by hand4 eggs, beaten2 small onions, finely diced1 tsp. matzah mealSalt and pepper to tasteNo-stick vegetable spray2/3 cup olive oil1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.2. Place potatoes, eggs, onion, meal, salt, and pepper in a bowl, mixing well with a spoon.3. Coat two 9 x 9-inch baking pans with spray and place 1/3 cup oil in each. Place pans in oven for a minute or two, until oil starts sizzling. Do not let oil burn.4. Carefully spoon potato mixture into pans and spread evenly. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.5. Lower temperature to 350 degrees and bake another 30 minutes, or until top browns and center is firm.6. Cut each pan into nine 3-inch squares.Yield: 18 piecesCHOCOLATE ALMOND TORTE1 stick margarine6 ounces kosher for Passover bittersweet chocolate1 cup sugarNo-stick vegetable spray8 ounces blanched almonds5 eggs, separated1/4 tsp. vanillaKosher for Passover non-dairy whipped topping1. With water simmering in bottom of a double boiler, place margarine, chocolate and sugar in top and melt, stirring occasionally. Cool to room temperature.2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat a 9-inch springform pan with no-stick vegetable spray.3. In a food processor, grate nuts until fine as sand.4. In a large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Do not over beat, but there must be peaks. 5. Transfer chocolate mixture to a second mixing bowl. Beat in yolks one at a time. Add vanilla and nuts, mixing well.6. In two batches, fold in egg whites with a spoon and gently mix until white streaks disappear. The batter should be thick.7. Place the batter in the pan and even out. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top of the cake feels firm to the touch. Do not over bake. The cake should be fudgey and soft. Cool to room temperature.8. Serve with topping.Yield: 10-12 slices