When our Forefathers encountered the settled land workers of Judea
& Samaria a new element was added to the holiday - the prohibition of
eating of chametz - leaven during the holiday. Pesach is the beginning
of the grain cycle; fields are sprouting with new shoots and the count
down to the harvest starts - the harvest begins seven weeks later on
Shavouth. At this time, agricultural people celebrate, much like herding
nomads, to markthe survival through another year and to ensure the fertility
of the year to follow. One of the rituals preformed on this occasion the
ceremonial disposal of all old leaven and the start of a new one, which
would last for the rest of the year.

As a rule nomadic people do not ferment their bread. It is very difficult
to maintain a stable "sour dough" on the move. Leaven, being a living
organism needs a stable, warm and moist environment; it does not
survive well in the hot, dry climate of the desert. The leaven becomes
unstable, overactive and eventually dies. Taking care of leaven is the
domain of settled land workers. To our Forefathers it symbolized
permanency, which threatened the essence of the nomadic lifestyle.
When they finally settled, they adopted the skills of the locals, making
fermented breads. In the Pesach ceremony the Hebrews
symbolically revert to their ancient way of life.

Settling down, also brought another element into the holiday, one
that became the most important element of the holiday - liberation
from the oppressor. The Biblical narration reasons the Pascal holiday
as a commemoration of the Exodus from Egypt and the liberation
from slavery to freedom. In the Diaspora, as the result of harassments
and, in Medieval time the appearance of the 'blood libels' this element
took over and is still at the heart of Pesach.

After the establishment of the Temple in Jerusalem Pesach became
the most important pilgrimage of the year, when people (not only Jews),
from all over the known world used to come to Jerusalem for the
Pascal sacrifice. Contemporary accounts from the second Temple
vividly recall the scene at the Temple where the priests stood
(up to their knees) covered in the blood of the sacrificed animals.

After the destruction of the Second Temple and the Diaspora which
followed the holiday took yet another turn, it lost its agricultural importance
and was replaced by Rosh Hashanah as the beginning of the year. Yet
domestically it maintained its importance as the main holiday of the year -
time when Jewish families from all over the world get together to celebrate
their history.

Pesach, probably more than any other holiday is associated with food
- both symbolic and practical food is at the center of the holiday table.
The opening meal of the holiday is called Seder (order in Hebrew) by the
Ashkenazi community or Hagada (story telling) by the Sephardi community.
The Haggadah is also the name of the book which contains the procedure
of the celebration, a collectionof fragments of very ancient texts mixed
with later additions including homilies, folk witticisms and collections
of folk songs and parables. The book also specifies the order of the
meal and contains a list of compulsory foodstuffs, each of which signifies
an event inthe Exodus from Egypt, though the roots of most of these
symbolic foods go back to ancestral mythology.

Some of the ingredients and especially the order of the meal were
acquired at a later date, probably during the Greco/Roman period.
There are seven essential ingredients on the Pesach table. They
consist of Matzah, two sometimes three different kinds of herbs,
two dips and two roasted dishes - a roasted egg, which symbolizes
the mourning for the destruction of the Temple and Zroah - either a
roasted chicken wing or lamb shank, which symbolizes the Temple's
Pascal sacrifice. These symbolic foods are not eaten. Although the
Pascal lamb has disappeared from the Ashkenazi table it is still eaten
by the Samaritans and appears on the Sephardi table both as the
symbolic Zroah and as a main dish.

It is true to say that as the Sabbath used to dictate the culinary rhythm
of the Jewish week - Pesach dictated the culinary rhythm of the year. In our
domestic folklore the Seder is the most special meal of the year and
because of limitations imposed by the Chametz laws it is a meal that had
to be planned well in advance. For the Ashkenazi community it meant
that the schmaltz (fat) which, together with numerous eggs was used to
combat the inherent stodginess of matzo meal had to bemade around
Chanukah - the traditional time for poultry slaughter. The kitchen had to be
koshered for Pesach and the fat was kept, securely sealed, to be opened for
use during Pesach.

The original law, forbidding the use of leaven evolved to a general ban
on the use of cereal flour (except in Matzo). In some communities certain
legumes and rice are also prohibited. Some prohibit Chickpeas for example,
because their Hebrew name is Chimzah, which sounds like Chametz -
leaven. The Sephardi community eats rice and legumes during
Passover yet the Ashkenazi communityshuns them.

The blanket banning of all flour products gave rise to a specific cuisine in
which Matzo meal, ground nuts and later potato starch replace flour.
Large amounts of eggs are used to replicate the thickening and binding
qualities of flour. When only liquid is added to Matzo meal the resulting
dough is hard and lumpy. It needs all the egg and fat it can absorb to make it
lighter and edible.

When potatoes were introduced to the old world they quickly became a
favorite ingredient in the Pesach larder. In both the Ahskenazi and Sephardic
communities potatoes were used extensively either on their own or mixed
with matzo meal as a base for kugles, dumplings and fritters. Potato
starch was used for baking and thickening.The making of potato starch
at home was a time consuming process.The potatoes were grated and
washed repeatedly with water. The rinsing water was then left standing
for few hours to let the starch settle. The water was then poured off, leaving
the starch at the bottom of the dish. This was collected and either used
wet or left to dry and turned into fine powder.

Yet the real preparation of Pesach started just after Purim, a month before
Pesach. The laborious preparation of the home sent the household into
frenzied chaos; the house was to be painted and koshered, new clothes
and shoes to be ordered and special dishes to be prepared. The kitchen,
which was koshered first, became a hive of activities and was sealed from
the rest of the house. In Eastern Europe that meant that the rosel -
fermented beetroot juicethat was the base of the Pesach borscht had to be
started. Eingemacht (jams - traditionally made from root vegetables),
ingberlach, (sweets made from carrots and ginger - ingber means ginger
in Yiddish) and other pickles to be made. In the Sephardi kitchen it meant
selecting and fattening the spring lamb that was traditionally slaughtered for
the Hagada and making numerous sweets from marzipan, fruit and almonds.

Almonds were an important item in Pesach baking; they substitute flour
in cakes, sweets and stuffing. Almonds are the bases of one of the most
delicious Pesach sweets, marzipan. There is a charming, if unlikely, story
about the origin of the word marzipan. It is alleged to have been invented
especially for Pesach in Medieval Spain, hence the name Masapan that is
a combination of two words: matzo and pane (bread). The story might be
quaint, if there were a hint of truth to it. Marzipan - "almond bread" or
rather powdered almonds mixed with pureed fruit and dried in the sun,
was a staple supply of nomads all over the Middle East and North Africa,
it was brought to Europe by traders some of whom were Jews. Whether the
story is true or not, Sephardi Jews serve a wonderful range of marzipans
flavored with rose or orange flower water. Nuts in general are still an important
ingredient and are used by both communities. Nuts are also given to children
as a part of Pesach gifts and are used for playing games.

Being an Ashkenazi my most favorite dish of the holiday is knaidlach
- mazaballs - the dish that together with chicken soup represents the
essence of the Ashkenazi Jewish kitchen (and to many non - Jews as well).
I love it so much that I use the mixture to make matzo gnocchi and serve
them all year round. Now, what exactly should the texture of this signature
dish be? It depends largely to which school of thought you belong. Beit
Shamai believes that knaidlach should be large, dark, hard and heavy
that they should sink to the pit of your stomach and stay there for
a long while. Beit Hillel, to which I belong, believes that these delicate
culinary miracles should be 'light as a feather', puffy almost float
above the golden pool of the chicken soup, which accompanies them.

Passover Recipes

Toby's Kneidlach

Stuffed Leg of Lamb for Pesach

Masapan - Marzipan

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