With the move into Shemot, we move away from the stories of our patriarchs and Joseph and solidly into Moshe and Egypt. For this week's menu, I'll go in order since I have 3 menu items and each one is from a different course.
Appetizer - Pigs in the Blanket. This one is, in some senses, the most obvious. In case you didn't know, in Israel, the little hotdogs wrapped in a flaky pastry dough is called Moshe BaTeiva, which translates to Moses in a Basket. How could I not make these for an appetizer this week?!?! (Plus we're having dinner with families with little kids, so I'm hoping it will be a hit!)
Main Course - Cauliflower & Mushroom Kugel. Moshe and Aaron approach Pharoah and ask that he let the people go (important side note - they ask that Phaorah let the people go "... that they may celebrate a festival for [God] in the wilderness" and then add "The God of the Hebrews has become manifest to us. Let us go, we pray, a distance of three days into the wilderness to sacrifice to our God, lest [God] strike us with pestilence or sword.” - it's not clear that they are asking to go forever.) Pharoah is, to put it mildly, not a fan of this plan and not only refuses, but also instructs that the people will no longer be given straw to make the bricks. They now have to get the straw themselves and keep up the same quota of bricks,
i.e. harder labor as punishment, but it struck me that there's straw in the bricks and that made me think about the color of the bricks in Egypt and I realized that the charoset I make for Passover is probably too dark, too red. The bricks of Egypt would have made of mud and straw and they would likely be lighter in color. Think of the pyramids.
Now, I'm not about to change my delicious charoset for Passover, but for this week I will make a side dish of Cauliflower and mushroom kugel, which is probably closer in color, especially with the flecks of mushroom. I am making a few adaptations (like no shallots on top) to this recipe: https://www.sidechef.com/recipes/49691/cauliflower_and_mushroom_kugel/
Dessert - Mandelbrot & Berry Sauce. I want to make something to evoke the burning bush. This has been a hot topic in our house these past few months because my husband took a course for his doctoral work on the centuries of Jewish thought about this moment, especially God's statement of God's name, אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֶֽהְיֶ֑ה Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh, which does not have an easy translation, but is something like "I will ever be what I now am." My burning bush dessert will be chocolate chip mandelbrot, to represent the branches of the bush, with a drizzled berry sauce, to represent the fire. Recipes below.
Shabbat Shalom and B'Tayavon!
Chocolate Chip Mandelbrot (courtesy of my MIL and the White Meadow Lake Temple Sisterhood Cookbook circa 1979, minor adaptations)
1c. oil 3c. flour
1 c. sugar 1.5 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder 4 eggs
chocolate chips, nuts, raisins (any combination you like) to taste (probably about 1c)
Preheat to 350. Put parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Mix together all ingredients by hand. Spread batter into two thin strips on parchment. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Slice while hot and lay slices on side on cookie sheet. Put under broiler (low) and toast on one side, then reverse and toast on the other side.
Berry Sauce
4 cups fresh or frozen berries
½ cup water plus 2 Tbsp
¼ cup sugar
2 Tbsp corn starch
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the berries, 1/2 c of water, and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. In a small cup or bowl, mix together the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water. Slowly pour this mixture into the berries, and allow to simmer, stirring continually, until the mixture thickens.
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