Kale & Caramel

PASSOVER DURING THE PANDEMIC: OR, A SEDER FOR BEGINNERS (AND AREN’T WE ALL?).

April 06, 2020

Welcome to Passover, Pandemic Edition. For some, it may be our first time having a Passover seder in our own home. If that’s the case, I’ve got good news: A global pandemic—an eleventh plague, we might say—is not the time to stress about getting your seder just right.

As my friend Suzanne noted yesterday via FaceTime, the foods of the seder dinner are the epitome of culinary innovation under duress: from the unleavened bread of affliction (matzoh) to the bittersweet charoset, these were foods created during great hardship. In other words: If you can’t get to the store, trust that our ancestors will look upon our coronavirus Passover innovations with delight.
The Nosh

Don’t have matzoh? Use a wheat thin, tortilla chip, rice cake, or any unleavened cracker. Out of eggs? Use something else symbolically white and oval/round—a turnip? A golf ball? Get wild. Want to make a vegetarian seder plate? I’ve got you covered.

Below are a number of links to guide you in creating what will surely be a seder to remember, and a couple pictures of seder plates, both traditional and my very unorthodox vegetarian version (with labels so you can start to know your way around).

The Spiel

Finally, a note on the story of Pesach: On Passover, we remember how the Jews fled their enslavement under the pharaoh of Egypt. We reflect on the many ways in which we, and those in our communities near and far, those we know and do not know, suffer oppression and fight for liberation. It is a universal story of resistance, human dignity, and resilience. It is a remembrance I, in my corona-addled state, need right now.

If you’re in need of a haggadah—the text that guides the seder meal and telling of the Passover story—ask someone in your family (they’ll be thrills, trust) or try this guide from Tablet Magazine, this one with a socialist twist, or any of these delightful reform options.

Vegetarian Passover Seder Plate with Beet-Pickled Deviled Eggs

SEDER PLATE

Each item on the seder plate symbolizes one part of the Passover story. Use the links and the list below to learn more.

Seder Plate Components: 

charoset (chopped apples with honey, cinnamon, nuts, and sometimes kosher wine and dried fruit, according to Ashkenazi or Sephardic traditions)
z’roa (lamb shank, other bone, or beets for vegetarian version)
beitzah (egg, whole, hardboiled, deviled, etc.)
karpas (parsley or other herbs)
maror (horseradish or other bitter/spicy herbs)
salt water
 orange (a symbol of feminist and queer inclusion)

MEAL IDEAS

Remember: If all else fails, just have a regular old meal without any chametz (leavened—yeasted or risen—breads or grains)!

matzoh
make your own matzoh (I’m going to, out of necessity and curiosity and perhaps a morbid sense of plagueliness)
or
plenty of store-bought options, including gluten-free
salad

Radicchio, Beet & Citrus Salad.

gefilte fish (I’m always thrilled to drop this off the menu, but if you’re a gefilte lover, make this whitefish terrine from my friends at Gefilteria)

matzoh ball soup (Only if it’s fun for you! Make Nosh With Tash’s herby version if you take the plunge.)
or
main
crispy-skinned salmon with roasted lemon and salsa verde
harissa lentils with roasted veggies & yogurt (I know legumes are controversial, but they’re kosher by technicality)
Be Your Own Bubbe Brisket from Nosh With Tash
braised lamb
dessert
flourless chocolate cake from Bon Appetit
And if you need more meal inspiration, here are some additional menu collections:

The post PASSOVER DURING THE PANDEMIC: OR, A SEDER FOR BEGINNERS (AND AREN’T WE ALL?). appeared first on Kale & Caramel.

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