First Pesach in Ann Arbor

Friday evening was the beginning of the Jewish holiday Passover, or Pesach.

Seder Plate

Jacob and I were very pleased to celebrate this special holiday with Rabbi and Esther Goldstein. We always learn something new and always enjoy ourselves in their company!

We clean up nicely.

A better picture of my new outfit.

Since it was Friday, no pictures were allowed, but I can tell you that we met many nice people and ate some great GLUTEN FREE foods! That's right, gluten free! As I've mentioned, on Passover we refrain from eating grains, including wheat, except for in the form of matzah. Some people further choose not to cook with matzah or matzah meal at all and Esther is one of them. So, aside from the actual matzah (and I brought my own GF matzah), I was able to eat everything!

On Wednesday I helped Esther prepare some of the food in her special Pesach kitchen. We peeled and grated and mixed and ended up with a number of different kugels. A kugel is basically a casserole made from noodles or veggies or fruit mixed with egg. We made a number of different apple kugels and Esther also bravely tried a modified version of my pashtida. We mixed zucchini, carrots, potatoes, onion, and apple with some eggs and salt and baked it. Esther served this kugel at the seder and it came out really good!

I was even able to eat the gefilte fish. If you recall from Rosh Ha'Shana (the Jewish New Year), gefilte fish is usually made with matzah meal. So even though I love it, I can't eat it. Since it is Passover, however, Esther had a special gefilte fish and it was delicious! She also kindly brought me some GF gefilte fish (a different kind) from the kosher foods store in Detroit. Yum!

GF GF, it does exist!

For dessert I was once again surprised by a "Happy Birthday" serenade and a gluten free, kosher for Passover cake. If you recall from this post, I was born the morning of the first night of Passover, so my Hebrew birthday always falls on this day. Esther remembered and treated me to a cake while the Rabbi led a round of Simen Tov!

We celebrated Pesach with the Goldsteins until nearly 2am, only eating dinner around 12:30am! I think that's the latest seder I've ever attended, but both Jacob and I had a wonderful time!

On Saturday we took it easy, lounging, going for a walk to enjoy the spring air, and eating lots of yummy Pesach foods. Traditionally, in my family, we always make my grandmother's recipe for vegetable soup. It was my first Pesach without my family, so this year I made my own.

With matzah balls for Jake.

With green onion for me.

For my other favorite Pesach food, I called my mom to get her recipe for charoset. I think this might also be my grandma's recipe? In any case, charoset is one of the foods we make and eat especially on Passover. In fact, if you look at the seder plate in the first picture you will see that charoset ("haroseth" on the plate) is one of the foods we bless. Our family's version is made from dates and nuts and some secret ingredients all ground together, but other recipes are made with apples, pears, and nuts. This food represents the mortar used by the Israelites to make bricks while they were enslaved in Egypt.

Sweet and delicious!

I always like to bring a little Spring into the house during Passover (which was originally the Jewish new year: spring = new). I found these at the market as I was doing the last of my shopping. I carried the same ones in my wedding bouquet! They've all opened now and the house smells wonderful.

My favorite!

And a few more pictures of magnificent Spring:

Chag Pesach Sameach!