No, Don’t say it . . . Passover is in 56 Days
(only 8 weeks away)
With Purim not yet here many people don’t want to hear about how soon Passover will begin. Realistically waiting until after Purim to prepare and plan for Pesach is not an option. I have a freezer full of leftovers that need to be used and many loaves, partial loaves and bits and pieces of challah that I was saving to use for something else. Well now is that time. I will be pulling leftovers from the freezer at least once a week to reinvent or to make for dinner.
Below are some of the things I do in the weeks leading up to Pesach. These are things that will help to rid my home of chumetz (leavened bread/ or things containing leavening) and things that will help me to prepare for cooking for tha holiday. In my home and kitchen I follow the basic Chabad minhagim of Pesach. We don’t eat gebrachts (any food that has matzah meal mixed with any liquid), we peel all of our vegetables and fruits (if they can’t be peeled we simply don’t use them), we use granulated sugar in the days leading up to Passover (once the kitchen is made kosher for Pesach) but during the holiday we only use sugar that has been boiled with water and put through cheesecloth to remove any chometz or foreign bodies (every year I am surprised as to how many teeny things are left behind in the cheesecloth after the syrup is poured through it). We don’t buy any processed foods - cake mixes, condiments, sauces, spices, etc.. I make everything from scratch. We do sell whatever unopened chometz is left and can be locked away during the holiday. I try to keep one upright freezer for Pesach only and the other is taped shut and marked chometz (not to be used during the holiday). I won’t kasher my kitchen for Pesach until the sunday before the first seder so I have until then to do all of the prep and to use up any chometzy foods we have.
Keep a Notebook: This is one of the most important things I have learned over the years that I have been making Passover in my own home. If you haven’t done this in the past, start this year. I make sure it is stored with my Pesach things but is easily accessible. I keep notes on how much produce I used each year and for how many people I was cooking for. Did I order from a wholesale distributor or buy in a local grocery store? I write down how much meat and poultry I ordered so I can look back and decide wha tmy needs are this year. In this notebook I also keep past menus for the Seders and meals on yom tov and chol hamoed (the intermediate days of the holiday). I will leave myself notes as to what equipment is in need of replacement or if there is something I would like to purchase this year.
Take Inventory: I will take stock of what is in my freezer, pantries and refrigerators. After Purim I won’t buy any condiments and wil try to use up the ones we have already opened.
Schedule / Plan Menus: Once I know what is on hand I start to plan a schedule to use these things up or to shift them into the designated freezer marked not for use on Passover. I create my weekly dinner menus using those items that need to be used before Pesach. If I am cooking for clients over the next 8 weeks I will make sure that menu proposals include items that will use up chometzy items. Such as: bread puddings, challah kugels/ stuffing. If I find that I have puff pastry or filo dough in excess I will offer and make deli rolls, danish, spanikopita or anything else tha tcan use these items. I will also assess the amount of pasta that is in the pantry and use what I can for noodle kugels, lasagnas and pasta bakes.
Inventory Passover Equipment: My Passover pots, pans and kitchen equipment is stored in a bedroom closet where in general there is no food. I will carefully take stock of the equipment on hand that is designated for use on Passover and see if anything is marked to be toiveled ( dipped in the mikvah befor ebeing used). I will also look to see if there is anything I need to purchase or desire to make the cooking for the holiday easier. It has become over the years my habit to buy one new piece of kitchen equipment. One year it was a juicer, another year a food processor. I don’t skimp and buy inexpensive low quality items - I don’t want to replace them. The idea is to buy quality and treat it well so it lasts from year to year. In thepast 20+ years I have had to replace the bowl of my food processor but not the blades or base. This year I splurged and purchased a high end dehydrator when I saw it on sale for half off. It will free up the oven and allow me to make my own dried spices and dried fruits and veggies. While checking food inventories I also check on the supplies I will need to prepare my Passover kitchen. Do I have disposable tablecloths, painters tape, aluminum foil, corrugated plastic sheeting to cover my counters? If these items are needed I order or purchase as soon as I know rather than waiting until two weeks to chag and the possibility of things being unavailable/ sold out.
Schedule Help: As I have goten older I have realized that it is worth splurging on extra paid help during the week leading up to Passover and on the holiday itself, especially if I am hosting meals. I schedule extra hours with my cleaning lady as soon as I can because if I wait she will be booked with someone else.
Write or Print a Cleaning Schedule: I say that I do this and I try but I am not always great about it. The rules that are generally practiced in our home are that no food goes in the bedrooms ever. We no longer have children living at home so this is really much easier to follow - that means bedrooms need a good cleaning but I don't have to flip out about hidden chumetz in these rooms. Our living room, dining room wet bar, refrigerators, freezers and Kitchen are the main focus of my deep cleaning.
Most Important Rule to Follow: I have quoted these wise words before and I will try to live by them and share them with as many frazzled people I come across asking about Pesach planning. Years ago my Rebbetzin told me to keep this in mind when cleaning for Passover “Remember, shmutz is not chometz and our children are not the Korban Pesach (Passover Sacrifice)”. Sometimes in our fever to get it done and do it perfectly both of these things are forgotten. This same rebbetzin said at the end of the day give everything you doubt a quick spray of Windex will render it butel (insignifigant). My kids took it a bit too far sometimes and sprayed much more than needed around the house.
Here is a great recipe to use up those extra bits and pieces of challah you may have in your freezer.
Super Easy Bread Pudding
Makes an 11” x 7” Baking pan or Casserole
Ingredients:
4 eggs
2 cups plant based milk
1 cup sugar (I use less if mixing in a lot of fruit to cut down on the sugar)
3 tablespoons vegan butter/ parve margarine
1 tablespoon apple pie seasoning
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups cubed challah
Optional Mix Ins: choose one or more to your likeing
1 to 3 large apples peeled and cored, cut into ½ cubes
½ cup to 1 cup raisins
½ cup chopped nuts
1 to 2 cups mixed berries
1 to 3 cut up peaches
1 can pitted cherries
½ cup to 1 cup chopped dried fruits of choice
1 cup chocolate chips
Step-by-Step Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Mix eggs, plant based milk, sugar, spices, and vanilla in a large bowl. Mix until well combined
Stir in the cubed bread, and your choice of mix in. Stir well, making sure the bread cubes are soaked withthe egg mixture.
Spread evenly into a greased 11” x 7” pan or casserole dish (makes a nice presentation).
Bake for 45 minutes to an hour until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean and the pudding is a light golden color.
Serve warm with either a vanilla glaze drizzled over or with parve vanilla icecream.