Chocolate @ the Feast Of Freedom

Posted on 09. Apr, 2009 by Acooba in Alchemy of Love, Headline, Love & Health

Millions of people around the world are commemorating Pesach, the Feast of Freedom, also known as Passover. When the Jews left Egypt in a hurry, they were unable to take time to leaven the bread before baking. In remembrance, during Passover, Jews voluntarily forgo leavened bread and other wheat products; other grains and grain by-products, including spelt, corn (and cornstarch), barley, and oats; and fermented products such as beer and most baking extracts (vanilla, almond, etc.).

Over the years we’ve had many Jewish friends and neighbors. A few years ago we became very close with an othodox Jewish family, and regularly ate meals together. This worked out great, because we’re vegetarian and just happened to follow the laws of kosher. Until Pesach. Well, with a few adjustments everything worked out great and it was a lot of fun.

During Passover, a lot of food is off the menu; thankfully, not chocolate. This recipe is one of our favorites, and we actually enjoy it year round. The original recipe was created by Marcy Goldman, who is just incredible!! I highly recommend her books, particularly A Treasure of Jewish Holiday Baking.

Caramel Matzoh Crunch

Ingredients

8 matzoh crackers
2 sticks butter or margarine
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans or slivered almonds
3/4 to 1 cup chopped semi-sweet chocolate or chocolate chips
1/2 tsp. almond extract (optional - yummy, but not kosher for Passover)

Preheat oven to 375. Line two large cookie sheets with foil, then parchment paper. Line the cookie sheets with the matzoh cookies, breaking them as necessary to fit.

In a heavy saucepan, combine butter and sugar over medium heat. Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. (Seriously. Boil and stir for 3 minutes - don’t cheat!) Remove from heat. If you’re not making these for passover, stir in the almond extract. Pour mixture over the matzoh crackers, spreading to cover them as completely as possible. (Be careful not to get any on your hands, it’s like hot glue!) Sprinkle with nuts and bake for about 12 minutes. Remove pan from oven and place on a wire rack. Sprinkle with chocolate and let stand for a few minutes to soften. Spread or swirl the chocolate according to your preference. Break into squares and chill until chocolate is set (this takes only a few minutes in the freezer).

Variations:

Use half white chocolate for a pretty finish;
Cinnamon chips instead of (or in combination with) chocolate chips is pretty and tasty too;
If you’re not making this for Passover, cream biscuits/crackers are simply awesome!
Some people prefer to use saltine crackers (again, not kosher for Pesach) - it might be more of a pain to load up the cookie sheets and spread the caramel, but at least they’re already broken up.
Some other people might prefer caramel alone - no chocolate - but then, what would be the point? Just kidding!

Enjoy!

- Acooba

PS: Sorry Lisis! I promised 5 ingredients, but I forgot about the almond extract. Maybe just leave that one out.

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9 Responses to “Chocolate @ the Feast Of Freedom”

Alison | Quest for Balance

09. Apr, 2009

Acooba, this is too funny! Just tonight I made this EXACT recipe, because my family is coming over this weekend to celebrate Passover! Thank you for sharing this — it really is one of the best possible uses for matzoh!

Alison | Quest for Balance’s last blog post..New Beginnings: Letting Go of the Past to Start Anew

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Regina

10. Apr, 2009

Cinnamon chips? ooh, never heard of those. Yum.

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Lisis | Quest For Balance

10. Apr, 2009

I guess we can let 1/2 a teaspoon of extract slide… close enough to 5 ingredients, even for me! Can’t wait to try it, though I’ll probably make the saltine variation, since I actually HAVE that.

@ Ali: you should bring me some of yours when you come out here next week. You make them and pass(’em)over to me!

=-)

Lisis | Quest For Balance’s last blog post..Fellowship Fridays: How To Find Inner Peace

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Acooba

10. Apr, 2009

@Alison
Wow! That’s great! I planned to make it last night too, but discovered that the children had already eaten most of the matzoh in the house

@Regina
Cinnamon chips are awesome!! I think they’re made by Hershey’s. They used to be hard to find, but seem to be making a comeback. If you can’t find them in the store they are available on Amazon.com, if you’re willing to buy in bulk.

@Lisis
Thanks for giving me a pass on that BTW, since today is Good Friday, I may post a recipe for Hot Cross Buns, and we’re talking 15 ingredients at least. Just giving you a heads up.

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Lisis | Quest For Balance

10. Apr, 2009

I’m pretty sure my oven won’t cook anything with more than 5 ingredients in it (I think that’s what the manual said) so I’ll have to get Ali to make me those for me too! What would I do without Ali?

Lisis | Quest For Balance’s last blog post..Fellowship Fridays: How To Find Inner Peace

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Acooba

10. Apr, 2009

I agree Lisis, sister-friends are the best!

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Positively Present

10. Apr, 2009

YUM!!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe!

Positively Present’s last blog post..the (self) love song

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Acooba

11. Apr, 2009

Hi Positively Present,
Hope you enjoy the cookies! Thanks for reading.

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Alison | Quest for Balance

13. Apr, 2009

Lisis, between my family and my coworkers, I don’t think there will be ANY left, and I’ve already made two batches! We can make more when I visit you. I guarantee you guys will LOVE it.

For anyone who wants to try it… the next few days is a really good time to buy matzoh at your local grocery store. Passover is almost over, so it should go on sale!

Alison | Quest for Balance’s last blog post..Adventure: Aim To Help, Learn To Love

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