MATZOH BREI TWO WAYS: SWEET (APPLE) & SAVORY (SMOKED SALMON)

A TWO-FER

Who doesn’t love getting two for the price of one? Two drinks for the price of one at your favorite bar’s Happy Hour? Two sweaters for the price of one at your favorite shop? Two bags of bagels for the price of one with a coupon? Two shoes for the price of one….ok, that was just to see if you were on your toes, no pun intended. But you get my point.

Oh my! Two for the price of one?

Here is my two-fer…. Two recipes for the same dish, one savory, one sweet. How nice is that?

Savory: Matzoh Brei with Caramelized Onions and Smoked Salmon

Sweet: Matzoh Brei with Caramelized Apples and Cinnamon-Sugar

Passover is the most difficult of the Jewish holidays to “sell” to a non-Jewish spouse. Hanukkah is fine, candles and prayers offering a beautiful ambiance, quickly followed by gifts, excited children, chocolate coins and hot, crispy potato pancakes eaten right off the griddle, smothered in applesauce. Or donuts. Or anything fried. For 8 glorious days and nights. Exciting stories of warriors and ancient lands.

Shabbat, the Sabbath, is welcome, Friday night, the calm oasis at the end of a harsh working week. He walks in the house, TGIF, to the glow of the warm candles on a beautifully set table laden with a special meal and a still-warm-from-the-oven homemade Challah. No work, just a tranquil family-oriented evening.

But Passover means clearing out the house of bread, cake, cookies and all the good stuff as they know it; no rice, no pasta, no flour or yeast. No run downstairs to the corner boulangerie for the lunch-time baguette or that once-a-week homemade pizza night. There have been years when I kept a strict house when he has revolted, around the 6th or 7th night, exhorting that there is no way he can go the entire holiday, those seemingly endless 8 days, 8 lunches, 8 dinners, without bread!


Ok, I have to admit that as the years sail by, as the boys get older, I observe less and less. The matzoh comes out, the Passover-friendly cakes and cookies get baked – and they are scrumptious – the light-as-air, meltingly smooth, tender but chewy hazelnut macaroons, the rich almond-scented flourless chocolate tortes, whipped cream-filled chocolate rolls, even Passover-friendly muffins. But still, trying to convince a Frenchman, no matter how atypical, to go without his end-of-meal bread and cheese is tantamount to deprivation.

So out the window with the traditional, strict rules and in with the “everyone does as he or she sees fit”. So plate of matzoh co-exists happily with the baguette, the macaroons sit side-by-side with the croissants. But I still try and serve holiday-appropriate meals, matzoh coated chicken pieces or fish baked with a crunchy matzoh-pistachio topping. And everything is truly appreciated.

One thing that I have never tried to make before is Matzoh Brei. This is something like a matzoh frittata, matzoh soaked and softened in a bit of water then mixed and cooked with beaten eggs. Rather plain, but for a multitude of mix-in or topping possibilities. I realy don’t remember if my mom ever made this when we were young, but somehow I have visions of dried out, near-burnt, overcooked eggs, which I detest. And you know how it is? These images haunt your taste bud memories, so every time someone mentions this particular dish, the horrible flavor comes right back to you.

JP was sick this weekend, battling an oncoming flu, trying to nip it in the bud. So what made me decide to offer him a duo of Matzoh Brei? Don’t know, but after he ate the savory one, he complimented me and said “Thanks to this, I am on the road to recovery!” Who says that chicken soup is the only Jewish penicillin?

SAVORY MATZOH BREI WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS AND SMOKED SALMON
Serves 2

2 ½ sheets of matzoh, plain or egg
2/3 cups (about 160 ml) water
3 Tbs (45 g) butter, unsalted or salted (though if using salted, watch how much salt you add)
2 large eggs, beaten
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1 medium onion
Pinch sugar
2 generous slices of smoked salmon or lox
a few tablespoons of sour cream for serving


Peel the onion, cut it in half, then slice each half into fairly thin slices.


Put half of the butter in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. When the butter is hot, melted and bubbly, toss in the onion slices and fry with a pinch of sugar, for 5 – 7 minutes until crispy golden brown and caramelized. Remove from the pan into a bowl and set aside.


Meanwhile, break up the matzoh into roughly 2-inch (5 cm) pieces and place in a large bowl. Pour the water over the matzoh pieces and toss, soaking all of the matzoh until soft but not mushy, about 30 – 60 seconds is all it took me. They will continue to soften once added to the beaten eggs. Drain off the excess water.


Add the softened matzoh to the beaten eggs and stir well until all the matzoh has soaked up the egg. Salt and pepper.


Add the caramelized onions and stir until well combined and evenly distributed.


Heat the rest of the butter in the same frying pan until hot, melted and starting to bubble. Pour on the egg/matzoh mixture and flatten it out into a large pancake or frittata, if you will, with the back of a wooden spoon or spatula.


Fry for about 4 minutes until the underside is golden brown and set.

Carefully flip the frittata over, trying not to break it. I thought of placing a large serving platter on top of the pan, flipping, then sliding the frittata back into the pan, cooked side up, but I didn’t trust myself. So I used two wide spatulas and it worked perfectly.


Let the other side cook, maybe 3 minutes or so (watch carefully). When the second side is golden and the matzoh brei is set, slide off onto a serving platter.


Carefully slice the Matzoh Brei in two, placing half on each of two plates. Lay a slice of smoked fish on top of each with a dollop or two of sour cream and serve immediately.


SWEET MATZOH BREI WITH CARAMELIZED APPLES AND CINNAMON SUGAR
Serves 2

2 ½ sheets of matzoh, plain or egg
2/3 cups (about 160 ml) water
3 Tbs (45 g) unsalted butter
2 large eggs, beaten
Pinch of salt
1 large or 2 small apples
Cinnamon-sugar (1/2 cup (100 g) sugar + 2 tsps ground cinnamon)

* To fry the apple chunks, I used leftover Honey-Cinnamon Butter. You can also drizzle on a teaspoon or so of maple syrup instead of the cinnamon-sugar, if you like.


Peel and core the apples and cut into small chunks.


Heat half the butter (or equivalent amount of Honey Spice Butter) in a large frying pan until hot, melted and bubbly. Add the apple chunks and toss until coated. If just using plain, unsalted butter, sprinkle on a teaspoon or two of the cinnamon-sugar mixture to caramelize. Or drizzle on some maple syrup.


Fry, stirring and tossing constantly, until golden and soft, but not mush. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Meanwhile, break up the matzoh into roughly 2-inch (5 cm) pieces and place in a large bowl. Pour the water over the matzoh pieces and toss, soaking all of the matzoh until soft but not mushy, about 30 – 60 seconds is all it took me. They will continue to soften once added to the beaten eggs. Drain off the excess water.

Add the softened matzoh to the beaten eggs and stir well until all the matzoh has soaked up the egg. Add just a pinch of salt.

Add the caramelized apple chunks to the egg/matzoh mixture along with whatever sweet, flavored butter is in the pan, stirring until combined and evenly distributed.


Follow the cooking instructions given above for the Savory Matzoh Brei until both sides are cooked and golden and the eggs are set.


Slide off the finished Matzoh Brei to a plate and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. Carefully slice in half and place each half on one plate. Serve immediately with more cinnamon-sugar and applesauce, if desired.


This is a fabulous Passover replacement for apple pie if you so crave this dessert during the holidays. You can always add more apples if you want it fruitier. Or replace the apples with pears or even drained, canned or fresh-cubed pineapple chunks.