by Sharmaine Palmer
Last year, as soon as the clean-up-from-Pesach marathon was over, I jotted down some informal comments on how it went. I took out these notes recently to help me with this year’s Yom Tov. Why am I thinking of Pesach now, with mountains of snow still clinging stubbornly to my lawn? Well, it’s never too early to think Pesach. As soon as the masks and dreidels disappear into warehouse heaven, Pesach foods come out and fill up those aisles. I want to be ready.
“Incredible” Recipes
At the top of
my list this year is: Do not
try recipes marked “incredible,” “you won’t believe it’s not chometz,” and “the best matza balls” … or whatever. Avoid these. Use tried and
trusted recipes! Also avoid the desserts with the most beautiful photos. My new
Pesach philosophy is, the nicer the photo, the worse the dessert comes out.
Even the birds and squirrels would not eat some of my past disastrous attempts.
I wonder
whether those who submit these Pesach recipes buy tons of Pesach products, such
as margarine, imitation soy sauce, oil, confectioner’s sugar, etc., to use in
creating their recipes during the year. (Every year I hope the margarine tastes
better, but so far, it’s the same old stick of “lard”; my sister calls it axle
grease.) Or do they use regular, easy-to-get, and much better quality (and
tastier!) ingredients available year-round?
Shopping for Pesach
The next
thought in my notes is, don’t overbuy. It’s only eight days, after all, yet
shoppers fill their carts to the brim in several shopping sessions. For
instance, it ordinarily takes weeks for my family to use one bottle of salad
dressing, so why did I buy four for Pesach? The only dish I make using matza
meal is kneidlach, which we eat maybe once during Pesach, so why did I buy
three boxes?
Next, what
people love and consume with gusto during the first days may not be consumed
the last days. I did not have enough orange juice the first days, so I bought
extra for the last days. Those cartons were barely touched. At least they froze
well!
Buy more shmura matza; we had just
about enough last year. Make less charoses; everyone tells me to make
more, more, and more, but I just throw out more, more, and more.
On the other
hand, I will be buying more gefilte fish this year, about six loaves. I’ll buy
more kid’s yogurts and fewer of the adult version.
My notes say to
check my Pesach closet immediately after the holiday is over for spices, oils,
soup powder, etc., and use them up before going out to buy more during the
year. But some people I know save staples from the last Pesach, so they don’t
have to buy them a year later. (Think salt, sugar, cocoa powder, dish soap,
toothpaste, scrubbing pads, foil pans, etc.)
Memo to myself:
“Don’t buy any macaroons.” Tradition, tradition, and all that, but nope; this year, I’ll leave that item on the
shelf in the store. And every year, I have hopes that some chewing gum and hard
candy will find themselves on the Pesach shelves. We’ll see.
Pesach Miscellanea
Another important
bullet for this year: In addition to checking the hechsher and salt
content as I always do, I
must remember to check the ingredients. I wondered why the apricot preserves
were tasteless and found that the first three ingredients were sugar, apple
purée, and glucose! No hint of any apricot. Why call it apricot, then?
My daughter got
married a number of years ago around Purim time. She received a few crock pots
and gave me one to use on Pesach. All these years later, my Pesach cholent
still does not amount to much of anything. I have decided that this year, I’ll
give up attempting to make cholent. Really! No new
never-fail-recipes-that-we-eat year-round. Just don’t make it! I’ll
stick with using the crock pot for meat, soups, and chicken.
I have got to
remind myself that I don’t have to wait for the day before Pesach to buy or
check toiletries, medications, etc.; I can do this well before Pesach and avoid
the crazy rush to many stores to find appropriate products. Menus can also be
compiled weeks before, together with shopping lists.
Somehow my
kiddush cups disappeared last year, but the tablecloths multiplied. Still
trying to figure this one out!
The yartzheit
candles must have been improved because, last year, the two-days ones lasted
more than two days! This year is a three-day Yom Tov (Thursday, Friday, and
Shabbos), so I must not forget to buy three-day yahrzeit candles.
Finally, I
remind myself to keep this year’s menus, as I have for years. Some of my old
menus have the guests’ names next to the Yom Tov or Shabbos meals. They are
such fun to read as well as giving me ideas for this year’s menu. I’ll file
this year’s menus at the back of my Pesach binder together with this note. I’ll
just have to remember to read them!
Pesach is still such a special Yom Tov that I really love
and enjoy. I have wonderful memories of Pesach in South Africa as a child and
for those few years when I lived in Eretz Yisrael, and b”H, the many
ones we have had the zechus to have every year. Wishing everyone a chag
kasher v’sameach!
