What I Learned From Our Passover Seder by Debra H. Goldstein

What I Learned From Our Passover Seder by Debra H. Goldstein

Confession: when I have more than four people, even if I put the food in my own bowls, I have the evening catered. This year, with only four breaking matzah and because I���ve become addicted to cooking competition TV shows, I decided to tackle the Seder myself. Here���s what I learned:

1) Timing is of the essence ��� don���t start heating, reheating, or cooking things for when the guests arrive ��� there���s a service to be done before dinner is served!

2) If you make chicken soup from scratch but add pre-made matzah balls and broth, stop there ��� an entire bag of wide noodles will soak up the soup even during a short service. In fact, it soaked it up faster than I could ladle the soup into bowls. Although the noodles and matzah balls were well seasoned, it is hard to serve soup when it no longer exists.

3) Don���t get excited and heat things up too early ��� meat resting is meat drying.

4) Amy Garber makes fantastic chopped liver. Thank G-d!

5) Mogen David and Maniwchewitz wine is sweet. Macaroons aren���t what I remember them as being from my childhood and they only put twelve pieces of candy in the dark chocolate jellied candy box now ��� but combining those twelve pieces with the dead macaroons can make a nice dessert platter especially if a fifth cup of wine is incorporated into the meal.

6) It���s all about family ��� who else would tolerate my cooking?

7) Cleaning up from four is much easier than fourteen or forty.

Anything to add from your Passover or Easter meals?