So ends Pesach!

In just a few minutes, I will be opening my closet door to see a bag full of chametz, shining like a treasure chest filled with gold.

Yes, I do miss chocolate. Yet, I wasn't even upset over lack of brownies/cakes/cookies.

But matzah? I've been attempting to make my own matzah brei. I'll say that third time is the charm! Martha Stewart's recipe actually sucked- my frying pan apparently hates it. Then I browsed through readers' comments on NYT and many, many said to use butter to grease the pan and go for the ratio of 1-1 for more frittata style or 2 to 1 (matzah to egg) for drier style. So I went for 1 to 1, greasured my pan with butter, and proceeded to my third try before giving it up altogether. And I succeeded! It was more like scrambled... not quite so sure how I was supposed to pull off the pancake style anyway. I put some onions, salt, and pepper to flavor it. Next year, I want to try my hand at lasgana.

I am trying to remember what was Passover like when I was a kid. We did use to buy lots of products- matzo pancake mix, brownie mix, coffee cake mix, geflite fish, and of course, matzah. This year, the only two Passoverp products I bought were macaroons and matzah. The mixes have gone up to $5 a box and it's not really worth it. Especially now that I eat such wide variety of food. Enough that I didn't mind keeping strict Ashkenazi diet. As I look back to what I ate, I would imagine that my Eastern European relatives did pretty well although they probably ate lots of potatoes instead of quinoa. And lots of butter and animal fat to grease the pots and pans.

Aside from making my first matzah brei, I also experimented a little to make some... less healthy alternatives to be more healthy like putting yogurt in my eggs instead of mayo to make egg salad. And that was actually pretty good with a bit of sourness from the yogurt to replace the fat/creaminess. Quinoa and Mom's meatsauce went together extremely well (although they made the bowl very heavy!). I have been really surprised how filling some of my meals have been without the need for bread that I rarely needed afternoon snacks. I think I even lost a pound as opposed to gaining 2 pounds in the previous years! I also mixed in some maple syrup in plain yogurt for some added sweetness- actually delicious.

I think this has been one of the best Passovers because I didn't have to go out of my way to make accommodations like how I used to sneak into CJU anytime I needed something to eat because I couldn't really have ANYTHING in the dining halls. I had my own kitchen. My professors brought Passover friendly food that made everyone smile. My roommate was fabulous not to cook rice (intentionally or not I don't know) and kept the toaster away from the counters. In all, I just felt much more respected-by myself and by others. I claimed the holiday as my own.

And here's an interesting article by a Colgate student who's Catholic and decided to participate in Passover observance (Note that she followed Sephardic kosher diet)

Here's an another article that my American Jews/Social Justice professor sent out. It's extremely interesting- a Chinese restaurant in Forest Hills that is actually kosher for Passover! A must go destination for next year!