Culinary Quickies April 2022

by | Apr 1, 2022 | Regular Feature

Reader Question: What are some ideas for healthier snacks for Chol Hamoed Passover day trips?

 

Answer: Skip all of the prepackaged prepared foods that are sold for use on Passover.  They, for the most part, will be high in salt, carbs and chemicals. The easiest options are to pack cut-up fruits, veggies or seeds and nuts in disposable or no- disposable packaging, depending on where you are going. 

Things that need to be kept cool can be packed with reusable ice packs or even more easily by making use of what you are already schlepping. Freeze water bottles the night before the trip. Pack them in with the snacks you want to keep cool. By the time you are ready to drink the water and have a snack, the water has melted but remained cold, and your snacks have been kept cool.  Frozen grapes also make a great snack and an edible ice pack. 

If you are not at home and will be making day trips from a hotel or someplace without a Pesach kitchen, be prepared. Make sure that you have packed a small KFP cutting board, peeler and knife. (Pack these in your checked luggage if flying or going through TSA so they will not be confiscated.) Something that will easily fit into a backpack or that you can use to prep things ahead where you are staying. Fresh fruit and veggies are usually available anywhere that you would travel and if you have a knife, peeler and cutting board you are all set. 

Another great snack is dehydrated fruits or vegetables. Dehydrating these things can be done with your KFP oven or a food dehydrator. Click here for simple instructions.

Reader Question: Any tricks to making the peeling, chopping, slicing and dicing of fruits and vegetables easier?

 

Answer: The cries of our ancestors can be heard and it isn’t over the labor in Mitzrayim.  It’s over the aches and pains of cut fingers and shaved knuckles while preparing the many peeled, chopped, diced and shredded vegetables and fruits to make the delicious Passover foods we all expect during this week. There must be an easier way, nu?  Of course there are many ways to make this easier on the chef, and not all involve expensive equipment. (Though I am sure there would be many a Bubbie of days gone by who would have loved to have had a food processor or electric juicer in her kitchen just for Passover prep.)

Having the correct equipment will make preparing for Passover so much easier. Good knives, the proper peeler, a box grater and a few cutting boards are the most basic. Making sure to have enough so that anyone that can help has the correct equipment is also something to aim for. Don’t waste your money on buying cheap tools for Passover.  If you buy quality to start out with, you won’t need to replace each year, and you will be able to buy a few fancier tools over time.  

Another ‘trick’ to making this go more quickly is to enlist help. Sitting around the table peeling, grating, cutting and chopping with family or friends is much more pleasant and will be much less of a chore. Even children can help. Just make sure that you supervise them and use childsafe equipment and assign tasks that are developmentally appropriate. Here are great examples of a peeler and a knife suitable for kids.

To submit a question please email Shoshana at: foodeditor@unorthoboxed.com 

Related Articles

Related