Vegetarian Passover

[Jeserf]

Anyone have any tips/recipes for vegetarian passover main meals?
We're veggies (well, my BF eats fish) and I am having a hard time organizing meals where there is enough protein for us.

I will make a fritata or two, but really - how much of them can you eat!?

any tips would help, as this is our first passover together and I want to make sure he likes the food!

[Stuffed Monkey]

Thought the spagetti squash lasanga idea in this post:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/585870

was a good one, though if you do the matzoh lasagna idea I'd do the spagetti squash as
squash and chesse, ie "mac and cheese".

[chicgail]

That's an interesting idea. Have you tried it? If you have, does the cheese cling to the squash or lump at the bottom of the pot or casserole?

[Stuffed Monkey]

No, I haven't tried it just thought of it as a concept for variety. Might need some potato startch to replicate the white sauce, though maybe just cheese and milk would be okay.

[Jeserf]

I plan on making some spaghetti squash..
I was also thinking of using butternut squash, sliced real thinly and roasted, instead of lasagne noodles...but not sure how good that would be. It's probably better in theory than practice :)

[Stuffed Monkey]

I like the quesadilla I found on this old thread:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/3856...

Nut butters are great in celery sticks, if you hit matzah overload. I usually do at some point during the week, and you are only required to eat it at the sedar.

[Bride of the Juggler]

You could make some homemade nut butters, and get in your protein that way (thought this would probably be for snacks not dinner).

I think it's Meal Mart that makes some great KP little souffles, surprisingly healthy ingredients and low calorie. The sweet potato is awesome. Thank you.

[serenarobin]

Came across some interesting vegetarian seder ideas and links at jcarrot.org

http://jcarrot.org/a-%e2%80%9ctraditi...

[Miri1]

I'm a vegetarian and have been making Kosher for Passover Vegatarian food most of my life. We make a lot of fish (one of the easiest is to take a piece of salmon and pour a bottle (or just use half) of Italain salad dressing over it and bake at 350 degrees until it;s done to your taste. make frozen gefilte fish loaves, either by boiling them in veggie broth or simmering or baking in tomato sauce with veggies. You can make spaghetti suash and put any sauce on it that you like. I also make nuts roasts/loaves and tuna or salmon loaf. Make a tuna melt with tuna salad on matzah with cheese or a matza lasagna or eggplant parmesan, just coat the eggplant in matza meal. Stuffed fish (use potatoes for the stuffing) or stuffed mushrooms or even stuffed squash or tomatoes. Use a lot of quinoa, and onions and garlic for flavor.

You can make fritattas or omelets, matzo brie (add anything you like) or blintzes made from potato starch. Kugels are another option. Potato, carrot, zuchinni, apple... and there are also kosher for Passover noodles, though I tend to avoid those.

Most veggies are OK so use them in everything. I might make a spinach potato and sauteed onion omelet with a little cheese, or even a grilled cheese on matza with tomato for lunch. last year I had a friend over who is a dyed in the wool meat and potatoes man. I served him hut loaf and matza lasagna and he cleaned his plate without a single complaint.

And don't forget the soup! You can make potato leek soup, tomato, veggie... the list is endless!

Feel free to email me if you need anything...

Miri

[Stuffed Monkey]

Potato Pancakes. I always use a bit of matza meal in mine. You could put a bit of smoked salmon on his.

[Jeserf]

Thanks for all the ideas!

I'm going to say, for the sake of not having Rabbi's around (though, I can go to services at work, oddly enough), that Quinoa is k-f-p :)

The crepe dish sounds great, but not good for after work - maybe a weekend night.

I'd also be interested in any tried and true potato kugel recipes, as I can make that the weekend before, freeze, and then serve.

I have a GREAT veggie "liver" recipe, but the base is lentils (and walnuts). It's SO good - since I'm not as hardcore as my boyfriend, I'll probably make it anyway :)

[Stuffed Monkey]

You could easily premake the crepes and cooks the aspargus and then it would be a do-able afterwork option.

[cheesecake17]

You would definitely want to confirm that quinoa is K-for-P. The rabbis that say it is usually say that it needs to be checked like rice. If quinoa is a go- you can make warm quinoa salad with chopped cucumbers, tomato, and parsley and a lemon/cumin dressing. Leftovers taste good cold the next day.

I make matzah lasagna for my husband every year. Basically dip the matzah in a pan of water for a few seconds to soften, and layer with tomato sauce, cheese, and roasted mushrooms and zucchini. I bake it for 45 minutes. Leftovers are good warmed up in the micro. You can make your own sauce or use jarred.

Since your boyfriend eats fish, you can make him a giant salad. I start with lots of lettuce and pile on cucumbers, tomatoes, fresh roasted peppers, olives, shredded carrots, boiled potatoes, and sliced red onion. In the center of the salad add a scoop of tuna salad or fresh seared tuna. If you dont want to put tuna, you can always add a sliced hardboiled egg. When I pack this for lunch, I arrange the salad in a large container and pack the tuna salad separately.

My aunt makes a delicious marinated olive salad with shaved carrots, celery, red onion, and fennel. It's a great palatte cleanser and I can eat a container of it for lunch. Don't have the recipe, but you can google.

For veggies, roast or grill tons of thinly sliced spring veggies. I like zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, fennel, carrots, tomatoes, and onion. Arrange on a platter and serve with some balsamic to drizzle on top. Leftovers can be covered on the platter or placed into containers. Great to top salads or omlettes or just to eat cold.

Good luck!!

[1sweetpea]

You might like one of the recipes on this page: http://www.vrg.org/recipes/passover.htm.

Don't worry so much about protein. Only 10% (more OR less) of your calories need to come from protein. Considering that fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, nuts and legumes all contain protein, it is not difficult for you to be taking in adequate protein from a varied vegan diet, and even more of a no-brainer if you are not vegan and eat fish and/or dairy.

I don't keep kosher for passover, so I don't know if legumes are okay or not, but if they are, there are infinite ways to combine legumes and vegetables to create tasty, healthy dishes.

[cheesecake17]

Legumes are considered kitniyot and are usually unacceptable for Ashkenazim. Some Sepharadim eat kitniyot, and others don't. I personally don't eat legumes on Passover, but I do eat rice that has been "checked."

[Jeserf]

right - no legumes or grains...and my SO needs more than 10% protein (he's a Marine, needs more in his body). Fruit/veggies have trace amounts of protein for someone who has increased needs. He will eat fish if there is nothing else to eat - so, I guess that's what he'll do (I don't eat fish or meat).

We're not vegan, so getting protein from dairy is fine but can be very fatty, and good cheese is wasted on matzoh, sadly

I think a trip to the kosher store will help me plan some meals, too - it's just a schlep and a half!

[lgss]

I'm vegan and my husband is of Jewish heritage but we're not kosher. What about nuts? Hazelnuts, pecans, almonds, walnuts, etc. And seeds? Pumpkin, sesame, sunflower, etc?

[chicgail]

All nuts ok.

I'm less sure about seeds. It may depend on your husband's tradition. When you describe him as "of Jewish heritage," it doesn't sound like he is highly traditional or observant.

Seeds would show up in my house, but maybe someone with a more observant Ashkenazi tradition might have a different point of view.

[curiousest]

Peanuts are technically legumes, not nuts, so if you're an observant Ashkenazi, they aren't k for p. Peanut oil is though.

[chicgail]

That makes NO sense.

[Stuffed Monkey]

I'm liking the challange of this, so will keep adding ideas as I think of them:

How about savory blintze?

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo...

[cimui]

Jeserf, I think it depends on whom you ask, whether quinoa is KFP. Might want to check on this.

If so, perhaps quinoa patties would work as part of a main course? You need a binder, but egg and matzoh meal should do the trick. Perhaps top with marinated, grilled portobella mushroom, eggplant, tomato and/or chevre, as you might a slice of fried polenta.

If you can find kosher quinoa and chestnut flours, this crepe recipe would be good as it -- or modified so that it is a savory main course with grilled veggies rolled in with the cheese. The ricotta and quinoa, together, should give you enough protein. http://www.latartinegourmande.com/200...

Generally speaking, fried nuts (almonds and cashews) are a good source of protein and satiating, as I'm sure you know. Crushed, they make a good topping for many dishes, from appetizers to desserts. A flourless torte made with ground nuts for dessert would help.

Oh -- appetizers: perhaps have a soup that contains yogurt (i.e. yogurt cucumber dill soup) or otherwise work yogurt into your meal.

[valerie]

I haven't made this yet (maybe this year), but I think it sounds good...Spinach and Matzoh Pie...

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo...

[another_adam]

One of our favorite veggie passover meals is spinach and ricotta gnocchi, made with potato starch. I unfortunately don't know the source of the recipe, but it turns out that I had posted about it in an older thread!

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/379856

I also like making eggplant rolls-- slice eggplant lengthwise moderately thinly, and dip in a thin crepe-like batter made of egg, milk, and passover cake meal. (I don't have the proportions handy, but can look it up when I'm near the recipe) Fry those up so the eggplant is cooked and they're lightly brown on both sides. They become like a "noodle", which you can them put a spoonful of cheese mixed with herbs onto and roll them up. Arrange them prettily in a shallow baking dish, then put some tomato sauce and capers over them (or whatever you like) and bake until they get hot through.

I also sometimes make matzo balls and serve them with a heartier sauce of mushrooms, veggies, etc., in the style of Semmelknödel (which is their etymological cousin, anyway!) My mother sometimes used to make passover popovers and serve them with a sauce + veggies, sort of (vaguely) reminiscent of yorkshire puddings.... (errrrr, maybe). You can also mix mashed potatoes, eggs, and yoghurt with a little matzo meal and herbs to make "muffins" that bake up nice and brown as a starch/side.

Unfortunately, as you point out, a lot of vegetarian passover foods are egg-intensive, or revolve around the dreaded "loaf"... But many spring soups of veggies are perfectly passover friendly, so I've always had good luck with throwing together some interesting soup with some sides (i.e., snacking on matzo for a starch several days in a row isn't so bad with a nice asparagus cream soup or something!)

[Jeserf]

hm, could very easily do some soups. Potato leek soup, etc.

But, still lacking protein, but if I mix the soup with a spinach salad or make high protein yogurt parfaits for dessert....

Thanks for the eggplant idea - I could probably do roasted eggplant stuffed with veggies/cheese and baked with sauce instead of frying the slices.

[another_adam]

Yes, baked eggplant slices would work perfectly well, too! We like the "noodle-like" aspect of the fried ones, and save it for a special once-a-year treat. I try to go easy on the oil, but it's a pain in the neck to fry enough slices for a crowd.

Don't forget about nuts and cheese in a salad (or a walnut loaf?) for protein! Somewhere I have a little booklet of vegetarian passover recipes that has a few loaf options, if you want one. (I think it's stashed away somewhere because I never found the recipes all that remarkable, though...)

Cottage cheese pancakes, either savory with the meal, or sweet for dessert, can add some protein, too...

[TheSnowpea]

Try to calculate your protein: remember that women require about 45 grams of protein daily, and men about 60 grams. It may be easier to hit your total than you think.

• 1 cup skim milk = 8 grams
• 1 egg = 6 grams
• ½ cup cottage cheese = 14 grams
• 1 ounce of peanuts = 7 grams
• 6 ounces of tofu = 12 grams
• 1 ounce American cheese = 6 grams
• 1 cup of cooked lentils = 18 grams
• 1 cup of cooked quinoa = 8 grams
• 1 ounce of walnuts = 4 grams

[Jeserf]

Thanks. can't have peanuts, soy, or lentils, and frustratingly, my boyfriend is a Marine and requires a lot more than that.

Eggs and dairy will be the main thing...but I appreciate it!

[cimui]

these are good ideas, adam.

[Stuffed Monkey]

I once ate a pretty good passover lasagna. Just sub whole matzo's for the lasagna noodle. You could make more than once with variations on the vegetable fillings. Eggplant, Spinach etc.

Also quiona (since it's actually a berry and not a grain) is kosher for passover and it is a complete protein. Mix it with veggies and serve hot and cold as a salad and with fruit for breakfast.

[Jeserf]

ooohh GREAT to know that Quinoa is kosher for passover!
We can definitely make something with that.

I wonder if it would be a good substite in soup for barley.

It's a very, very hard veggie holiday, but good to know quinoa is KFP - thanks!

[normalheightsfoodie]

Try posting this on the Kosher portion of the website.
You will have to figure out the Seder Plate, that could be tough.

vegi broth for Matzah Ball soup, instead of chicken. Add slices of carrots and noodles.

Charoses http://www.perfectentertaining.com/page1650.html

Carrot Tzimmes same web site as above.

You could always try tofurkey.

You could do an egplant parm. Vegi is basically kosher, so you could use a renetless soy cheese, and matzoh meal for the breading.

I googled Vegetarian Passover, and great deal of stuff showed up.
http://www.jewishveg.com/recipes.html

[rockycat]

Soy is only acceptable if the OP is Sephardic, but as long as you're veggie and not vegan why not use real cheese?

[Jeserf]

yep, no soy.

I checked the kosher, but the threads seem more about finding products/restaurants than cooking. And I googled but nothing sounded good! Maybe passover food is just boring after one day!

[chicgail]

Sephardic? Ashkenasi?

In a sense, aren't all Jews originally Sephardic? While some of our ancestors traveled to Eastern Europe during the Diaspora, we all started out Sephardic. That's my philosophy, especially during Passover.

[Jeserf]

I can't really force him to eat Sephardic unless he tells me that is how he keeps passover...even though it's easier.

[normalheightsfoodie]

Kosher is Kosher, regardless of being Sephardic or Ashkenasi.

[Jeserf]

kosher for passover is not

[cheesecake17]

Sepharadim and Ashkenazim have different customs and traditions regarding what's Kosher for Passover and what's not.

[chicgail]

You're right, of course. I was just stating my personal "loophole" in the Passover requirements.

It's all so arbitrary, I find myself amazed at the various edicts/customs. If one is "right," don't all the others have to be "wrong?"

Have you tried vegetable cutlets?
Vegetables (I use spinach, sauteed minced yellow or red peppers, grated carrots, spinach, onion, mushrooms, artichokes and sundried tomatoes) mixed with mashed potatoes, eggs, mazo meal, salt and pepper, then formed into patties and lightly pan fried.

[cheesecake17]

Kind of like a veggie burger. Maybe I'll try that. We have to bring lunches to work on passover.. and my husband is a salad hater. Have you eaten them room temp?

[chicgail]

I've never had them at room temperature because they get gobbled up right after I cook them. They're really good. And I use whatever veggies I have around. I'd love to hear how they are the next day.

[cheesecake17]

I'll let you know if I end up trying it. He actually agreed to take tuna and salad this year. WHen I make regular black bean and veggie burgers, they are good room temp, but not cold.

[weinstein5]

Suggestion for the seder plate - particularly the roast shank bone is a roast beet -

[lagatta]

Stuffed monkey, what you are referring to is a traditional Sephardic Passover dish, called a Mina. It can be meat or dairy, and is delicious.