Natural Passover Desserts

I know, right, it sounds like, utopia. Why do we look for some outlandish tricks to make Passover desserts fit in with the year round dessert cannon is beyond me, forgive me. So many wonderful ingredients to choose from in all seasons!

Corona Creativity

I was just a couple hours away from Seder. Everyone’s Passover plans has just turned to dust. And I thought to myself: I have absolutely no tools, no appliances, no dishes to make anything, just my brave bare hands and my intelligent heart who has always served me right. We had stopped hosting Pessach at home a few years ago, and I had long since given away my fabulous Pessach arsenal to a lighted newly married young couple. Hey, would you like to read about the last Pessach Week we hosted at home, before I fired myself out of my own Pessach Kitchen, after 34 years of hosting epic Pessach weeks? Let it be your Pessach Home Hosting Crash Course. Who knows, it might serve us right again someday if we are home bound on Passover. Running to the store was like hitting the streets after a military-imposed curfew, so I was not going to be choosy; anything a loving friend or child armed with my shopping list running to the store for us while we “in-the-range’” (read, alter cocker) people were exhorted to remain in the doghouse will do just great. Thank you again, dearest friends and children!

And the beautiful thing is, all those ingredient we improvised with did do just great. It goes without saying that all ingredients had one thing in common: all of them, no exception, were 100% natural. This, to me, even in time of plague, is not negotiable. But dont find me too tough: the results are always glorious.

I had ordered all Pessach meals for my old man and I. This was an unprecedented move for me, not just for Pessach but year around. I spent my life as everyone’s caterer, and no one’s cateree. Our meals were prepared by a wonderful personalized service, called, what else, Naturally Kosher (no website but a facebook page). But it came to desserts, somehow the buck stopped there. Interestingly, the service did not offer desserts, so I was happily left to my own devices.

My Natural Passover Desserts are Very Elastic

This is why, in my Natural Passover Desserts,  I will break up the ingredients in two categories as I go along:
1- The indispensable ingredients these off the cuff recipes are based on.|
2- The variations based on what ingredients you might have on hand

Oh wait, did I mention all my natural Passover desserts are all gluten-free?

Coconut Chocolate Chip Cake

I called it affectionately Corona Cake

• 1 cup coconut oil (or 0live oil or vegetable oil)
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups chocolate chips, the higher the cocoa content the better
• 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut (Unsweetened even better, but in this case add a little  sugar to the batter)
• 1 Cup strawberry or apricot jam, (loved the Toscanini Brand Preserves, which has a high fruit content)
• 2 cups almond meal
• 1 cup tapioca starch (or potato starch)
• good pinch salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients thoroughly by hand, and pour small parchment loaves (you’ll get about 6 small loaves total) or other good quality small loaves.

Bake about 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Energy Balls

 

 

Here this my my year round energy balls recipe, using the delicious Geffen Granola instead of oats, almond butter instead of peanut butter, and chocolate chips and agave or honey just as in the usual recipe.

Dried Fruit Compote and Preserves

I fell hard for this fabulous  diced dried fruit mix Which i use year round. Passover, I used Klein Mixed Fried Fruit and diced it. You won’t believe how ridiculously simple this is. Cook 1 part fruit in two parts water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the flame to medium low, and cook covered about 20 minutes. If you would like, add a little vanilla extract or a little cinnamon.
The mixture will thicken as it sits.

Now, two wonderful things can happen:

1- Leave the mixture thick. Congratulations: You just got yourself some fabulous all fruit no sugar  preserves. Unbelievable on toasted matzah (or bread), spread with a smear of butter or cream cheese and a good dollop of the fruit preserves. If you prefer your preserves less chunky, simply give it a couple spins in your fruit processor to make it chunky but finer. Fill a couple jars and refrigerate.

2- Thin the remaining mixture with water and mix thoroughly. Congratulations: You just got yourself some fabulous all fruit no sugar compote. Serve it as is, or topped with a scoop sorbet or ice cream, or on top of plain yogurt.

Chestnut Chocolate Almond Pudding

 

My first time making it. A real winner, and super simple.

• 1 quart almond milk, or other plant milk I used Kedem Brand
• 1/3 cup tapioca flour (or potato starch)
• 1 5-ounce bag peeled roasted chestnuts, Crumbled
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 cup almonds or other nuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup honey or agave (a drop more if you like it a little sweeter
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (or other oil)
• 2 teaspoons instant coffee powder
• good pinch salt

Mix the milk and the starch thoroughly in pot. Then, turn on the fire, on a medium flame. Add all other ingredients, and continue to mix, always making sure the bottom doesn’t scorch. It will only take a few minutes. Pretty soon the mixture will thicken and the mixture will look shiny. Turn off the flame.

Pour the mixture in little serving cups. It yields a dozen servings

Caesar’s Salad

This is not a dessert at all, of course. Call it a party favor. I just wanted to show you what else you can use the Passover Granola for: in lieu of croutons. Since it is very reasonably sweetened, it works perfectly! My Caesar’s Salad Dressing includes a Passover Adaptation: You’ll be happy!