Around the Passover Table (8 page)

Artichoke Soup with Light Herbed Matzoh Balls

yield:
About 8 servings

When visiting food markets, I always go for the artichokes. I cannot munch on them raw, and I rarely have a kitchen on my travels where I could prepare them. Instead, I've dried big-hearted, long-stemmed beauties and graceful amethyst babies from produce stalls in California, Brittany, Provence, and Rome (the foreign-born smuggled, well wrapped and hidden beneath a pile of laundry).

At home the bouquets of fat artichokes slowly unfurl, revealing spiky fluff centers colored vivid Crayola orchid; the smaller ones spill out of purple glass bowls, alone or mingled with pomegranates, and line my dressed-up table.

So I was in artichoke heaven one warm spring evening at the height of the season in the Roman ghetto, home of the famed
carciofi alla giudia
(artichokes Jewish-style: the flattened whole vegetable, fried up crisp and golden-brown, then sprinkled with coarse salt). We had enjoyed a dinner at the kosher La Taverna del Ghetto featuring artichokes (in addition to the fried ones, we ate a salad of raw artichokes and a pasta topped with artichokes, bottarga, and tomatoes) and zucchini flowers (the blossoms stuffed with striped bass and fried, and tagliarini with zucchini flowers, grouper, and tomatoes). Outside the restaurant, on the ancient Via Portico d'Ottavia, the tall white flowerpots that usually sported colorful potted plants now overflowed with massive amounts of decorative artichokes, in every size and spectrum of greens and violets. At some storefronts, fabulous beasts and other dazzling topiary creations fashioned of artichokes stood guard.

Back in my own kitchen, I've logged countless hours cleaning and cooking fresh artichokes from local greengrocers and even a farmer at the Union Square Greenmarket, who occasionally coaxes them to grow in the cool clime of Pennsylvania.

But I confess I keep a box or two of frozen artichokes in my freezer. They are wonderful in savory matzoh brie, and pureed, they do very nicely in this creamy-tasting soup crowned with these exceptional featherweight matzoh balls full of herb garden flavor.

FOR THE SOUP

3 tablespoons mild olive oil

4 medium-large leeks (white and tenderest pale green parts only), washed well, patted dry, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise

3 tablespoons chopped shallots

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 chopped garlic cloves

Two 9- or 10-ounce packages frozen artichokes, thawed, patted dry between layers of paper towels, and cut into small pieces

7 to 8 cups chicken stock, preferably
homemade
, or good-quality, low-sodium
purchased

2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

3 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus additional for garnish

3 tablespoons snipped fresh dill, plus additional for garnish

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh mint, plus additional for garnish

FOR THE MATZOH BALLS

4 large eggs, separated

2 teaspoons finely grated onion

2 tablespoons finely snipped fresh chives

3 tablespoons finely snipped fresh dill

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup matzoh meal

MAKE
the soup: in a large nonreactive Dutch oven or lidded casserole, warm the oil. Add the leeks and the shallots, salt and pepper lightly, and sauté, stirring, over medium heat, about 7 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and the artichokes, stir to coat well with the oil, and sauté over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Add 1 cup of the broth and 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, cover the pan, and sweat the vegetables over low heat for 10 minutes. Uncover the pan, raise the heat to high, and boil the pan liquid until it is nearly evaporated. Add 6 cups broth, salt and pepper to taste, and simmer over low heat, covered, for 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are very tender.

LET
the mixture cool slightly. Working in batches, puree about half of the vegetables together with the lemon zest, parsley, dill, and mint in a food processor or blender under fairly smooth.

RETURN
the puree to the pan. If desired, thin the soup with the remaining broth.

MAKE
the matzoh balls: combine the yolks with the onion, chives, dill, 1
¹
⁄
₂
teaspoons salt, and pepper to taste, and beat very well until thickened. In a separate bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Gently fold the whites into the yolk mixture until well combined. Sprinkle with the matzoh meal and gently mix until completely blended in. Let rest 10 to 15 minutes.

BRING
a large, wide lidded saucepan of well-salted water to a boil. Lightly form the mixture into walnut-size balls. (A light touch is essential here—perfectly formed, compact little balls will result in dense, heavier matzoh balls.) Place the balls on a platter.

SLIDE
the balls one by one into the water. Avoid crowding the pot—if necessary, cook the matzoh balls in two batches. Cover the pot tightly and reduce the temperature to a slow boil. Cook without removing the cover for 20 minutes. (They need the steam to fluff up properly, and removing the cover will dissipate some of the steam, causing deflation.)

REMOVE
the balls with a skimmer or a slotted spoon, draining off excess water. Place the balls in the soup or set aside, covered with a little broth, until you are ready to use them.

TO
serve the soup: if the matzoh balls need warming, add them to the soup. Reheat the soup gently and adjust seasonings, adding more salt, pepper, or lemon juice as needed.

PLACE
two matzoh balls in each shallow bowl, and ladle the hot soup over them. Garnish with additional fresh herbs and serve at once.

Smoked Whitefish Gefilte Fish with Lemon-Horseradish Sauce

yield:
About 24 fish dumplings

This unusual recipe, combining smoked whitefish with a mild fillet like flounder, is from a seder meal I devised for
Bon Appétit
magazine. It's much quicker to prepare than traditional gefilte fish because the delicate dumplings are steamed between cabbage leaves to keep them moist, not poached in fish broth. Leftovers can be refrigerated for a few days.

A reader who prepared the recipe wrote: “I made these for Passover for my husband's family. They were so delicious that I made them for my family for Easter Sunday! The fishcakes are light and tasty and the horseradish sauce is to die for! I very rarely give 4 forks to a recipe but this one really deserves it—it is an excellent dish.”

FOR THE FISH

Kosher salt

³
⁄
₄
cup scraped and thinly sliced carrots

¹
⁄
₄
cup matzoh meal

2 tablespoons mild olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

Freshly ground pepper

1 cup trimmed and chopped scallions, white and light green parts only (about 6 medium scallions)

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1
¹
⁄
₂
pounds mild white-fleshed fish fillets (such as sole or flounder), skin and any bones removed and discarded, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 cups smoked whitefish, carefully removed from the bones of a 2 to 2
¹
⁄
₂
pound fish

1 large cabbage, separated into leaves and rinsed (these are discarded before serving, so you can use slightly imperfect or dark green outer leaves)

FOR THE LEMON-HORSERADISH SAUCE

2 garlic cloves, peeled

¹
⁄
₄
cup plus 2 teaspoons prepared white horseradish

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1
¹
⁄
₂
cups mayonnaise

Soft lettuce, endive, or radicchio leaves, for lining the plates

PREPARE
the fish: bring 1 cup lightly salted water to boil in a small saucepan. Add the carrots and simmer until very tender, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving
¹
⁄
₂
cup cooking water in a small bowl. Stir the matzoh meal into the reserved cooking water; let stand 10 minutes to soften and absorb liquid. Put the carrots in a food processor.

WARM
the oil in a heavy medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion, salt and pepper lightly, and sauté until soft and shiny, about 8 minutes. Add the scallions and stir 1 minute. Transfer the onion mixture to the food processor. Add the matzoh meal mixture and puree until everything is smooth.

USING
an electric mixer, beat 3 of the eggs and the lemon juice in a large bowl until foamy and slightly thickened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the mixture from the food processor, but don't clean the processor yet.

PUT
the fish fillets, smoked fish, about 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste), and about
¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon pepper in the food processor. Using on-off turns, chop until fine. Add the remaining egg and pulse to a coarse paste. Transfer the fish mixture to the bowl and combine thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least 2 hours.

LINE
a large baking sheet with waxed paper. Wetting your hands with cold water, if necessary, form the mixture into ovals, using about
¹
⁄
₄
cup for each. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Cover with waxed paper and chill while preparing the cabbage and steamer.

IN
a large, wide pot with a tight-fitting lid, place a rack that stands about 2 inches high (if you don't have a vegetable steamer, a round cake rack works well; if the rack is not high enough, set it over two custard cups or empty tuna cans). Fill the pot with enough water to meet, but not cover, the bottom of the rack. Line the rack with a layer of cabbage leaves. Arrange 8 fish ovals in a single layer on the cabbage leaves; cover the fish with another layer of leaves. Bring the water in the pot to a boil. Cover the pot and steam the fish over medium heat until cooked through at center and firm to the touch, about 25 minutes. Transfer top layer of cabbage leaves to a platter. Top with the cooked fish ovals. Cover them with the bottom cabbage leaves. Steam the remaining fish ovals in additional cabbage leaves in 2 more batches, adding more water to the pot if needed. Let the cooked gefilte fish cool to room temperature. Keeping the fish covered with the cooked cabbage leaves so it will remain moist, wrap the whole platter with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until cold, at least 6 hours. (Can be prepared about 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

PREPARE
the sauce: put the garlic through a press, or mince it fine, and place in a small bowl. Stir in the horseradish and lemon juice. Whisk in the mayonnaise. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and set aside, refrigerated, at least 30 minutes before serving. (Can be prepared one day ahead; keep refrigerated.)

TO
serve: for best flavor, serve the fish chilled, but not icy cold. Remove the fish from the cabbage leaves and arrange attractively on platters or individual plates lined with lettuce, endive, or radicchio. Accompany with lemon-horseradish sauce.

Salmon Gefilte Fish Poached in Fennel-Wine Broth with Ginger-Beet Horseradish

yield:
About 8 servings

Preparing gefilte fish from scratch no longer seems so daunting, with food processors and the wide availability of a variety of gleaming fresh fish fillets besides the noble triad of carp, pike, and whitefish.

Except for the broth. That still requires real commitment.

You'll need bones, of course, so you will have to befriend a fishmonger who will remember to save the trimmings. If you don't have a high-tech air filtration system, you can resign yourself to a kitchen (and perhaps living and bedrooms too) smelling for several days like old Marseilles without the charms of Panisse and Marius. Not to mention constantly skimming all that fish foam.

Which is why I sometimes prefer to use a simple but intensely flavored vegetable stock made of wine and aromatic vegetables like fennel that complement the fish beautifully.