[RLK913]

Are you teaching your kids the 4 questions? What are you doing to prepare your kids for the holidays?

I have a million kids books on each of the holidays and have enjoyed reading them to Nathan, even though at 19 months, I don't think he understands. I even found 4 question finger puppets in a party supply store the other day and can't wait to show them to him. We sing all the typical holiday songs and have several Jewish music CDs.


How are you celebrating the holidays with your little one and how do you plan to teach them about the holidays? Does anyone have any great books or CDs or videos?

I would love to hear any suggestions.

[adriennerm]

I love the Rugrats videos about the Jewish holidays. You can find them on Amazon.

[sak9645]

There's a good Pesach video in the "Mitzvah Mouse" series. You can usually get it at a Jewish book store or on line. We bought the whole Mitzvah Mouse series, even though it was expensive.

My daughter goes to Jewish day school, so Pesach is part of the curriculum. Becca has been saying the four questions for years now -- she can't wait until one young cousin gets old enough to learn them.

Becca reads the Haggadah in Hebrew and English. One year, she entertained at our relatives' Seder by singing all 13 verses of Echad Mi Yodeah (Who Knows One?) in Hebrew.

Unfortunately, Pesach is Becca's least favorite holiday, even though she gets a break from school. She is a terribly picky eater, and absolutely hates most Passover foods.

The Mom of one of her school friends made a Passover version of mac'n'cheese, which she was sure Becca would love. Becca thought it was entirely gross, even though the Mom's kids thought it was fantastic.

Sharon

[RLK913]

Wow!!! Mac and cheese for Pesach!! Chocolate covered matzah has always been a big hit at our house!

Thanks for the video suggestions - I am going to do some research and try to find them!

[kat8eyes]

I have the BEST mac'n'cheese pesach recipe- I crave it all year round. I live on that, stuffing and sponge cake each year. In fact, during college I went with my then-boyfriend to a formal during Pesach and brought only cake to eat....
he had a fun time at dinner saying to the waitstaff, "no, she doesn't eat."

[spaypets]

We have a bag o' plagues that's a big hit. DD loves singing so she has fun during the seder. I should start teaching her the 4 questions again. I tried last year and didn't get very far.

We keep kosher for the whole holiday, so Pesach is kind of tough (especially since it's hard to get good Passover supplies beyond Matzah and gefelte fish around here).

I'd love anyone's mac n cheese recipe --where do you get k for p macaroni?

[kat8eyes]

oh please don't anyone tell me they use the k for P "noodles"! I am at work but sometime this weekend I will post my mom's recipe for "mac'n'cheese." We keep kosher, too, so no worries about ingredients!

[sak9645]

I'm NOT a picky eater like my daughter, and even I don't like the Kosher for Passover "noodles". They have a slimy texture that is very unappealing.

My recollection is that our friends' Kosher for Passover mac'n'cheese didn't use those nasty noodles. It used matzah farfal.

We are lucky, in our area, to have a few strictly Kosher supermarkets, and a wide range of products available. However, I must say that most of the products aren't that good.

Becca and I like the Kosher Crispy-O's for breakfast. The fake Frosted Flakes aren't too bad, either, though they get slimy if they sit in the milk too long. I also make a good matzah brie. One of the Kosher supermarkets makes matzah "rolls" that aren't too bad with butter. And I will eat a Passover "oatmeal" that comes in a little cup, but not the ones that come in regular packages.

Lunch is hard for Becca, since she won't eat things like tuna salad or hard boiled eggs or Passover mac'n'cheese. She'll sometimes eat Passover yogurt. If we don't eat eggs for breakfast, she'll occasionally have matzah brie for lunch. And although she's not really into meat lunches, she'll occasionally tolerate canned Passover soup or leftover homemade soup. The good news is that her school is closed on Passover, and I don't have to prepare "traveling" lunches.

As for me, a salad and yogurt will be good, especially with some matzah. Or I'll have some borscht or schav with some sour cream. I just found a wonderful fake chopped liver made from eggplant, which I enjoy on matzah. If Becca's having a meat lunch, I will, too, although my options are broader than hers.

I do a good bit of cooking during Passover. So I make chicken in various forms, meat loaf, pot roast, etc. for dinner. Becca will eat the chicken, and nibble at the other stuff. Potatoes and yams in various forms are OK with her, as are both matzah balls and some flat, baked matzah balls that are specialties of a cousin's wife. I get to enjoy asparagus, though Becca will only nibble. She's not a big veggie eater, but will eat beets, cooked carrots, etc.

Becca doesn't like fish in any form, and I have severe allergies to many fish, so we both abstain from products like gefilte fish, even at Seders.

Our local Kosher markets make a variety of prepared foods, like potato kugels, that are strictly Kosher for Passover. I buy them, but usually wind up eating them myself.

I dislike most Passover desserts, but I do like Passover kichel. Becca likes the kichel and Passover cookies, though not the macaroons. She has a terrible sweet tooth, and adores the candied fruit slices and some of the chocolates, as long as they don't have nuts, so I let her splurge a bit.

Sharon

[kat8eyes]

Wow- that was enough of a play-by-play that I can start planning a week of meals!

Here's my recipe:
4 large eggs
3 c matzah farfel
1 brick cheddar cheese, grated
1 tbs butter, melted/soft
2 c milk
1 tsp salt
2 pinches black pepper
I also used to add 3/4 c sour cream, but like it better now, without

In a big bowl, beat 3 of the eggs, mix in farfel and grated cheese. Add (sour cream and) butter. Spread it all in a greased casserole dish. Mix the last egg with the milk, salt & pepper and pour over the casserole.
Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, 10-15 minutes uncovered t let it brown.

B'teyavon!

[Howdy]

More! I need more recipes!

I am a lazy non-cook and pre-motherhood spent Passover just eating cottage cheese on matzah most of the time, alternated with chocolate frosting and banana slices on matzah, hard-boiled eggs, and salami.

Since adopting from foster care I have added egg salad on matzah, and matzah pizza.

I wish I could find canned salmon that is k for p, does anyone know of some? The tiny kosher supermarket in our town only carries canned tuna. The rebbetzin made some awesome salmon stuff, but she is a real cook and probably started with actual fish (not canned). I could mix salmon and farfel to make salmon cakes if I could find the salmon.

This year I probably can go back to cottage cheese on matzah, because my daughter is going to spend Passover with her paternal birth-relatives (who are Jewish but I don't know how observant). But it might be a good opportunity for me to experiment with some recipes.

My daughter learned the first 10 words of Mah Nishtanah and seems stuck at that point. I guess I need to get up early enough on Sunday's to get her to Hebrew school.

[linda512]

I have to say I am enjoying this post. I also eat terribly during passover- some tuna, lots of matzah with whipped butter (I never eat butter during the rest of the year) and passover sweets. I am hoping (wihtout any basis in reality) that I will have to travel to Guatemala during passover and am not sure I could keep passover then. I'm sure it won't happen, but it is a problem I would love to have.
I will make one of those kids prayers- "please God let me get pink during Passover and I will keep it in Guatemala even if I have to starve!"

[spaypets]

I just showed my husband the recipe for the "mac n cheese" and he said "We can't make this, we'll both weigh 400 pounds!"

Hard to eat low fat during pesach!

I spread yogurt cheese on my matzah (take plain yogurt and strain it through cheese cloth overnight in the fridge). It has the same consistancy as cream cheese.

Howdy, kosher dot com has canned salmon k for p. I just spent a fortune ordering from them.

I have a recipe for k for p granola that is a yummy snack, good with yogurt, or a topping for baked fruit.

2 1/2 cups matzoh farfel
1 cup shredded fresh coconut (I bought organic unsweetened and called it good)
1 cup chopped almonds
1/4 cup margarine (you can substute oil)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins
grease for cookie sheet

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Combine the farfel, coconut and nuts in a medium size bowl. Spread mixture over cookie sheet. Bake for 15 -20 minutes, tossing several times until the mixture is lightly toasted.

Meanwhile, i a 2-quart saucepan combine the margarine, brown sugar, honey and salt. Bring to a simmer for a few mintes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Add the toasted farfel, coconut, nut mixture to the syrup mixture. Mix well, until everything is coated.

Spread the coated granola on the cookie sheet. Incrase the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Return the cookie sheet to the oven and toast for another 20-25 minutes, until the ingredients are golden brown. Stir frequently to prevent burning.

Remove from oven, transfer to a large bowl, Stir in the raisins. Break up any large lumps into small pieces. Cool thoroughly and store in an airtight container.

[RLK913]

These look like great recipes!!! Thanks for sharing! Can't wait to try them.

Any more?

[Bonnie S.]

Does anyone make matzoh brei anymore? That is one of my favorites and my son loves it.

Also, matzoh pizza always works to make a child happy!

[rbporlando]

Because seder can be very hard for the little ones to sit through to begin with, this is what my parents always did with us when we were little and now my brother and sister-in-law have started with my young nieces...

get creative with their food, use family versions of the 4 questions and when they are that young and just didn't have the attention span or the patience to wait to eat... And the key: the answer to each question was always "Because." It helped us learn some of the traditions, patience, but also alleviated all-out chaos at the table, and let all the adults enjoy themselves together...

Obviously, "Because." got phased out as we got older