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We had a great time at the Passover workshop today. There were five different kinds of Charoses to sample. I thought I'd post at least those five. Here are even more than five recipes...
You'll notice in the first picture that charoses is piled up in a little pyramid. This is a fun way to involve the kids. I learned it from Ira Steingroot who wrote, Keeping Passover, a book very much worth buying.
Charoses
1/4 cup pitted dates
1 large apple
1/4 cup dried apricots
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
orange juice & sweet wine to taste.
Chop up all the ingredients. You can use a blender and process just a bit at a time. Mix everything together.
Traditional Ashkenazi Apple Haroset
4 medium apples, 2 tart and 2 sweet
½ cup chopped almonds
¼ cup sweet wine
¼ cup dry wine
1T cinnamon
Peel, core and shred the apples. Add in all other ingredients.
Allow to sit for 3-6 hours, until all the flavors have blended.
Aleppian Date Preserves (Haroset Halebieh)
3 pounds pitted dates
½ cup sweet red wine
1 t ground cinnamon (optional)
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Put the dates in a medium saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, stirring frequently, until the dates are soft.
Pass the date mixture through a strainer or rotary grader. A food processor may also be used.
Before serving, add the wine, cinnamon and walnuts and mix thoroughly
From Heather’s husband’s family who is Sephardic.
Surinam Haroset
10 ounces sweetened grated coconut
7 ounces almonds, ground
3 cups water, approximately
8 ounces mixed dried fruits preferably pitted prunes and dried apples, coarsely chopped
8 ounces raisins
7 ounces dried apricots, chopped
8 ounces dried pears, chopped
2 or 3 t cinnamon
12 ounces cherry preserves
2/3 cup sweet wine
In a large, heavy pot, combine all the ingredients except the jam and wine, add water to cover. Simmer over low heat until the mixture begins to thicken, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
Add additional water as the mixture thickens to prevent it from drying out or sticking to the pot.
After about 45 minutes stir in the cherry preserves. Cook approximately 15 minutes longer until the coconut has softened and the mixture is extremely thick. Let stand and cool. Stir in the wine. The mixture should be moist and thick.
Refrigerate until served. Might need additional wine to remoisten it.
California Haroset
1 large avocado, peeled and diced
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup raisins
4 seedless dates
2 figs or prunes
1 whole orange, peel and sections
2 tbsp. apple juice
2 tbsp. matzo meal
Toss the avocado and lemon juice in a bowl. Set aside. In a processor or blender, place the almonds, raisins, dates, and figs. Process until coarsely chopped. Add the orange peel and orange sections and process briefly to combine. Add the avocado and process just 1 or 2 seconds more. Transfer the mixture to a glass bowl and gently fold in the apple juice and the matzo meal. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator.
Yield: 3 cups
Source: The Gourmet Jewish Cook
by Judy Zeidler
William Morrow & co., 1988)
A Haitian Jew listed this interesting recipe on the Multiracial Jewish Network
Barbara's HAITIAN HAROSET
1 cup dried papaya, diced*
1 cup dried mango, diced*
1 cup guava paste, diced*
1 cup shredded, sweetened coconut flakes
1 cup or more raw cashew nuts (or almonds or peanuts)
1 medium ripe fresh banana, cut up
Manischewitz Concord Grape Wine
Combine all ingredients in food processor with steel blade and process until blended to desired consistency. (Not quite a paste, still slightly chunky is good; it will have to be processed enough to incorporate the very sticky guava paste.) Makes about 4 cups haroset. Serve with matza crackers and red (cranberry or beet) horseradish for a "Hillel Sandwich."
*preferably unsulphured, reduced sugar dried fruits. Dried pineapple can also be added or substituted for any of the dried fruits listed. For Passover 2007, I used almonds and two packages of Dole diced mixed tropical fruits that has papaya, mango, and pineapple and omitted the guava paste.)
Haroset for Passover in the Jewish Community of Rome
From Celebrating Italy by Carol Field
Makes 15 to 20 servings
1 ½ cups plus 1 tablespoon (180 grams) walnuts
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (45 grams) hazelnuts, skinned
1 cup (150 grams) almonds
1/3 cup (60 grams) raisins, coarsely chopped
6 or 7 (75 grams) pitted prunes, coarsely chopped
9 or 10 (75 grams) dates, coarsely chopped
4 (75 grams) figs, coarsely chopped, optional
1 pound cooking apples, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 pound cooking peas, peeled and coarsely chopped
¾ (150 grams) cup sugar
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup kosher red wine
1 tablespoon (15 grams) pine nuts for garnish
Toast all the nuts in a 350 degree oven 10 minutes. Using a food processor fitted with the steel blade or a sharp knife, coarsely chop them. Combine dried fruits, apples, pears, and nuts in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and pour over the wine. Cook over very low heat 2 to 3 hours, until the mixture is as thick as preserves. Stir frequently to keep the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan. You may need to add 2 to 3 tablespoons red wine during the cooking. Serve in a dish and decorate with pine nuts.
Haroset for Passover in the Jewish Community of Rome
From Celebrating Italy by Carol Field
Makes 15 to 20 servings
1 ½ cups plus 1 tablespoon (180 grams) walnuts
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (45 grams) hazelnuts, skinned
1 cup (150 grams) almonds
1/3 cup (60 grams) raisins, coarsely chopped
6 or 7 (75 grams) pitted prunes, coarsely chopped
9 or 10 (75 grams) dates, coarsely chopped
4 (75 grams) figs, coarsely chopped, optional
1 pound cooking apples, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 pound cooking peas, peeled and coarsely chopped
¾ (150 grams) cup sugar
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup kosher red wine
1 tablespoon (15 grams) pine nuts for garnish
Toast all the nuts in a 350 degree oven 10 minutes. Using a food processor fitted with the steel blade or a sharp knife, coarsely chop them. Combine dried fruits, apples, pears, and nuts in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and pour over the wine. Cook over very low heat 2 to 3 hours, until the mixture is as thick as preserves. Stir frequently to keep the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan. You may need to add 2 to 3 tablespoons red wine during the cooking. Serve in a dish and decorate with pine nuts.
