Wow! A week from tonight is the seder! As I like to do every year, I’m sharing my menu plan for all of Pesach with you. I do this not to show off (my plans are quite simple and not at all fancy!), but rather because I know that sometimes when I hit a “Pesach wall”, it helps to talk to friends:
- Where are they up to with cleaning?
- Do I need to cover my stove top if it’s stainless?
- What’s a good cookie recipe?
- And oh my gosh, what should I feed everyone next Friday during the day???
So friend, what are you making for seder? What do your people eat during the week?
As you may remember, I like to plan out every meal for Pesach, because that’s the only way I can make sure I get the right groceries in advance! Also, we eat gebrochts and all manner of vegetables (with and without peels), so I know some of our choices won’t work for everyone.
Lastly, keep in mind that since I’m in Israel, I’ve got one less seder to plan, but the same number of days, since even though chag is over here, we can’t eat chametz that last Shabbat.
Leil HaSeder ~ Friday, April 15
Seder Plate: Charoset, Baby Potatoes/Parsley, Romaine Lettuce, Fresh Grated Horseradish, Shmura Matzah,
- Hard boiled eggs / egg soup
- Gefilte fish
- Chicken soup with matzah balls
- Coca-Cola brisket
- No peel potato kugel (recipe on p. 33 of Guide to a Stress-Free Passover)
- Roasted vegetables
- Strawberry lemon sorbet (It’s not seder without it!)
- Chocolate frogs (I use this mold)
Saturday, April 16
Breakfast: sleep-in, nosh, FFYS (I’ll definitely make Susie Fishbein’s OG crumb cake in Passover by Design)
Lunch:
- Grilled chicken breasts w/ chimichurri sauce
- Sweet potato quiche
- Leek patties
- Cabbage & dill salad
- Chocolate chip cookies (I discovered this recipe on Instagram last year, and everyone loved them so much I ended up making them three times in a week! Make them! You won’t regret it!)
- Chocolate bark with almonds & dried cranberries
- Fresh fruit
Dinner: Matzah pizza
Sunday, April 17
Hike in Ein Gedi
Breakfast: Leaving v. early so grab yogurts / smoothies if you want
Lunch: Picnic food — tuna, hb egg, sliced cheese, avocado, matzah, potato crackers, chips, cut-up veggies, fruit, simple almond cookies (another must-make during Passover, which I usually end up making several batches of, since everyone loves them)
Dinner: Easy Sweet & Sour meatballs (3 ingredients!) ~ recipe is on p. 30 of the Guide to a Stress-Free Passover , mixed green salad, onion roasted potatoes
Monday, April 18
Visit with friends in Jaffa
Brunch: Israeli hotel-style breakfast, including homemade Passover pancakes
Dinner – BBQ w/ friends visiting from America: Green Chicken, chopped Israeli salad, guacamole, homemade mayo, oven-baked french fries, chocolate chip cookies (yes, batch #2), fresh fruit
Tuesday, April 19
Glass Workshop, Beach
Brunch: Israeli hotel-style breakfast, including homemade Passover pancakes
Lunch / Dinner: Either picnic on the beach or eat out (luxury of living in Israel)
Wednesday, April 20
Bahai Gardens, Hike in Carmel Mountains
Breakfast-to-Go: Smoothies, egg “muffins” (scrambled eggs, cheese & veggies baked in muffin tins), matzah & cream cheese sandwiches
Lunch: Picnic food for during hike — tuna, hb egg, sliced cheese, avocado, matzah, chips, cut-up veggies, fruit, simple almond cookies
Dinner: Eat out with kids
Thursday, April 21 (Erev Chag Sheni)
Beach in the morning?
Brunch: Matzah brie
Dinner:
- Dips / spreads – Baba Ganoush w/o techina, chimichurri, roasted red pepper, sautéed onion dip, guacamole, garlic confit
- Grilled pargiot
- Vegetable kugel (sweet potato, zucchini, yellow squash, onion, carrot)
- Green salad
- Steamed asparagus
- Frozen Lemon meringue pie, chocolate “crinkle” cookies
Friday, April 22 (Chag Sheni)
Lunch:
- Matzah lasagna
- Steamed salmon with butter & dill
- Caesar salad with garlic matzah “croutons”
- Steamed broccoli with lemon
- Matzah crack (saving the best for last? We make it at a dairy meal because it’s just so much better with butter!)
Dinner: (Erev Shabbat)
- Matzah Ball Soup (frozen leftovers from seder?)
- Leftover dips & matzah
- Steamed Artichokes w/ garlic mayonnaise aioli
(Yes, that’s really all I’m making – we’ll have just eaten a huge meal a few hours earlier)
Saturday, April 23 (Shabbat)
Lunch:
- Leftover dips & mtazah
- Make-your-own-salad-bar w/ grilled chicken, veggies, selection of homemade salad dressings
What’s on your menu plan? Any traditional favorites that make the list year in and year out? Please share below – I know we all need more inspiration!
Thank you for your ideas/thoughts. They are very much appreciated. Will definitely try the chocolate chip cookies!
You must!!! I’d eat these year-round… not Pesach-y at all! (It’s the “secret” ingredient that does it, I think!)
This is absolutely amazing! So helpful!! Have a Wonderful Passover!
My pleasure!
Hi, Mara,
Thank you for your Kosher on Budget newsletters. it is very informative. However, today it was more than informative. I made a mistake with calculating the last days of Passover and did not ask for Friday off from my employment. I was reading your menu and saw my mistake and corrected this mistake. Thank you! Have a great Shabbos and hag kosher V’Samach!
Tzipora
Wow, Tzipora – what an honor! Glad I could “help” you with that!