Holiday candy, cookies

Susie Fishbein’s Butterscotch Matzah Crunch Bars. (photo from kosher.com)

While it is no problem to find candy and cookies that are kosher for Passover, it is also easy to make them yourself. In addition to whatever you may buy at the store, here are some recipes for homemade treats that I enjoy.

MARILYN’S COCONUT MATZAH BALLS
(Marilyn, a former college teacher, now in her 90s, and I were neighbours 40 years ago and are still talk-on-the-phone-daily friends. She came to Israel from Boston in 1949. This recipe makes 20 large balls.)

1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/4 cup water or coffee or orange juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup matzah meal
1/4 cup ground nuts (of your choice)
1/4 cup cocoa
2 tbsp cognac, wine or cherry brandy
1 tbsp coconut

1. Mix oil, egg, water, coffee or orange juice, sugar, matzah meal, nuts, cocoa and liquor in a bowl. Add more matzah meal if needed to make the dough stick together.
2. Shape into balls. Place coconut in a bowl and roll each ball in coconut. Refrigerate.

MY FAVOURITE FABULOUS FAUX TOFFEE
(makes three to four dozen two-inch pieces)

6-inch square matzot (enough to cover an 11-by-17-inch cookie sheet)
1 cup butter (I use unsalted pareve margarine)
1 cup brown sugar (I use 2/3 diabetic sugar and 1/3 cup regular)
12 ounces chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Generously grease the cookie sheet.
2. Arrange matzot to cover entire surface.
3. In a saucepan, combine butter or margarine and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring continually, for three minutes. Pour over matzot and bake for five minutes.
4. Remove from oven and cover with chocolate chips, swirling until melted and evenly spread. Sprinkle with nuts. Cool and refrigerate.
5. Break into pieces when completely cool.

BUTTERSCOTCH CRUNCH BARS
(This is my adaptation from Passover by Design by Susie Fishbein, kosher.com.)

12 tbsp butter or unsalted pareve margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 pieces matzot
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Cover a cookie sheet with foil.
2. Line cookie sheet with matzot, breaking as necessary to fit.
3. In a saucepan, melt butter or margarine and brown sugar, whisking until the mixture is melted and smooth.
4. Pour brown sugar mixture over matzot, making sure every surface is covered. Bake for 10 minutes.
5. In a bowl, toss nuts, coconut and chocolate chips. When matzot are baked enough, remove pan from oven and sprinkle an even layer of coconut mixture on top. Cut into bars while warm.

LIL’S PASSOVER APRICOT SQUARES
(Lil was a friend from our Overland Park, Kan., synagogue. This recipe makes two dozen.)

1 2/3 cups matzah cake meal
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup finely ground toasted almonds
1/3 cup oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp grated lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 to 3 cups apricot preserves

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease a rectangular glass baking pan with vegetable cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine matzah cake meal, sugar and almonds and blend.
3. In another bowl, mix oil, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients and stir with a fork.
4. Press 2/3 of the mixture on the bottom of the baking pan. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly.
5. Spread apricot preserves on crust. Sprinkle remaining half of cake meal mixture on top. Return to oven and bake 25 minutes. Cool then cut into squares.

Sybil Kaplan is a journalist, lecturer, book reviewer and food writer in Jerusalem. She created and leads the weekly English-language Shuk Walks in Machane Yehuda, she has compiled and edited nine kosher cookbooks, and is the author of Witness to History: Ten Years as a Woman Journalist in Israel.