DIY Whole Wheat Matzo Meal and Cake Meal

Homemade WW cake meal (left) and WW matzo meal (right)

Why Bother?

Years ago, I needed just a little more matzo meal for a brownie recipe but I was all out. In desperation, I ground up a matzo in my food processor or maybe it was a blender since I may not have owned a processor back in those days. At any rate, the processor works better for me and I've stopped using a blender.

I like to eat as much fiber during Pesach as I do the rest of the year, so I gradually switched to eating whole wheat matzos and using only whole wheat for all my Passover recipes – everything from matzo balls to latkes to cakes and brownies.

Sometimes I'm lucky enough to find whole wheat matzo meal at the store, others not. Forget about whole wheat cake flour; no one makes it. So, I started to experiment. Now that I know what I'm doing this recipe is quick and simple.

Works with All My Recipes

Thus far, none of my Passover recipes require any adjustment for this ingredient change. I suspect matzo is so dry it behaves the same no matter which flour is used to make it. By the way, I was most concerned my matzo balls would look dingy, but they look just fine.

Passover Chocolate Cake 2013 -- à la Robyn

Chocolate cake without chips

• For the last three Passovers, I've adapted a chocolate cake recipe. This year's is the best ever! The batter is similar to last year's Passover chocolate cake recipe with a few changes including doubling the cocoa from 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup. The addition of chopped dates was inspired by a cake my mom used to make and the topping comes from my cousin Robyn's Famous Sour Cream Chocolate Chip Walnut Cake.
• It fell a little bit. Maybe I did not bake it long enough, but I'm telling you, after you taste it, you won't care what it looks like!
• I used pistachios instead of walnuts thinking they would add color to the topping but they browned so much you cannot tell the difference. I recommend ground walnuts or pecans -- or sliced almonds.
• I ground the nuts fine to prevent them from sinking into the center of the cake, however, I also thickened the batter with more cake meal (than last year) and the addition of potato starch this year. Who knows; maybe with the new thicker batter, the nuts could be chopped rather than ground.
• Knowing that making your own whole-wheat cake meal might be a deal breaker, I'm betting you could replace the whole-wheat cake meal with regular cake meal. The two products behave the same when I use them in other recipes including cakes.
• Here's the thing: I used two different pans. Both cakes fell but the one in the wider pan fell more. The cake that fell more was in a traditional loaf pan: 4.5" x 9.75" with tapered sides (and nearly 3" tall); it had chocolate chips on top. The cake that did  not fall was in a pan with straight sides; it is 3.5" x 10.25" (and nearly 2.5" tall); it had no chips. Perhaps the chips made a difference but I really think it had more to do with the width of the pans.
• Getting the cakes out of the pans was a mess. I recommend making some parchment paper handles. See directions below.

Chocolate Toffee Matzo

Arg! I wrote it, saved it, shredded my notes. Saved it to post another day....and now it's gone...ARG!!! Blogger I hate you!

Shmura Matzo

I love shmura matzos -- especially whole wheat shmura matzos. This week, I found this great video that shows how shmura matzot are made and wanted to share it with you. Shmura matzot are not cheap, but as my brother said after watching this video, "I"m surprised they do not charge more." Don't give them any ideas!

Passover Chocolate Cake 2012

Every year, I revise my recipe for Passover chocolate cake. Here's the link to the 2013 edition -- the best ever! It's even better than this recipe!

This cake is better the second day -- if it lasts that long! And (shhh, don't tell anyone) it's made with whole wheat matzo!

Edits
I started with  the recipe for Mrs. Strait's Passover Chocolate Cake and made so many edits, I decided it was time for a new post. Here's what I changed:

Carrot, Currant, and Candied Ginger Muffins

• They are loaded! (See second photo.) This recipe fit into 12 muffin cups -- but just barely.
• I happened to have walnut oil that I wanted to use up but canola is my usual first choice for muffins.
• If you don't have (or don't like) currants, you can use raisins or chopped dried fruit -- or more carrots.

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Adapted from: The Tassajara Bread Book
Makes 1 dozen (or more) muffins -- see note above

 .

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Click to enlarge.

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon salt

1 egg, beaten

¼ cup canola oil

¼ cup honey

1½ cups skim milk
1 packed cup grated carrot
1 cup currants
1 cup slivered almonds
2 -4 tablespoons diced candied ginger

• Preheat oven to 400°.
• Grease muffin cups (or line cups with muffin papers).
• Combine dry ingredients.
• Combine wet ingredients.
• Mix the wet and dry ingredients together just until the flour is moistened. The batter should be lumpy. Overbeating will create tunnels in the muffins.
• Add the carrots, currants, almonds, and candied ginger. Mix just until combined.
• Spoon batter into muffin cups.
• Bake 15-20 minutes. Muffins should spring back when you touch them with with your finger. Remember, they continue to cook after they come out of the oven.

Millet Cauliflower Bake

This dish is versatile. In truth: because it tastes so good, I've found many ways to eat it. It can be served hot, warm, or chilled. It can be used as a side dish or a meatless entrée. In the summer, I like to serve it cold with a green salad. It's an easy lunch to bring to work. Sometimes I even have it for breakfast or brunch. This recipe has tons of cauliflower, a whole grain (millet), and it's low-fat.

Two final comments:

• Many other recipes combine millet and cauliflower but they use a lot less cauliflower, they have no eggs, and they are not baked. The latter two differences are what makes this side dish a potential entrée.
• Brown rice or quinoa can be substituted for the millet, but millet is my first choice because of it's flavor and texture.

Passover Brownies - Double Recipe

For the story behind this recipe and a discussion of the ingredients, see the single recipe.



This is a dairy recipe. If you substitute Kosher for Passover (KFP) margarine for the butter, it will be parve.

Passover Brownies - Single Recipe

Click here for double recipe.

These brownies make a delicious Passover treat.  I've been making some variation on this recipe for years -- ever since I noticed that some brownie recipes do not require baking powder or baking soda. This year I used whole wheat matzo meal and they are just as delicious! I suspect the addition of chopped dates would be a great way to make these brownies a little more moist, sweet, and dense . . . and add a little fiber. First, a few comments about the ingredients.

Passover Apple Cake

Note, if you do not like coconut, you may not care for this recipe. On the other hand, if you love coconut but are not supposed to eat it (because of the saturated fats) this recipe may be a Godsend. It has no coconut, but it sure seems like it does!

I started with a recipe from The Kosher Gourmet Cookbook by Mildred Miller and Bascha Snyder and found a few ways to add fiber (typically lacking in Passover foods). Here are my changes:

Polenta (Fool-Proof Polenta)

This recipe is fool-proof. No hassles. No lumps. Every time. Who ever said polenta was tricky?

Muffins

Whole Wheat Maple Walnut Muffins with Currants

I've been using this recipe since the 1970s. It's so versatile it could have 100 different names. The original name was Whole Wheat Muffins.

Brown Rice

Decades ago, my friend Wendy gave me her recipe for white rice, which was given to her by a native Hawaiian who worked in her parents' home. I've adapted that recipe for brown rice and use it all the time.

Wild Rice and Cranberry Salad

In my grocery store, fresh cranberries are only available in the fall, so this is a true seasonal recipe -- a rarity in this day and age!

Matzo Balls -- Whole Wheat or Traditional

Kasha Varnitchkes

Kasha

This recipe is right off the box for Wolf's Kasha. It's a key ingredient for Kasha Varnitchkes.

Lemon Cardamom Biscotti

I took a basic biscotti recipe and made it very lemony.

Barack Biscotti

The first time I made this reicpe, the country was celebrating President Obama's inauguration.