Happy Isru Chag!
While Moroccan communities around the country are out celebrating Mimouna, here in TRLEOOB (the real life equivalent of our blog), we’re marking the official opening of what’s fondly known as “Gebrochts Week”.
As I noted in this post, due to circumstances beyond my control, the Shiputzim family doesn’t eat gebrochts on Pesach.
Of course, back in the Old Country, we did eat gebrochts on the eighth day. However, here in Israel, there’s obviously no yom tov sheni shel galuyot, and so we don’t have that eighth day.
Instead, we have something even better: An entire week to indulge in gebrochts.
For instance, this morning, some of the kids had broken pieces of matzah (“matzah farfel” בלעז) with milk, cinnamon, and sugar. Meanwhile, other family members had fried matzah (aka “matzah brei”) for lunch.
And so on.
Now, I suspect that some of you think it’s kind of strange that we’re having Pesach foods when we could be eating actual chametz.
And so let me assure you that in addition to all the aforementioned gebrochts dishes, we’re also partaking of chametz. (In fact, YZG made the requisite initial chametz run this morning.)
It’s just that instead of wondering what to do with our extra matzah, we get to try all these foods that we’ve been craving all week.
In other words, having leftover matzah is a feature… not a bug.
Stay tuned for details of our chol hamo’ed outings…
What a great attitude, no one in my house wants anything to do with the rest of our matza. BTW, your broccoli kugel recipe was amazing, my kids and company loved it!
ReplyDeleteRachel - I'm glad that you enjoyed the recipe. It's a nice change of pace from potatoes, potatoes, and more potatoes...
ReplyDelete:-)
:-(
ReplyDelete"Anonymous" - Would that be a frown of sympathy? Displeasure? Something else entirely?
ReplyDeletePlease elaborate. Thanks.
So, are you going to make my 9 egg sponge cake during Gebrochts week? I can't imagine Pesach without my sponge cake. And my daughter and I made a nut jam cake, too, and she put strawberries on top (only eight eggs).
ReplyDeleteWe had a Mimouna one year when I worked at MIT. Some Israeli grad students came up with the idea.
Leora - Since we DO eat matzah meal on Pesach if it's mixed with any liquid other than water (e.g. 100% fruit juice, oil, eggs, etc.), we actually had sponge cake on Pesach, and so we won't be having any during Gebrochts Week.
ReplyDeleteI just finished making matzah farfel stuffing, which I put under the chicken for tonight.
Shabbat Shalom.