Matzah Balls

From Shabbat

Make yourself some Matzah balls, your Bubbie would be proud

Traditional Kneidlach

4 eggs

1/2 cup club soda

3 Tbsp vegetable oil or chicken fat (schmaltz)

2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley

Salt & Freshly ground black pepper (Chef's discretion)

1 cup matzo meal

Whisk the eggs until blended. Now add the club soda, vegetable oil or schmaltz, salt and pepper. Easy on the salt, you can always add but you can never take away. Blend in the parsley and matzo meal. Cover and refrigerate this mixture for about 1 hour. Bring about 5 quarts of water to boil. Rub vegetable oil on hands and form matzo balls with about two tablespoons of mixture. Drop in boiling water and simmer covered and don't peek (okay, maybe once or twice) for about 25 to 35 minutes. Serve in delicious soup broth. Enjoy!

Sephardic Kneidlach

4 eggs

1/2 cup club soda

2 Tbsp vegetable oil or chicken fat (schmaltz)

2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley

1/4 cup ground almonds or walnuts

1 tsp of almond or walnut oil

4 or 5 scrapes of freshly grated nutmeg

Salt & Freshly ground black pepper (chef's discretion)

1 cup matzo meal

Whisk the eggs until blended. Now add the club soda, vegetable oil or schmaltz, salt and pepper. Easy on the salt, you can always add but you can never take away. Blend in the parsley, almonds or walnuts, almonds or walnut oil, nutmeg, and matzo meal. Cover and refrigerate this mixture for about 1 hour. Bring about 5 quarts of water to boil. Rub vegetable oil on hands and form matzo balls with about two tablespoons of mixture. Drop in boiling water and simmer covered and don't peek (okay, maybe once or twice) for about 25 to 35 minutes. Serve in delicious soup broth. Enjoy!

Vegetarian Matzah Balls

1 1/2 cups matzoh meal

12 oz package firm silken tofu (like mori-nu)

1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup vegetable stock

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 carrot, peeled

handful fresh dill

fresh parsley for garnish

8 cups or so vegetable broth

In a mixing bowl, combine the matzoh meal with salt and pepper, set aside. Crumble the tofu into In a blender or food processor, add the vegetable broth and puree until smooth. Add the oil and blend again. Mix the tofu mixture with the matzoh meal. Combine well, making sure that everything moist. Grate 1/2 the carrot into the mixture and combine until it's well distributed. Cover the bowl with saran wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to overnight. You can't skip this step, it's important in making sure that the matzoh balls will not fall apart when boiled. When you are ready to form the balls, fill a large stock pot with enough water to fit all the matzoh balls with minimal touching. Salt the water generously, cover and bring to a boil. Have handy a cutting board to line up the formed matzoh balls, and cover it with parchment paper if you have it, to prevent sticking. Also have handy a wet rag to wipe your hands on to make for clean hands for forming matzoh balls. Remove matzoh mixture from the fridge. Form into tightly packed, walnut sized balls. When all the balls are prepared, drop carefully into the boiling water, 1 or two at a time, with a spatula or slotted spoon. Take your time and be careful, not to plop one on top of the other. When all the balls are in the water, cover the pot and DO NOT LIFT LID FOR FORTY MINUTES! Sorry for the caps, just had to stress it. When the forty minutes are up you can remove the lid. The matzoh balls will have floated to the top and will drop back down when lid is lifted. This is fun to watch. Now they are ready to serve, however, to make them even lighter, you can turn off the heat, cover the pot again, and let them sit in the water for another hour or so. This way they absorb more water and expand a bit more. Prepare the broth by placing it in a seperate pot. Grate the other half of the carrot into the broth, along with a healthy handful or fresh dill, roughly chopped. Bring to a low boil, and when it's just heated you're ready to prepare the bowls. With a slotted spoon, carefully remove matzoh balls and place 2 or 3 in a bowl. Ladle the broth over the matzoh balls, so that they're covered only about half way. You can garnish with some more fresh dill, or parsley. Serve to whoever you love. If you are not serving the soup right away, you can refrigerate them over night, and boil them when ready, Some people even freeze leftovers, but I never have as there's never been leftovers.