Surviving Passover in Bostwick
By Zak Marsh
Assistant Chief Copy Editor
Another Passover at the University arrived Wednesday night as Jews the world over sat down to seder.
The holiday’s commitment to give up leavened bread for matzah is a tough one anywhere, but here on campus with limited food options, the holiday can be a true dietary challenge.
Lucky for all you Hebrews fighting the temptation to break the bread ban, I’m here with a few suggestions for keeping kosher in Bostwick Marketplace.
The single best thing to make Passover easier in the school cafeteria is to dine during peak meal hours when more food options are available.
As many within the Jewish community know, one of the hardest parts of Passover is maintaining variety. During off-hours at the cafeteria, most options kept out are starchy and not kosher for Passover.
Getting by on cafeteria food year-round is about creativity. This is doubly true during Passover. The art of mixing and matching is essential here.
Start with a Passover staple: matzah pizza. Take some matzah (usually near the soups) and spread on marinara sauce from the pasta station, sprinkle on whichever cheeses strike your fancy, and microwave it for 15-23 seconds. If you’re in the mood for toppings, the salad bar and even Mongo Bongo fixings suffice quite well.
If matzah pizza isn’t your thing, make a classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich on matzah. Right by the peanut butter and jelly are cream cheese, marmalade, butter and jam. If you can brave the temptation of bagels next to them, you can enjoy plenty of matzah-and-spread options.
Careful spreading will be rewarded with a tasty kosher treat that holds up very well. The sticky smears will keep your matzah stuck together, like your ancestors were stuck in Egypt millennia ago!
For breakfast, one of my favorite Passover dishes is matzah brei, or matzah in eggs. Get a plate from the egg station, grab a sheet of matzah, crack it into small pieces and hand it to the egg bar chefs.
The matzah brei turns out better if the matzah has a chance to soak up some egg and soften, so have the chef add the matzah immediately. Sprinkle on some cinnamon sugar once it’s cooked and enjoy.
Matzah also works as a good soup cracker, crouton substitute and even desert ingredient if you can find some Nutella. Let’s face it though: Eight days of matzah gets monotonous.
Be sure to increase the amount of fruits and vegetables in your diet, and stay strong. It’s hard, but if you’re creative and resilient, you’ll make it through.
Chag sameach!
