prepare for Passover 5767

...is to make me sick of matzah. Goal achieved! Oh, yeah…plus all that history stuff.

Two more days until I can have oatmeal!!
This year there was only one full day of Chol HaMoed so it was pretty easy for me- I just made some hard boiled eggs to snack on that day and was done. All the Yomim Tovim are taken care of as I’m eating at other houses.
Also making Pesach easy for me: I LOVE matzah!
Chag Sameach everyone!

that I despise Passover. I really, really do. The cleaning sucks, and having to throw out/box up/sell everything is annoying. Can’t I just not eat it? Apparently not.

I think I had cheerios on the floor in every single room.

Small son loves matzah so at least he isn’t wondering where the cheerios are.

He would not sing Ma Nishtana. He did sing a charming song about the days of the week. With clapping!

Hubby, who loves Passover and usually leads our seder, has a deal closing this week and didn’t make it to either seder.

Second night was horrible.. got in a huge fight with my mom. She started in on the “why don’t you quit your job” and I was so tired that my patience was gone so I snapped. And yelled. It was bad.

Ah, holidays!

I have a fridge full of good food, including leftover matzo ball soup from last night’s seder; another seder tonight; and chametz is put away. So I guess I’m prepared!

My uncle, who is in his 80s, got lost on the way here, and drove around Microsoft (probably at 15 mph) at rush hour, and got honked at and he got more and more confused. Finally, I made him park somewhere, and got my husband to go and pick him up.

We had a Seder. It worked out just fine. The dishwasher is full and running; there are more dishes lying about, but hey, they’ll get washed tomorrow. I’m dumping all the left over potatoes and cauliflower. The brisket is in the fridge. I made only a half-recipe of gefilte fish, and I still have tons and tons of gefilte fish left over. I also put all the chicken soup in the fridge too.

My cousin’s kids were very well behaved; better than mine. My older daughter said words like “asshole” in front of everyone, which is OK in front of us, not in front of your little cousins and your grandparents.

A note: four ceremonial glasses of wine was designed for the cook. We managed to kill three bottles among 6 adults, not bad.

Now, we just ride out the rest of the week. Whee!

you’re all welcome to join the goal celebrate passover and talk about freedom
I’m interested to hear everyone’s opinions about it.

חג שמח

• write something and e-mail half the world
• call a few old friends
• cook:
  > broccoli casserole
  > quinoa with mushrooms
  > something from soy
  > Matza cake

and then I have to pack a bag so that after the seder I can go visit friends for rest of the holiday vacation :)

the kitchen’s ready.

Got Matzah.

Hard-boiled 2 dozen eggs for the potluck seder tomorrow night.

Got charoset makings (will chop and dice tomorrow)

Got Manischevitz wine (very important.)

Every year I go to at least one seder with the family who taught me how to make a seder. And always there are people at the table who say, ooooh, no, we can’t have that SWEET horrible cough syrup wine, we will bring GOOD stuff.

And we all smile and say, oh, lovely, bring something that you like and we know that there will be MORE for US.

It’s so funny, in the rest of my life I am a total wine snob (20 years in California, what can I say?) but when it comes to Shabbat or Chagim there is nothing like the sweet wine.

Chag kasher v’sameach! Happy and kosher holiday, everyone!

Sunday

 Tidying of living room, dining room, front hall, guest bathroom
 Vacuum, sweep and mop of the floors

 Locate missing table leaf in basement; clean table and leaves
 Determine if new off-white table cloth will fit fully-extended table; if not, starch and iron two of grandma’s damask tablecloths
 Locate all chairs, bring upstairs

 Count silverware; polish if necessary. Enough fish forks for gefilte fish? Consider using regular table ware for children if not enough of the silver
 Polish silver water jug

 Cook brisket; cool, slice, refrigerate
 Make gefilte fish
 Peel potatoes, store in cold water in fridge
 Parboil cauliflower, spread out in casserole dish; make au gratin matzoh meal topping, refrigerate
 Sauté carrots and celery for soup, add broth; refrigerate
 Boil egg

Monday

2:30 Prepare table
 Put in all leaves and re-clean table
 Spread table cloth(s)
 Arrange chairs

3:00 Set table
 Order clockwise: Dad (at head), Sanford, Susan, Rachel and Sydney at the end, then Emma, Rose, David, me, Mom
 Dinner plate for each person; silverware distributed; napkins folded; wine and water glasses for everyone
 Soup bowls set up in the kitchen; soup will be ladled up and brought into the dining room
 Dessert plates set next to coffee maker

3:30 Plate up each piece of gefilte fish with lettuce leaf and carrot slice, cover and refrigerate

3:45 Set up coffee maker; set up water jug with ice, refrigerate; uncork wines

4:00 Last tidy/clean
 All dishes washed up
 Final sweep of the floor
 Guest bathroom reviewed for cleanliness

4:30 Final Prep

Brisket
 Set oven to 325 F
 Insert brisket when at correct temperature

Potatoes
 Spread potatoes in large casserole dish; oil and put into oven

Set up seder plate with all items

5:00 Guests arrive
Refrigerate Susan’s salad, Mom’s dessert, put out Susan’s charoset and shank bone from mom! (how could I have forgotten this item!)

5:15 Begin Seder

? Heat up soup broth with vegetables and matzo balls, shove cauliflower into the oven
? Serve gefilte fish
? Clear gefilte fish plates, start serving soup
? Clear soup, serve all remaining food (except dessert and coffee)
? Clear table, serve dessert, get out coffee cups, cream pitcher, sugar

? Resume Seder

Target finish time: 9:00 PM

My number 1 thing to do now is to get well. I hate being sick, and I have so much to do!
No cooking for now…