light and fluffy

during the 8 days of passover, some families will use matzo meal and matzo flour to make all sorts of things while others, who believe that matzo mixed with any liquid will possibly render foods as "hametz-like" (gebrokts) or leavened, will abstain from using it. much of it comes down to what customs one's family follows [or one's adopted tradition] — mine is of the former.

one item that was always made and served during the holiday and/or at the Seder meal was bimuelos del pesaj or matzo fritters. they are almost the same thing as the ashkenazi kremzlach (chremslach) which are also known as matzo meal latkes. i think one big difference between the two is that bimuelos are fried in much more oil and tend to be a little greasier.

these fritters can be made in two ways: mixed with the whole egg or with the eggs separated. making them with the eggs separated makes for better bimuelos, in my opinion. another important thing for success is that the oil needs to be hot enough so that they immediately start to fry once the batter is dropped into the pan.

bimuelos can be served as a side dish with meats or they can be made sweet and served for breakfasts or as snacks. i personally never liked them mixed with nuts and dried chopped fruit but they can certainly be enjoyed that way by you! traditionally, there was a syrup that got made to pour over them — either a simple sugar syrup from equal amounts of sugar and water flavoured with lemon juice or one made from dates (silan). some people sprinkle sugar over them also.



bimuelos del pesaj
passover matzo meal fritters

light and airy on the inside, crisp and brown on the outside, these bimuelos are perfection. serve them as a side dish or as a snack or for breakfast. they're great all year long, too!

makes 8 to 10 small to medium bimuelos (double if wanted)

ingredients:

2 eggs, separated
1/8 tsp salt (for savoury side dishes) or,
2 tsp sugar (for sweet ones)

1/2 c matzo meal
1/2 c water

oil for frying

method:

separate eggs and set in different bowls (medium sized).

beat egg whites until fully whipped and stable.

set aside.

pour about 1/3 - 1/2 c oil in a SMALL skillet or about 2/3 - 3/4 c oil in a large one and heat over medium heat.

in the meantime,

mix together the yolks, salt or sugar and water until blended.

add the matzo meal and mix well.

at this point, don't delay or the matzo will set and it will be harder to mix the two; if it does set, it's not a problem just continue as normal. it's just a little harder to mix and the egg whites may lose a little volume as you have to incorporate them with more vigor.

add 1/3 of the egg whites to the matzo meal mixture and fold it in until well mixed.

repeat this again.

repeat with the last 1/3 of the whites. the final mixture should be light.

drop a little of the batter into the oil and see if it starts to bubble around the edges. if it does, them continue. if not wait a few minutes and then try again. if it's too hot, lower the heat.

drop by tablespoons the batter into the oil and fry for about 3 to 4 minutes until they are golden on the bottoms.

carefully flip them over and fry again another 3 to 4 minutes (you'll see -- adjust times if needed).

remove and let drain on paper towels. you may want to blot the tops with paper towel also.

syrup recipe (arrope)

ingredients:

2/3 c sugar
2/3 c water
2 to 3 tsp lemon juice

method:

place the sugar and water in a pan and bring to boil. let cook for about 7 to 8 minutes on medium heat. it should be like that of maple syrup (thin). cook longer if needed. it will thicken a bit when cooled so don't overcook. add the lemon juice as wanted after it's finished cooking.

enjoy!