Passover begins Friday, March 30. Have you planned your seder yet? Zingerman’s Deli has a great Passover menu, featuring complete Seder meals with all the fixings and plenty of a la carte options, too, plus some delicious desserts from Zingerman’s Bakehouse and Zingerman’s Creamery.

Our Passover menu features many familiar dishes in the Ashkenazi cooking tradition—dishes like brisket, kugel and hand-made gefilte fish (some are even recipes from the grandmothers of our co-founders, Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig), but we also delve into Sephardic recipes. Our Yemenite charoset, for example, draws from the Arabian Peninsula and includes fresh ginger, almonds, apples, dates, raisins, and sweet kosher wine. We also serve the Ashkenazi recipe with apples and toasted walnuts that more commonly appears on the Jewish American table. “We enjoy paying homage to the two culinary traditions,” says Deli sous chef Andrew Wilhelme, adding that he prefers the “yummy” Yemenite.

Yemenite Charoset

Beluga Lentil Salad

We also now serve a Beluga Lentil Salad—black beluga lentils simmered with a mirepoix of carrots, onions, and celery, and then dressed in a fresh herb vinaigrette with a hint of dijon mustard. Andrew says they began making this French-influenced dish once the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards lifted the ban on legumes at Passover in 2016.

It wouldn’t be Passover without matzo balls, and this year, we’ve given ours a bit of a makeover—we’re now making them with matzo from The Matzo Project. The company is the work of Brooklyn-based duo Ashley Albert and Kevin Rodriguez, who set out to bake a new take on the Jewish food staple. We love the flavor and texture their Matzo Ball Mix adds to our matzo balls, which we craft with schmaltz (chicken fat), eggs, and spices. Even our notoriously discerning master matzo ball maker was surprised at the difference!

Chocolate Orange Torte

And don’t forget the Passover sweets! We have everything from macaroons and macaroon gelato to Pavlova and sponge cake. The star just might be the Orange Torte from Zingerman’s Bakehouse, which doesn’t let Passover dietary laws get in the way of deliciousness. The torte is a perfect example. “No sacrifice necessary when enjoying this Passover dessert—rich chocolate cake made with matzo meal and fine chocolate with a chocolate ganache icing. Most of our guests don’t even know it’s for Passover. They enjoy it all month long,” says Amy Emberling, the co-managing partner of Zingerman’s Bakehouse.

And along with the food, we’re doing something very exciting—we’ve made a selection of our holiday table favorites available for online ordering. This includes our complete meals with a choice of whole-roasted chicken or roast beef brisket, as well some of our most popular Passover sides dishes, including potato kugel, beluga lentil salad, asparagus with vinaigrette and charoset (both our Ashkenazi and Yemenite versions). Sweets, like our chocolate orange torte, are also just a click away. Our complete Passover 2018 menu is available here.

You can order some dishes online—order the full menu with Zingerman’s Catering. We’re ready to answer your questions and help you with your order Monday-Friday 7am-7pm, Sat-Sun 9am-3pm at 734.663.3400.