Around the Table at Passover

April 2024

By Charlotte Rouchouze

This past month, I spent a couple of weeks in France visiting my husband’s family who lives outside of Saint-Étienne in central France. Whenever we go to France, we always reserve at least one day to go to Lyon, a beautiful city less than an hour from Saint-Étienne, where we had the good fortune to live for a year before having kids. Spending time in Lyon has given me a window into the Jewish community of France which has undergone big changes in the last 50 years. For those who don’t know, France is home to the third largest Jewish community in the world, after Israel and the United States. Before the 1960s, France’s Jewish community was a creaky Ashkenazi one that was heading toward disappearance via assimilation. A series of deep-seated societal changes in the French-influenced North African countries led to a massive dispersal of nearly all the Jews of North Africa, with many resettling in France. This community of highly traditional Tunisian, Moroccan, and Algerian Jews has breathed new life into French Jewry, and this can be seen in Lyon which, for a population of some 30,000 Jews, boasts at least five or six bustling Jewish markets. I visited one of them on a Friday and saw folks grabbing steaming hot challot, selecting kosher meats, and picking up Shabbat candles. We even saw an impromptu round of simcha dancing in the check-out line, perhaps celebrating a birth or wedding, I’m not sure!

In honor of my trip to France, I will offer you two recipes. The first is a for something called huevos haminados, or beid hamin, an ancient Sephardic way of preparing eggs that works beautifully on the Passover seder table. Versions of these slow cooked eggs are traditional across the Sephardic world (historically North Africa, the Middle East and Greece), and were most likely derived from the eggs that were nestled into the embers of the hearth left to burn out over the Sabbath. Over time, people shifted to cooking in their private homes and this led to the tradition of putting the eggs directly into the stew pot (called the hamin). Finally, in an effort to make the eggs parve so they could be consumed with either dairy or meat meals, they were, over time, moved out of the meat pot and boiled or baked on their own. The roasted flavor and mottled design makes them perfect for the seder plate. If you are looking to cut corners and are not concerned about the toasty flavor, the same technique can be used to create a beautiful pattern on the eggs in much less time. The second recipe is a chocolate mousse that is one of our all-time favorite recipes, and one that happens to be kosher for Passover. You will never disappoint your guests with this one. We like to try to find pasteurized eggs for extra safety, although they do not incorporate air as easily, so it will slightly affect the texture.

Huevos Haminados

Equipment: Lidded pot or slow cooker Serves 12

• 1 dozen eggs (or however many needed)

• onion skins peeled from 3 or 4 brown onions

• 1 tbsp ground coffee

• 1 tbsp oil

In a pot large enough to accommodate the eggs, or a slow cooker, lay down a bed of onion peels. Next lay the eggs. Cover with water, coffee, and oil and cover. Simmer the eggs on low for 8-12 hours. For a lacy effect, tap the eggs lightly with a spoon to crack them about halfway through cooking. Note: If you are only interested in the appearance, this same technique of boiling eggs in coffee-tinted water can be used to make beautiful seder eggs in much less time, but they will lack the authentic, roasted flavor of huevos haminados.

Authentic French Mousse au Chocolat

Equipment: 2 mixing bowls, saucepan, rubber spatula, and ramekins or bowl for serving Serves 8

• 300 g dark chocolate (about 10 oz), broken into pieces

• 2 eggs, lightly beaten

• 3 tbsp butter

• 1/3 cup sugar

• 3 tbsp cognac (optional)

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 4 egg whites

• 2 cups heavy cream

Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over a pot of simmering water. Stir until the chocolate is melted, then add the butter, cognac (something like rum can be substituted), and vanilla. Remove from the heat and cool for several minutes. Next, add the beaten eggs to the chocolate. In a separate mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, slowly adding the sugar. Slowly fold the chocolate mixture into the egg whites. In a second mixing bowl, whip the cream. Gently fold the cream into the chocolate using a rubber spatula and distribute it into ramekins or one large bowl if preferred. Chill before serving.

Charlotte Rouchouze, PhD is a local French teacher, food blogger, and beaded jewelry designer. Her blog about food traditions from around the world can be found at www.thechildrenstable.com. Contact her at charlotte.rouchouze@yahoo.com.