It's Passover! Time to Make Lasagna

by Alessandra Bulow
on 04/14/14 at 12:59 PM

Spinach matzo pie

The best part of Passover in my mother's Sephardic home has never been the food at the first seder (sorry Mami!), but what was served the next day for lunch: Passover lasagna.

During Passover many Sephardic Jews make what is called mina or pastele (pie), as we call it in my Egyptian Jewish family. Made with matzo that's been softened for about 8 to 10 seconds in boiling water, this Passover lasagna can be filled in many different ways for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Here, some of my favorite ways to make Passover lasagna:

Spinach and Cheese Lasagna: Combine chopped spinach with butter, milk, and farmers cheese (or kosher for passover feta if you can find it). Layer between softened sheets of matzo, then glaze the top layer of the matzo with a beaten egg before baking for a delicious Passover version of classic spanakopita.

Hearty Beef Lasagna: Sautee kosher ground beef with onion and garlic, create layers of softened matzo and filling, top with tomato sauce before baking.

Breakfast Lasagna: Make a quick cheese sauce by melting cheddar cheese, butter, and matzo meal in warm milk. Create layers with softened matzo, cheese sauce, roasted tomatoes, and soft scrambled eggs, top with beaten egg before baking.

Italian Vegetarian Lasagna: Dip matzo in warm vegetable broth to soften, add alternating layers of roasted tomatoes, artichokes, and mushrooms, baste top layer of matzo with olive oil before baking.

Spring Lasagna: Combine farmers cheese with mint, dill, and lemon zest. Create alternating layers of fresh peas and asparagus with cheese mixture, top layer of matzo with beaten egg before baking.

What are your favorite family food traditions for Passover? Tell us in the comments, below.

Photo: Spinach and Matzoh Pie

Bananamanager
04:29:45 PM on
04/14/14

These are great ideas- thanks for sharing! One bit to adjust: the vegetarians probably aren't going to be dunking anything into chicken broth, so for the Italian Vegetarian Lasagna, skip the schmaltz and plunge the unleavened goodness into some well-seasoned vegetable broth.

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