Elite Airy (Bittersweet Chocolate) - U Circle Parve

I must first state that I'm not a big fan of most bittersweet chocolate. I much more prefer semi-sweet or even baker's chocolate when it comes to eating Parve chocolate. Yet for this recent passover, I saw on the "Kosher for Passover" shelves the Elite Airy (Bittersweet Chocolate) and thought I'd give it a try as the picture on the label reminded me of the Aero bars I loved as a kid.

Once we opened up the 85 gram bar, it didn't disappoint. Everyone in the family liked it even the kids who normally won't eat much more than a nibble of bittersweet chocolate. Each piece of the Airy bar has tiny bubbles and that melt very nicely in your mouth. I don't know if it is the bubbles, but for the first few seconds on the tongue the chocolate actually tastes sweet (more like semi-sweet than bittersweet). If you leave the the bite size piece on your tongue for a few more seconds, you get a somewhat prominent vanilla taste. Nothing too strong or overwhelming, but more than from most other bittersweet chocolates.

What is a bit confusing is the packaging, with its large picture of the trademarked Elite Cow on the wrapper. By first glance, I thought this must be a milk chocolate bar, but then remembered that the cow graces all of Elite's chocolates. There is no mention of cocoa in the ingredients, just sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, emulsifier and artificial flavor (vanilla). Regardless, it tastes good.

As a testament to the Elite Airy, before Pescha was finished, I headed back to the grocery store to purchase several more bars as I'm not sure if they'll be carried by the store after Passover and to take advantage of Pescha clearance sale price.

Overall I give the Elite Airy bar a 4 out 5 on the taste scale.

Strawberry Sorbet - Parve (Kosher for Passover) Recipe

This is a classic at our dinner table anytime we have company.

• 1 egg white
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 pkg small frozen strawberries (or other fruit of your choice)
• 1/4 c water
  

1. Combine the fruit, sugar, and water in a food processor and mix until the sugar dissolves and the fruit is chopped up
2. Cover the mixture and chill 2 hours in the freezer
3. Beat the egg white in a separate bowl until stiff. Fold into the chilled fruit mixture.
4. Back into the freezer.

The trick to this sorbet is to make sure that the fruit doesn't freeze to a solid block before combining with the egg whites. If you let it freeze a bit too long, just drop it back into the food processor and give it a few whirls until it is the consistency of a a slushy.

Variations

One of the kids favorite variation, is to use fresh pineapple. Instead of peeling the pineapple, cut it in half lengthwise, and scoop out the flesh. Be careful not to puncture the skin. Rub a bit of lemon juice on the inside of the skins and set the skins aside. Once the pineapple sorbet has been mixed, pour it into the pineapple skins and then freeze. Serve it to the table in the two pineapple hales for a truly spectacular presentation of a very delicious pineapple sorbet.

Lemon Sauce - Kosher for Passover Recipe (and Year Round)

I tried out this recipe parve lemon sauce recipe at our sedar table this year and it was a big hit. The recipe is a modification/blending of several recipes I've found and adjusted to be suitable during Passover and to make it parve.

It's also easy to prepare and takes about 15-20 minutes if you do everything from scratch or 10 minutes if you use already prepared fruit juices.

• 1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (you can substitute store bought OJ)
• 1/2 cup sugar (you may want a bit more depending on how tart/sweet you like your sauce)
• 5 tbsp potato starch (when not Passover use 3 tbsp cornstarch)
• Zest and juice of 4 lemons (you can substitute store bought lemon juice and skip the zest if you're in a rush)

Directions:

1. Pour orange juice, sugar, cornstarch and lemon zest and lemon juice into a small saucepan.
2. Bring to a simmer over a medium heat while whisking well. Continue to whisk as it begins to thicken.
3. Once the sauce's consistency is that of a slow drip from the whisk, pour it into a bowl and refrigerate until required

We used this sauce to drizzle over our home made "Strawberry Sorbet".

For an extra fancy presentation, place a small amount of the lemon sauce at the bottom of wine glass, then place a serving on sorbet followed by a drizzle of the lemon sauce. The parfait like desert will be a big hit.

My guests liked how the tartness of sauce complemented the sweetness of the sorbet creating a truly refreshing desert. A perfect end to a traditional sedar meal.