Passover recipes: Brisket and matzo ball soup (video)

Tonight at Sundown, the Jewish holiday of Passover begins. Like many holidays, food plays a major role in the celebration of Passover as family and friends sit down for meals together. And as a holiday commemorating the Jews' escape from slavery and exodus from Egypt, several foods present during the Seder serve as "props" in the telling of the Passover story.

For example, karpas (usually parsley) is dipped into salt water and eaten to symbolize the tears shed in Egypt. Maror, or bitter herbs, are also eaten as a symbol for the bitter lives the slaves led, while charoset, a fruit-and-nut mixture represents the mortar the slaves used between bricks. Matzo, a Passover staple, serves as a reminder that the Jews left Egypt before their bread dough could rise, and so they ate unleavened bread baked on their backs as they walked through the desert.

So yes, you could say that food is kind of the main event at a modern-day Passover Seder. And in the spirit of good food, here are two traditional Passover recipes (one for brisket, one for matzo ball soup) just in case you don't have all seven nights of your Seder menu planned out.

Yum! Just like bubby used to make!







Related links:

Matzo ball 101

A family-friend Passover feast

Sweet-and-sour brisket with shallots and new potatoes

The best Passover cookbooks