The food at my grandparents’ Passover seder was exactly the same every year, eaten as a series of courses with four cups of wine. Chopped liver, hard-boiled egg with saltwater, charoset with horseradish and matzo, matzo ball soup, gefilte fish, brisket pot roast, coconut macaroons, and citrus candies. A classic American Ashkenazi lineup, always served on the same china and table linens. And because my grandmother purchased almost everything from a deli or made it from a box, the individual courses never changed. Veganizing my grandmother’s menu requires making some substantial changes. At the same time, it presents an opportunity to learn about each dish and figure out how to make them on my own.

This menu is vegan and also does not include kitniyot, which are legumes and other seeds that Ashkenazi Jews traditionally do not eat during Passover. Most vegan Passover recipes ignore the kitniyot restriction (which has been overturned in the Reform and Conservative communities), but I am leaving them out here so that these recipes can be used for any Passover seder. Use olive oil or refined coconut oil, as most other vegetable oils are considered kitniyot. I am not a rabbi or anything like that so don’t take me as your authority for what to use if you’re not sure!

These recipes are designed to work together and employ many of the same ingredients. You can chop a bunch of herbs at once to use for the gefilte fish, matzo ball soup, and pot roast. Potato starch stands in for eggs in a few of the recipes. You can use tapioca starch instead but you’ll want to double the volume. One 11-ounce box of matzo, run through the food processor, should give you 2 cups of matzo meal. Each recipe makes enough for 4 people. Almost everything here can be prepared a few days in advance.

Fresh herbs feature heavily throughout. They add a lot of flavors and are symbols of Passover and springtime, so I suggest sticking to fresh herbs as much as possible rather than using dried ones.

Mock Chopped Liver

Chopped liver is a common appetizer for Jewish holidays and nut-based vegetarian versions have been around for a long time. Adding lentils or beans is a great way to make it creamy, but since they fall into the kitniyot category I have used cashews instead here. This mushroom and pecan paté taste much better when made a day or two in advance. If you make it right after your charoset you can just reuse the food processor without washing it.

• 1 cup pecans or walnuts (soaked)
• 1/4 cup cashews (soaked)
• 2 Tbsp oil
• 1 sweet onion
• 1/2 pound button mushrooms
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp mace or nutmeg
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 Tbsp fresh parsley
• 1 Tbsp fresh tarragon
• 1/8 tsp kala namak (optional)

Soak the pecans and the cashews for several hours (separately) or boil them for a few minutes, then drain them and discard the water. Bring a skillet to medium-low heat with half the oil and add the onion. Allow the onion to caramelize by stirring it occasionally over the course of about 15 minutes, while you loosely chop the mushrooms. You can speed the caramelizing process up a bit by adding a pinch of baking soda. Once the onion has started to brown, scoot it to the outer edge of the pan. Add the other tablespoon of oil and the mushrooms to the center of the pan and sauté over medium heat until the mushrooms start to brown. Add the salt, mace, and a clove of crushed garlic. Once the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated, add the wine and let it reduce for a few minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly.

Transfer the cooled onion and mushroom mixture to a food processor with the drained cashews and black pepper. Pulse until it forms a creamy paste, then add the pecans and pulse until they are ground up but still crumbly. Scoop the paté into a bowl (lined with cheesecloth if you want to invert it and serve it as a mound) and refrigerate. Allow it to come to room temperature before serving and garnish it with chopped fresh parsley and tarragon. If you like an eggy chopped liver you can sprinkle it with some kala namak too.

Avocado with Salt Water

The key element of this simple course is a bowl of saltwater, meant to symbolize the tears of the enslaved Jews. You dip a sprig of parsley or some other herb into the water before eating it. Evidently, some families use potatoes as the thing to dip; mine always used hard-boiled eggs. I always hated eggs so I just stuck to parsley. When I went vegan my family gave me a whole avocado with my bowl of saltwater, which was a big improvement. The avocado could be dressed up with some customary greens and bitter herbs into a simple salad: sliced avocado + chopped endive and parsley + sliced red onion, with a ramekin of saltwater for the traditional dipping. This vegan Passover egg also looks pretty fun, if eggs are your thing.

Hillel Sandwich with Charoset

This is the part of the seder where you make little sandwiches with matzo. Inside goes a huge slice of raw horseradish and a smear of charoset, which is a spiced fruit and nut spread that symbolizes the mortar used by enslaved Jews. Charoset is generally vegan. Ashkenazi versions usually incorporate walnuts, apple, and cinnamon. Some recipes use honey, which can easily be replaced with another sweetener. In this charoset, I have adapted a vegan floral apple honey recipe to use the traditional apples in a different way. Depending on when Passover falls and what climate you live in, this might give you a chance to incorporate some springtime blooms.

Charoset:

• 2 medium-sized green apples, roughly chopped (peels on)
• 1 chamomile tea bag
• 1 cup of unsprayed flower petals such as dandelions, roses, elderflowers (optional)
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 cup golden raisins
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 cardamom pods, smashed
• 1 cup walnuts (soaked)
• 1/4 cup sweet kosher wine or grape juice
• 1/8 tsp salt

Soak the walnuts for several hours or boil them for a few minutes, then drain them and discard the water. Boil 1 cup of fresh water and steep the chamomile tea and other flowers in it until it begins to cool. Pour this tea, together with the petals, into a food processor with the chopped apples (discard the teabag). Blend. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a saucepan. Feed the strained apple mush to your companion animals. Add the sugar, lemon juice, raisins, cinnamon, and cardamom, and bring to a boil. Simmer until the mixture reaches a thick jam-like consistency. Discard the spices. Transfer the mixture back into the food processor and process until smooth. Add the strained walnuts, wine, and salt. Pulse until most of the walnuts are chopped. This is best made a day ahead.

Matzo Ball Soup

There is no lack of egg-free vegan recipes for matzo ball soup. My brother, pictured below eating a matzo ball, uses methylcellulose as the binding agent. Many vegan recipes use tofu, while others use aquafaba, flax meal, or potato or tapioca starch. Chia seeds work the same as flax seeds and are not considered kitniyot. I like to keep it simple with potato starch. Baking powder makes the matzo balls puff out as they simmer. Most baking powder contains corn starch though, so use one that is labeled kosher for Passover.

Matzo ball soup requires a really flavorful broth, something most vegan recipes achieve by adding chicken-free bouillon. But these usually get their flavor from yeast extracts and don’t appear to be kosher for Passover. I also like to add a pinch of MSG, which theoretically should be kosher for Passover but is not always clearly labeled as such. So I use simpler ingredients in this recipe. Straight vegetable broth has too earthy of a flavor, but coconut water provides a subtle sweetness. And making the matzo balls with a seasoned vegan “schmaltz” imparts more flavor and color into the broth as they cook.

Broth:

• 1 onion, peeled and halved
• 1 small fennel bulb, stalk and fronds only
• 3 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 large parsnip, peeled and chopped
• 3-inch piece of ginger, sliced
• 1 bulb garlic, halved
• 1 small sheet of kombu
• stems from cilantro, parsley, and dill
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 2 cups coconut water
• salt to taste

Put everything in a slow cooker or stockpot and cover with 6 cups of water. If using a slow cooker, slow cook on low for 12 hours. For the stovetop, cover the pot and bring the pot to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer for an hour or two. Strain the broth once cooled. When it comes time to simmer the matzo balls, add salt to taste, starting with 1/2 teaspoon.

Matzo Balls:

• 3 Tbsp oil
• 1/2 tsp annatto seeds (for color)
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1/8 tsp mace or nutmeg
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup matzo meal
• 3 Tbsp potato starch
• 1 tsp baking powder (double-acting, kosher for Passover)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 cup seltzer water

Heat the oil in a small pan and add the onion, annatto seeds, coriander seeds, and mace. Sauté for a few minutes, then strain the oil and discard the solids. This is your vegan schmaltz.

In a large bowl, combine the matzo meal, potato starch, salt, and baking powder. Give it a good mix with a fork, then pour in the seltzer and schmaltz. Mix the batter lightly until just combined. Refrigerate the batter for at least half an hour to allow it to suck up the moisture. Once chilled, the batter should be drier than cookie dough, with just enough moisture to hold it together. If the matzo balls are too wet they will disintegrate in the pot.

Roll the chilled batter into 10–12 balls, using about 2 tablespoons for each one. Bring your broth to a boil. Add the matzo balls and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cover the pot and simmer for half an hour. To serve, remove the matzo balls with a slotted spoon and pour the broth through a fine-mesh strainer. Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro, dill, and parsley.

Gefilte F’sh

Every year at the seder my mom would reminisce about back when she and my dad were first dating and made gefilte fish from scratch. I always imagined it as a pretty gory ordeal, and reading recipes seems to confirm that. My grandmother served the kind that comes in a jar. I have had success making a vegan version with okara, the pulp leftover from making soy milk. Other recipes tend to replace the fish with chickpeas, tofu, or potato. I tried jackfruit, which was a little too dry, and lion’s mane mushroom, which worked well but is rather expensive and a tad squidgy. So here we combine the two for our shredded fish mixture.

• 2 small carrots
• 1 sheet kombu
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 Tbsp dry white wine
• 1/2 lb lion’s mane mushroom
• 1/2 can jackfruit (14 oz can)
• 3 Tbsp oil (divided)
• 1 1/8 tsp salt (divided)
• 1 small onion
• 1 small parsnip
• 1 small fennel bulb
• 1/2 lemon, juice and zest
• 1 Tbsp each chopped fresh dill, parsley, and tarragon
• 1/4 cup matzo meal
• 2 Tbsp potato starch
• 2 tsp dulse flakes
• black pepper to taste
• 1/8 tsp allspice
• 1/8 tsp agar powder

Slice one of the carrots into at least 8 coins at a diagonal, break the sheet of kombu into pieces and drain the jackfruit. Place them in a saucepan with the bay leaf, white wine, and 1 cup of water. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Tear the lion’s mane mushroom into pieces and sauté it in a tablespoon of oil with a teaspoon of salt. Cook them until they release their liquid and it evaporates. When the jackfruit has softened, use a slotted spoon to transfer it from the pot into a mixing bowl. Mash it with a potato masher. Check on the carrots periodically and remove the pan from the heat once they are soft.

Coarsely chop the onion, remaining carrot, parsnip, and fennel and pulse them in a food processor until finely chopped. Add the jackfruit and cooked mushroom along with the juice and zest of half a lemon and the dill, parsley, and tarragon. Pulse briefly to combine. In your mixing bowl, combine the matzo meal, potato starch, dulse flakes, black pepper, and allspice. Use a spatula to transfer the veggies and mushrooms into the bowl and mix everything together. Refrigerate for an hour.

Form the chilled gefilte fish mixture into 8 –10 oval patties (I used an ice cream scoop). Pour a tablespoon of oil into a baking pan and coat the bottom. Arrange the gefilte fish in the pan and drizzle the remaining tablespoon of oil on top of them. Bake for 40 minutes at 350°, turning halfway through if the bottoms are getting crispy, and then allow to cool.

While they are cooling, strain the water from the saucepan into a measuring cup. Top the liquid off with water until it is a full cup. Set the carrots aside and discard the kombu and bay leaf. Return the cup of liquid to the saucepan. It should be cool at this point, which is necessary for the agar to set properly. Stir in the agar and 1/8 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, covered, and then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes. Allow the liquid to cool a bit before pouring over the patties. Garnish each piece with a carrot slice. Serve at room temperature with prepared horseradish (chrain, below).

Chrain:

• 1 medium beet
• 2 inches of horseradish root
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar

Grate the beet and horseradish and combine them with the remaining ingredients.

Pot Roast

My grandmother made her pot roast with brisket, which is obviously not vegan so we’re going to use portobello mushrooms instead. You can also replace the brisket with jackfruit, in which case I suggest boiling the jackfruit in water and crushing it slightly with a potato masher before adding it to the pot.

• 4–6 portobello mushrooms
• 2 lbs red or gold potatoes
• 1 lb carrots
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 2 Tbsp oil
• 1 oz dried porcini mushrooms (optional)
• a few cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp mace or nutmeg
• 1/2 cup sweet kosher wine or grape juice
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp potato starch
• chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Quarter the portobello mushrooms. Peel the carrots and potatoes and chop them into large chunks of similar width. Slice the onion in half and remove the outer peel.

Heat a 6-quart dutch oven over medium-high heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the mushrooms and let them sear for a minute or two. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, salt, and spices. Once the water from the mushrooms has evaporated, add the wine. Stir together the vegetable broth with the tomato paste and brown sugar and add it to the pot along with the potatoes, carrots, and porcini mushrooms.

Cover the pot and bring it to a boil. At this point, you can either transfer it to bake in the oven at 350° for around 2 hours, or turn down the heat and let it simmer on the stove. Stir it every half hour or so to help everything cook evenly. The thickness of the carrots will determine how long it takes.

Once the carrots have softened to your liking, whisk the potato starch into a couple of tablespoons of cold water and add it to the pot on the stove. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the gravy thickens. You’ll want to serve this right away (garnished with a little parsley) as the potato starch gravy can get gloopy if left too long.

Dessert

Traditionally the last thing eaten at a seder is the afikomen, which is a piece of matzo. In my family, this was a special piece of Shmurah matzo, which is round, extra-dry, and more expensive owing to having been observed by rabbis from the moment the wheat is harvested. That was the dessert, so it feels weird to put a normal dessert on a seder menu. But my grandmother did put out sweets, namely Manischewitz macaroons and fruit slice candies. It seems that the candies are actually vegan, as they are made with agar rather than gelatin, but they don’t seem to sell them where I live. Instead, I made some candied oranges to go with my macaroons.

Macaroons:

• 1 can coconut milk
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup potato starch
• 6 oz (2ish cups) shredded coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup matzo meal
• 1/8 tsp salt

Sift all the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl and stir in the coconut milk. Refrigerate the batter for half an hour, then use a cookie scoop to scoop it out onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350° for 20–25 minutes or until the tops begin to brown

Candied Oranges:

• 2–4 oranges
• 2 cups sugar
• 10 black peppercorns
• 3 cardamom pods, smashed
• 3 cloves

In a medium-sized pot, combine the sugar and spices with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Meanwhile, wash the oranges and slice them, using a mandolin if you have one. Place them into the boiling pot of syrup and reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer for about 40 minutes or until the white pith of the orange becomes translucent. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the oranges to a cooling rack or a piece of parchment paper. Strain the syrup to use in tea, cake, charoset, or anywhere else you might use a flavored syrup. Let the oranges dry for at least 24 hours. You can speed up the process by putting them in the oven at 200°. Dredge the dried oranges in more sugar if desired.

I hope that these recipes have inspired some ideas for your own Passover cooking. Chag Pesach tivoni sameach!