Category Archives: Pesach

Passover 2010 menu plan

Pesach,

Here’s my list of what I’m making so far for the next few days.  Because there’s so much cooking for Passover, what will be served at each meal will be determined closer to the meals – I find it simpler like this as it allows me to focus on cooking.  This isn’t a complete list for all of Pesach (Passover), but it’s what I have scheduled so far.

Main dishes:

  • roasted chicken
  • meatloaf
  • shepherd’s pie
  • braised beef tongue
  • meatballs
  • chicken cutlet salad

Sides:

Salads:

  • coleslaw
  • health salad
  • carrot-apple-pineapple salad
  • charoses (for seders)
  • cauliflower salad (steamed cauliflower, carrots, olives)
  • California pickle salad (shredded carrots, tomatoes, pickles)
  • traffic light salad (red, yellow, green peppers diced with olives)
  • lacto fermented pickles
  • egg salad
  • chopped liver

Desserts:

  • very berry apple compote
  • strawberry ice whip
  • triple berry ice whip
  • mocha squares
  • apple pie
  • chocolate non-dairy ice cream

General:

Chag kasher v’sameach!

Avivah

Pesach 2010 food shopping list

frugal strategies, Pesach

Every month I spend approximately $600 on groceries for our family of 11, and this month has been no different, including all extra Passover food expenses.   This year I’ve accomplished that by firstly spending about 50% less than usual last month, using up pantry items so I didn’t need to buy as much as usual, then using the extra $300 to buy matza, six cases of grape juice, and ground meat.  That split up the large expenses so that it didn’t need to come out of one month’s budget, and everything else was able to be purchased this month.

You’ll notice when looking at my list that I don’t buy a lot of prepared or processed foods.  I did buy mayonnaise for Passover even though we usually make it from scratch – I don’t have a blender set aside for Passover use that I can make it with.  And though I was planning not to buy any sugar at all and to stick with honey (during the year I use sucanat and honey, no white sugar at all), my kids pleaded with me to buy some so that they can make our annual strawberry ice whip recipe.  Otherwise most of our groceries are ingredients in the unprocessed state.

Since I bought the bulk of the groceries for the entire month, what I’ve bought is intended to last through the middle of April, not just the week of Passover.  (I have money remaining to buy more vegetables, once tomorrow and then again in two weeks.)  Here’s my list of basic ingredients, amounts, and prices I paid:

  • 70 lb chicken wings – .99 lb
  • 30 lb ground meat – 3.49 lb
  • 3 lb chicken cutlets – 3.79 lb
  • 3 lb fresh beef tongue – 12.59 lb
  • 20 lb raw beef liver – 2.99 lb
  • 6 lb shredded mozzarella cheese – $4.99 lb
  • 4- 8 oz farmer cheese – (rubbed out on receipt, I think it was something like 2.99 each)
  • 40 dozen pastured eggs – 24 dozen for 1.60 dozen/16 dozen for 1.25 dozen – from two different farmers (these were my lowest prices yet and I was quite pleased!)
  • 7 gallons raw milk
  • 100 lb potatoes – 9.95/50 lb
  • 80 lb yams – 13.50/40 lb
  • 50 lb onions – 30.50 (last month I paid $14 for 50 lb – when I asked why the big jump I was told the hurricane in Chile drove up a lot of produce prices)
  • 30 lb carrots – 2.99/5 lb (will need at least 50 lb more)
  • 3 pkg romaine hearts – 2.29 each
  • 1 case grapefruit (40 ct) – 15.50
  • 1 case navel oranges (88 ct) – 18.75
  • 20 lb clementines – 3.99/5 lb
  • 10 fresh pineapples – 1.29 each
  • 40 lb apples – .33 lb
  • 45 lb frozen berries – 2.49/3 lb
  • 4 lb fresh strawberries – 3 lb/$5
  • 18 lb. cabbage – .39 lb
  • 5 heads celery – .69 each
  • 8 heads cauliflower – .99 each
  • 3 calabaza squash – 1.49 each
  • 3.5 lb sliced baby portabello mushrooms – .69/8 oz
  • horseradish root – .80
  • 1 pkg garlic – .99
  • 10 lb cucumbers – .99 lb
  • 4 lb red peppers – 1.99 lb
  • extra virgin olive oil – 8.99 (3)
  • 1 small jar mayonnaise 3.19
  • honey – 5.29
  • 5 lb white sugar – 2.99
  • 1 container raisins – 3.65 (plus have 30 lb I bought six weeks ago)
  • 2 cans pickles – 1.39 each
  • 2 cans crushed pineapple – 1.29 each
  • 2 cans sliced green olives – 2.89 each
  • 2 cans sliced black olives – 2.89 each
  • 2 bottles lemon juice – 1.79 each
  • 1 small jar apple cider vinegar (this part of receipt is faded – was under $2, though)
  • 5 lb hand shmura matza – 16.99 lb
  • 1 lb hand shmura spelt matza – 25.99 lb
  • 3 lb organic spelt machine matza – 3.29 lb
  • 6 lb machine shmura matza – 5.99 lb
  • 1 lb matza farfel – left from last year, I think someone gave it to us
  • potato starch – .50 each (bought after Pesach last year)
  • matza meal – .50 each (bought after Pesach last year)
  • (4) 6 oz pkg ground walnuts – 1.99 each

bulk purchases:

  • grape juice – 2.50 bottle (this was 50% off the regular price so I bought 48 bottles in order to have enough until the fall when it goes on sale again – I can’t bear paying full price!)
  • 25 lb sliced almonds – 102.67
  • 25 lb raw cashews – 67

The quinoa I  ordered didn’t end up coming in, so I decided to do without it for Pesach – I just bought 25 lb last month and since when I got it, transferred it by pouring directly into a clean bag in a clean bucket (and it’s stayed closed since I haven’t yet used it),  I do have the option to use it for Passover.

I didn’t buy any butter or extra virgin coconut oil because it’s so expensive; instead I’ve rendered a huge amount of beef fat for tallow (which I got free from a butcher – chicken fat is suddenly in demand this time of year and expensive but I guess using beef fat is beyond the pale, lol!) and will use that for most cooking during Passover.  I’ve used rendered beef fat and cooked with tallow before, but never tried to do without butter or coconut oil!  I’ll use olive oil for salads and to saute anything for dairy meals (though I generally avoid doing any cooking with olive oil since it isn’t heat stable).  We already baked mocha squares with the tallow and though my dd doing the baking was put off at the idea, it turned out great.

Because my kids prefer chicken wings to any other kind of chicken and they’re so much cheaper than other cuts, it’s a very affordable protein option for us.  This month I decided that since I spent so little on chicken, and there was still room in the budget, that I could for once splurge on fresh beef tongue in honor of the holiday.  My kids love this but it is so outrageously expensive that I haven’t bought any for years. I used to buy it twice a year when I lived on the West Coast, since it would be marked down to about $4 lb after the holidays.  Then I’d put it in my freezer and have it on hand for the next holiday.  It’s hard to look at the very small amount that 3 lb of tongue ($42) makes, though – I’ll have to serve another main dish with it since that alone would be very skimpy!  But all of that notwithstanding, it will be special for the holiday and I know it will be appreciated.

I still have about 3/4 case of napa cabbage (I bought two cases over a month ago for $7 each).    Despite my efforts to use it all quickly, forty huge heads of napa is a lot to use!  In order to keep it fresh, I wrapped each head of napa in a clean plastic bag, pressing out all the extra air before closing it well.  Now weeks later, they still are fresh and I’ll have plenty to use  in place of lettuce for salads, in addition to having it as a cooked vegetable.

Tomorrow I’ll do another shopping trip for more fresh vegetables so we’ll be set for the week (we use a lot more of everything during Passover than during a regular week).   Dh wants to start drinking fresh vegetable juices, and fortunately our juicer has never been used (it’s been sitting around for over 2 years now :)) so we can use it for Passover.   For juicing I’ll need even more vegetables than usual.  I’ll probably get a 50 lb bag of carrots, and more cukes, beets, peppers, tomatoes, etc.

What does your shopping list look like?

Avivah

Baked Winter Squash with Apples

Pesach, recipes,

I can’t think of a catchy name for this recipe, but it’s really yummy!  It’s ideal as a side dish for meat or chicken but tasty any time.

Baked Winter Squash with Apples

  • 6 c. winter squash (peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/4″ thick slices)
  • 6 c. Granny Smith apples (peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4″ thick slices)
  • 1/2 c. raisins
  • 1 t. cinnamon or nutmeg
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/3 – 1/2  c. honey
  • 1/4 c. oil (coconut oil, rendered beef/chicken fat, or butter)
  • 1 1/2 T. lemon juice

Cook squash slices in boiling water for several minutes until tender; drain.  Combine squash, apples, and raisins and put in greased pan.  Mix in seasonings.  Put the honey, lemon juice, and whatever oil you’re using together in a small pot; heat on low until honey and fat are both liquid.

Pour the honey mixture over the squash and apple, and mix in well so that all slices are well-coated. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour or until squash and apples are very tender, stirring occasionally.  Serve warm.

(This post is part of Slightly Indulgent Tuesday.)

Avivah

Pesach Granola

Pesach, recipes

We made a large batch of this (three times the below recipe) to have for breakfast some of the days of Pesach.

Pesach Granola

  • 1 lb. matza farfel or matza, crushed into very small pieces
  • 2 c. dried coconut (you can double this but I only had enough coconut for this measurement :))
  • 1 c. cashews
  • 1 c. sliced almonds
  • 3/4 t. cinnamon
  • 1/2 c. honey (we don’t like our food very sweet so you might want to increase this to your taste)
  • 4 T. butter or coconut oil, melted
  • 2 c. cold water
  • dried fruit (I used raisins)

Combine matza with dry ingredients, except almonds and dried fruit.  Mix thoroughly.  Combine the melted butter/coconut oil with the honey, and warm slightly so that it’s liquid and pours easily.  Mix into dry ingredients.  Drizzle water all over, mixing well.

Spread the mixture on greased cookie sheets.  Bake at 225 degrees for two hours, stirring every 15 minutes.  Add almonds and bake 15 minutes more until almonds are toasted.  Let granola cool, and then add in dried fruit according to the amount you prefer.

Note: I wanted this to be non-dairy so I didn’t soak the matza overnight in an acidic medium.  However, if you’re concerned about minimizing the phytic acid content, then I’d recommend using thinned yogurt for part of the water measurement, and mix the matza with half of the water called for the night before, mixing in everything else the night before.

This is really yummy served with raw milk or even dry as a snack! (Ask your LOR about if it’s necessary to wash for this, not me!)

Avivah

Savory Calabaza Tian

Pesach, recipes,

Though I generally don’t post more than one recipe a week (and often not even that), for the next few days I’ll be sharing recipes that will be suitable for Passover.  Because so many Passover cookbooks use ingredients that I don’t use (for nutritional reasons), I’ve created or adapted a number of recipes to suit my needs, and realize that some of them may be of interest to some of you. You can also check the ‘recipes’ or ‘Pesach’ category and you’ll find other recipes there that are suitable; many need very small adjustments or no adjustments at all for Passover use.

When I did my monthly shopping a couple of days ago, I lucked into three large calabaza squash for 1.49 each!  I’ve never had calabaza before, so I set out to find a way to use them.  🙂

Savory Calabaza Tian

  • 8 c. calabaza squash (or any winter squash like butternut, acorn, pumpkin), peeled, seeded, and chopped into 1 inch cubes
  • 1 c. whole wheat flour, matza meal, or potato starch (omit flour for Passover use; omit flour and matza meal for gluten-free recipe)
  • 1/4 t. salt
  • 1/4 t. pepper
  • 1/2 t. dried parsley or basil
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/3 c. shredded cheese (swiss, mozzarella, or cheddar)
  • 1/3 c. butter or coconut oil, melted

Mix flour/matza meal with salt, pepper, and parsley/basil.  Dredge squash chunks in this mixture.  Place coated squash pieces in greased pan, then stir in the minced garlic and sprinkle the cheese on top.  Drizzle oil on top.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 – 40 minutes.  When it’s done, the chunks should be slightly firm on the inside and soft on the inside.

Avivah

Colcannon

Pesach, recipes,

Cabbage is a great vegetable because it’s so versatile, inexpensive, and stays fresh a long time (good for someone like me who buys vegetables every two weeks or less); there are so many things you can do with it!  I’m making colcannon for lunch today, and thought it would be a good time to share this frugal and tasty recipe.

Colcannon

  • 4 c. green cabbage, chopped
  • 2 c. water
  • 1 T. oil

Simmer chopped green cabbage in 2 c. water and 1 T. oil. Drain.

  • 1 c. onions or leeks, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
  • 1/2 c. butter
  • 4 c. cooked potatoes, quartered (can be baked or boiled – I boil them because it’s faster)
  • 1 c. milk (I use raw)
  • salt, pepper to taste

Saute the onions or leeks in butter (add garlic now if you’re using it) until translucent. Add cooked potatoes and milk to the potato mix and simmer it all until it’s warm.  Then mash it all together, and add the cooked cabbage to the pot with the potato mixture and heat for a few minutes until its thoroughly warmed through.  Mix it all together, season with salt and pepper and top with some more butter if you like.  Filled with protein, carbs, healthy fats, and veggies – a balanced meal and cheap to boot!

(This post is part of Pennywise Platter Thursday.)

Avivah

Kitchen, check. Now time to relax.

frugal strategies, Pesach

My kitchen is officially turned over for Passover as of this morning, and I already have a pot of lamb broth simmering on the stove top.   First things first, you know!  The second pot is filled with potatoes.  Naturally.  🙂  Seriously, I find that having boiled potatoes and eggs on hand makes it very easy to deal with hunger for the first day we turn over the kitchen, when we’re not ready to start cooking in earnest.

Today we have a busy but relaxing day planned.  Today is my ds’s fourth birthday- this year sure has flown by!  Last year we took the family to an outing to the duck pond where we all enjoyed ourselves very much, and ds asked me if we could go again for his birthday.  It’s such perfect timing, being spring weather and a good opportunity to give the ducks any leavened foods that we’re not going to be eating.   We’ll take with us the leavened food that the kids want to eat, too (like organic chocolate covered pretzels that we received for Purim).  I think we might make a trip to the duck pond an annual family tradition for his birthday; it’s the kind of thing that everyone can enjoy looking forward to.

He also asked if I could buy ice cream sandwiches, which is what I did last year.  Initially I agreed, but then realized that today is Ben and Jerry’s free scoop day, and thought it would be more fun to take the family out for a scoop.  (Here’s a link for their site if you’re interested – you can check the store locator to see what’s in your area if you’re interested – www.benjerry. com.)  No, it’s not a bit healthy!  Yep, call me a nutritional rebel.  😆

The only Ben and Jerry’s in the city isn’t participating in the free scoop day, though, so we’ll be going to a neighboring city (where my dh works), getting the ice cream there, and then picking dh up from work.  That will be a treat for all of the kids as well as dh since it means a lot more time together and we get him from work infrequently.  Then we’ll all be able to go to the duck pond together and will be back in time for dinner.

In the summer I got some free items from someone who was downsizing, and saved one to give to ds today.  It’s a beautiful hand painted laquered wood kiddush cup – here’s what it looks like.  Because it’s intended to be used at the Passover seder as the cup of Elijah, it has Eliyahu written on the front in Hebrew.   We already have a cup of Elijah, but since Eliyahu is the name of my ds, it’s perfect for him.  It’s kosher for Passover use, so he’ll use it this year for the seder and then an use it as his regular kiddush cup every Friday night.  I think he’s going to be really excited to be able to have something he associates with being big that is all for him.

I hope all of you who are preparing for Passover are getting to the point where you can relax and have some fun, too!

Avivah

Traditional food preparations for Passover

food preservation, nutrition, Pesach

>>I’ve been starting to plan meals for Passover, in the hopes that better planning will mean we eat more than matzah spread with whatever.   I was wondering if you could post a bit of about creative passover meal ideas.  And also I was wondering what you know of sprouting, lacto-fermenting, etc during Passover.  What can be sprouted that isn’t kitniyos?  All I can think of is sunflower seeds, and perhaps quinoa could be sprouted.  We like fermented green beans best (dilly beans), but that is kitniyos.  I’m not sure what other options there would be, that we would like.  Can a person make kefir, or kombucha, or… for Passover?  Do you worry about soaking grains when you are eating matzah?  You can’t exactly soak matzah, right?
And also, I’ve been wondering, when you soak nuts and grains, if you don’t have a dehydrator, how do you get them back to normal?  Particularly, if you soak grains, can they be ground for flour in that state? <<

I haven’t yet planned my Passover menu (I’ll do it on Thursday next week, after I see what I get for a very good price that I want to integrate into my planning), and I don’t know if it will be very creative!  But I’ll be sure to post about it once I have it basically worked out.

I don’t think there’s much you can sprout for Passover, since it’s generally beans, seeds, and grains that are sprouted, and we don’t eat any of those!  I suppose you can try to sprout quinoa, but I’ll just do an overnight soak with an acidic medium in a warm location.  Nuts can be soaked and dehydrated, but I’m not planning to bother with that for the week of Passover- I generally use my dehdrator for that; the times I tried to use my oven to dry nuts that had been soaked and grains that had been sprouted, it didn’t turn out well at all!  (My oven doesn’t go low enough and the result was slightly scorched.)  (In answer to your last question, grains that are sprouted are ground after being dried if you want to use them for flour.)

Lacto fermented vegetables are a cinch for Passover – just shred the vegetables (I make up combinations all the time – try napa or cabbage with onion, garlic, carrots and some curry powder – this is an easy one that always turns out well), add some sea salt and water, and let them sit on your counter until they’re ready.  (The salt I use throughout the year for table use is Real Salt, which is certified kosher for Passover – this would be a very good addition to fermented vegetables.)  The hardest part is that some vegetables like cabbage will take more time than a week to be ready to eat!  You can minimize the time needed to ferment cabbage by chopping it very finely. But most vegetables can be ready within 2 – 3 days.  Most hard and crunchy vegetables can be effectively fermented – have fun experimenting!

Last year I asked about using the kefir grains and was told that I shouldn’t use them on Pesach (Passover).  Realize that in virtually every situation that I’ve asked a question like this, the rabbi I approached had to rely on my detailed description to make his decision, since these kind of questions aren’t common.  So it’s possible that it being an unknown food was a contributing factor to the decision and it was cautionary rather than kefir grains being problematic in and of themselves.  I don’t know and it doesn’t matter to me – I was told not to use it for this one week a year so I don’t.  I don’t find it hard to enjoy raw milk without culturing it for a week, so not having kefir is no hardship for me!

If you do want cultured dairy, you can easily make yogurt by buying a kosher for Passover plain whole milk yogurt starter, then following the instructions I gave here.  I usually use a dehydrator but explained in the post that I just linked to how to use a cooler as the insulating box, with a heating pad/hot water bottle on top – since I don’t have a Passover dehydrator, that’s what I would do.

I don’t use kombucha, so I can’t share any tips with that – I tried to make it about three years ago and I think I killed my scoby.  😆 Maybe it wasn’t dead but it was so unappetizing looking that I threw it away.

Because of the high phytic acid content, I’ll be minimizing the use of matza, but matza meal can be soaked overnight in an acidic medium if you use it for cakes, muffins, or pancakes. You can use shredded coconut and nut flours in place of flours for baked goods – I have a number of recipes in my ‘recipe’ category that will be appropriate for Passover use, even if I didn’t label them as such.

Tonight I’ll be preparing beef liver for the first time (will share more about that another time), and bought a new grill to kasher it on so whatever we prepare will be able to be used for Passover.  That will be a nice traditional addition to our Pesach menu, I hope!

Someone once commented that her Jewish mother-in-law gave her a Jewish cookbook and the entire book was filled with healthy recipes that work well for a gluten-free diet.  I was wondering what in the world she could be talking about, and realized that she must have been given an older cookbook with Passover recipes!  Once you get past the modern day food imitations that supermarkets are filled with that are marketed especially for this time of year, you realize that this really is an easy time of year to eat well, easier than during the rest of the year when grains and beans may be a staple of your diet.

Stick with traditional fats- extra virgin olive oil, rendered chicken fat (shmaltz), butter, and extra virgin coconut oil.  Then add lots of fruits, vegetables, eggs, fish, meat and chicken, along with quinoa, potatoes, and sweet potatoes for the starch, some nuts, coconut, and dried fruits for dessert – there’s hardly anything to miss eating.  And all of it is healthy, simple, and delicious!

Avivah

Keeping everyone fed when converting kitchen for Passover

Pesach,

I was going to respond to the comment made recently and share about how to make the ‘turning over the kitchen’ stage as stress-free as possible.  Then this morning I noticed that last year I responded in detail to this, so I figured I’d repost it since many of you didn’t see it then.

***********************

>>Whats your eating plan for the next week before Pesach? Just curious. I enjoy reading about your Pesach preparations. <<

In keeping everyone happy in the time you’re converting your kitchen from regular use to Passover use, I think keeping everyone fed on time in an appropriate manner adds a lot to general happiness!  Seriously, there absolutely must be a plan for meals.  And the plan can’t be not having food in the house and hoping the kids won’t complain too much.  That’s just not going to work!  I can’t stress the need for a plan enough – it doesn’t have to be complicated.  Just take a few minutes to think about the 3 – 6 meals that you’re not going to easily be able to cook in your kitchen the way you usually do and how you can handle it in a way that you will be able to stay relaxed.

In my experience, the biggest issue is what to feed everyone for the two days that the kitchen is being done.  Before that, they can eat regular food.  After that, you can cook Pesach foods.  During the time you’re cleaning the kitchen, you don’t want to have to be cooking chometz when you’re in the middle of kashering everything. And the kids still have to eat, right?

So here’s what I did.  At the beginning of the week, I made a few chometz dishes in disposable  pans, and put them in the fridge.  Those could be easily reheated in the oven, and then served directly from the pan.  Today we’re in between things – after all of these years, I haven’t figured out how to avoid that, since you have to wait 24 hours after using the sink before kashering it (I guess I could start washing dishes in the laundry sink 24 hours before I kasher the rest of the kitchen so the sink could be done at the same time, but that presents it’s own inconveniences…).  Tonight we’ll finish everything – kashering the sink, oven, and stove.  But until then, we’re kind of in the middle of things, and it’s an awkward position – I can’t yet cook everything in Pesach dishes, and I don’t want to take out chometz dishes to cook with.

So for breakfast today, I pulled out the prepared pan of bread pudding for breakfast.  We served it in large chunks on napkins after heating it up, and had some bananas and kefir with it.  For  lunch, we had lasagna and vegetable juice – but everyone got paper plates and utensils then :) , and for dinner, we’re having these unhealthy instant entree things (hey, we can live wildly once a year, right? :) )) that we were given a few days ago when someone was getting rid of all the chometz in their freezer – a combo of mini hot dogs, potato puffs, and a couple of other things, with some corn and tomato salad.  Those will also just need to be eaten warmed up.  Oh, and the kids had spelt soup croutons and cream of wheat for a snack mid day.  That’s just about the last of the chometz, I think.  For myself and the others in my family who don’t eat flour, I roasted a turkey at the beginning of the week for dinner meals through the end of the week.  And since dh prefers when I do this, I’ll probably make some kitniyos for the time leading up to Pesach (like a pot of rice), that will be prepared in an electric cooker on the patio table, and served there as well (on paper plates, and washing the cooker in the laundry sink in the basement).

After dinner when the littles are in bed, I’ll kasher everything.  Tomorrow morning, I’ll be able to use Pesach dishes and pots, and everyone will have a regular kosher l’Pesach breakfast.  I need to do my veggie shopping, too, because I’m very low.  I’ll start making a menu plan for the next few days sometime later today or tonight, and I’ll share that when I have it done.

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Hopefully by sharing this now it will give you time to think ahead so you can plan for this stage and minimize the stress involved.  Note that I said minimize, not eliminate – there are inherent pressures involved and expecting yourself to feel ultra relaxed every minute and wondering what you’re doing wrong if you’re not, is unrealistic and will just set you up to feel like a failure.  Do the best you can and give yourself credit for every little (and not so little) thing you’re doing to get ready for Pesach (Passover)!

Avivah

Clarifying what products need Passover certification

frugal strategies, Pesach

Have you ever noticed that packaged foods that are certified for Pesach (Passover) are very expensive?  (How’s that for a nicely phrased understatement? 😆 )

After seeing the prices for some foods I want to use for Pesach that are certified for Passover use, I decided yesterday to get some more information about these foods and if they really need that additional Pesach supervision that I’ve been paying extra for until now.   Although I have a few more items I want to call about tomorrow, the information I’ve learned will help me to buy a number of foods for Pesach at the price I pay year round, and I thought I’d share that with you.  (However, it’s always good to ask your questions yourself.)

Quinoa – some people don’t use this because of the suspicion of it being kitniyos.  Here in my city it’s accepted across the board that it’s not; I believe it was the local kashrus agency that did the research about if quinoa was kosher for Passover and brought it to public attention.  My previous understanding was that it had to be purchased from one of two sources, both of which were much more expensive than what I can buy it for.  My question was if I could use quinoa from any company or not.  I called the OU (Orthodox Union) Hotline yesterday and was told that as long as it’s purchased in a sealed bag and is checked before Pesach (in case of accidental cross contamination), I can buy from whatever company I want.  That means that I can buy from my usual bulk source and get a 25 lb for under $4 lb instead of paying between $5 – 6 for a 12 oz box.   I had already decided I wasn’t going to use much quinoa if it meant paying over $7 lb – I’d rather buy meat for that price! I use quinoa year round so buying a 25 lb bag isn’t a waste for me, and this means I can use as much as I want for Pesach.

Nuts – any shelled nuts (ie without shells) that are whole and have no additives or preservatives can be used for Pesach even without certification.  Be sure that there’s no BHA or BHT in the nuts you get.  This is also something I use and buy in bulk year round – since I don’t have any unopened packages I’ll buy new ones for Pesach.  I usually space the expenses of bulk nut purchases so that I don’t buy more than two a month, and since there are four kinds of nuts I’d like to get, this will be a big expense in the coming month for me.  But it will all even out since I won’t have to buy nuts for a long time.  I was told sliced almonds also have this classification, but nut flours don’t.

Dried fruit – all dried fruit needs to have a special certification for Passover.  The exception to this is raisins that are grown in the US and are certified kosher for year round use.  Since last month I bought a 25 (or 30?) lb box of raisins that meet this criteria and haven’t yet used them, this was good news to me.

Milk – last year dh asked about this and was told that we needed to use milk certified kosher for Passover.  So I didn’t use any raw milk.  This year I decided to ask for myself since after speaking to dh, I realized the answer was applicable to both pasteurized and raw milk – I thought the answer had been given expressly about raw milk.  I was told that as long as it’s purchased before Pesach, it doesn’t need any Pesach certification. That means that this year we’ll be able to enjoy raw milk on Pesach.

edited to add – I just called again and was told that organic sucanat is okay (called back a second time and was told it’s not, so won’t be using this after all), as is extra virgin coconut oil (which was also mentioned in the comments section before I made this call).  I asked about unsweetened coconut products but all of those will need Passover certification.  It didn’t hurt to ask, though!

There are other foods that don’t require certification that I was already aware of – this is by no means an exhaustive list!  These are all new to me, though.

I’m very pleased with all of this information.  I thought I had no choice but to pay extra for Passover certification on the above items, and am glad to know that I can eat these foods just as affordably for Pesach as I do year round.  And just as nutritiously, too!

Avivah