Charoset is one of the essential dishes for a Passover Seder.
If you are hosting a Passover (Pesach) seder this year, or attending one in the home of a relative or friend, there will definitely be charoset on the seder table. You can elect to bring charoset to the Passover seder to help out the hostess, or for yourself.
Charoset is the food that represents the mortar used for bricks during the time of the Israelite slaves in Egypt, whose freedom is celebrating during the Passover holiday.
My grandmother was an excellent cook, and several of her recipes have become legend in our family and others. This charoset recipe is one of them, because it is fun to make, and the results are totally based on taste. That means you have to taste the charoset as you make it. This is a great recipe to make with children, grandparents, and frankly just about anyone at any age has fun making charoset.
This recipe is from the Ashkenazic Jewish tradition. Sephardic charoset recipes are quite different from this one.
When my Bubbie taught me how to make charoset, we did everything by hand. When I make charoset now, I use a Cuisinart to cut way down on the time making this recipe. However, the time I spent with my Bubbie making charoset is indelibly marked in my memory, and I try to pass down that feeling when I make charoset with my children.
This recipe is fun to make and messy. Make sure to wear clothes that can be washed, and clear the area that you are working in.
Step 1
Peel and core the apples. The apples form the base for the recipe and part of the fun is that you will have to figure out the balance of the ingredients to your taste. But for every 8 to 12 apples, you will need about a pound of walnuts.
Step 2
Chop the apples by hand or in a Cuisinart. If you do use a Cuisinart, you will need to be careful not to turn them into applesauce. I do this by chopping small quantities at a time.
Place the chopped apples in a bowl.
(Part of the fun of making charoset is what happens to the extras. We like to eat the apple skins that we have peeled from the apples.)
Step 3
Chop the walnuts by hand or in the Cuisinart. Do not grind them. Charoset should have some texture to it, and the nuts provide the texture because they do not break down in the wine.
Pour the chopped walnuts into the bowl of apples. Mix with a large spoon until mixed thoroughly.
Step 4
Now add the wine.
How much wine to add is what makes this recipe so much fun. The apples soak up the wine. When I made this recipe with my Bubbie, she would pour in some wine, then mix it in and mash the apples with a fork. Then she would pour in some more wine. We joke in my family that when you think you have added enough wine, you should then pour in some more wine.
The wine adds the color to the mix, and a lot of the flavor. Keep adding wine until you think you are done.
Step 5
After you have mixed all the ingredients together, cover the bowl tightly with a lid or plastic wrap, and let the charoset sit in the refrigerator for at least two hours. Letting it sit overnight is best.
The next day, the charoset will be ready for the Passover seder.
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Comments
Yes, we pretty much hog this stuff during Passover. That is enough for the entire year. Almost time to make it. :)
Getting geared up for Passover. It's early this year!! I wait all year long for Charoset.
Good question. Maneschewitz concord grape is a sweet red grape wine.
Is that a red or white wine that you use? dry or sweet ?
i've never heard of charoset - sounds good though, must say I really like a lot of Jewish recipes! If it wasn't for the bans on seafood and pork I'd have been a convert!
@BrendaReeves Never heard of Passover or charoset?
I celebrate passover and love your bubbies recipe. Looking forward to enjoying it. I am also looking forward to lent, I always feel so good to fast during lent.
I was married to a Jewish man for 26 years and never heard of this.