Okay, so Passover’s coming up, right? And finding desserts that fit the rules is already a bit of a thing. No regular flour, no leavening… you know the drill. But then, making them vegan on top of that? That felt like a whole new level of challenge this year. I figured, why not give it a real try and see what happens? I like baking, and I like sharing what works (and what doesn’t!).
Finding Something That Might Work
First thing, I needed recipes. I spent a good chunk of time just looking around online and in some old cookbooks. Lots of Passover desserts lean heavy on eggs, like, really heavy. Think sponge cakes, meringues, macaroons. And obviously, butter shows up a lot too. So, the mission was clear: find recipes that could ditch the eggs and dairy but still hold up without regular flour or yeast.
I settled on trying two things: coconut macaroons, because they seemed classic Passover, and some kind of chocolate matzah brittle or bark. Seemed manageable enough, and who doesn’t like coconut and chocolate?
Getting The Stuff Together
Next stop, the grocery store. This part always takes longer than you think during Passover season. I had my list, but I was double-checking everything. Needed shredded coconut (unsweetened is my usual go-to), some Passover-approved sugar, vanilla extract (making sure it’s kosher for Passover), and salt. For the vegan part, instead of egg whites for the macaroons, I grabbed a can of chickpeas – gonna use the liquid, the aquafaba. Heard good things about it for whipping. Also picked up some vegan margarine that was certified kosher for Passover, and some decent vegan chocolate chips, again, checking that KFP symbol.
Tackling the Macaroons
Alright, kitchen time. I decided to start with the macaroons since they seemed trickier.
- First, I opened that can of chickpeas and drained the liquid into my big stand mixer bowl. Gotta be careful not to get any actual chickpeas in there.
- Then I just turned the mixer on high. It takes a while, longer than egg whites, but slowly, slowly, it started getting frothy, then thicker, and finally looked kinda like soft peaks. Success step one!
- Gently, I folded in the sugar, then the vanilla, a pinch of salt, and finally, all that shredded coconut. You just mix it until it’s combined, don’t want to knock all the air out.
- Scooping them was a bit sticky. I used two spoons to drop little mounds onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. They weren’t perfectly uniform, but hey, homemade charm, right?
- Into the oven they went. I kept a close eye on them because coconut can burn kinda fast. The kitchen started smelling amazing, all toasty and sweet.
- Pulled them out when they were golden brown around the edges. Let them cool right there on the pan for a bit before moving them to a wire rack.
Honestly? They looked pretty good! Maybe a bit flatter than egg white ones, but definitely macaroon-like.
Making the Chocolate Matzah Bark
This one felt way easier. While the macaroons cooled, I got started on the bark.
- I laid out a couple sheets of matzah on another parchment-lined baking sheet. Broke them up a little, but kept some larger pieces.
- Then, I melted the vegan chocolate chips. I did this carefully in the microwave, short bursts, stirring in between, so it wouldn’t seize up. You could use a double boiler too. Added a little knob of that vegan margarine just to make it smoother.
- Once it was melted and glossy, I just poured it all over the matzah pieces. Used a spatula to spread it out, trying to cover everything.
- While the chocolate was still wet, I sprinkled on some chopped almonds (checked they were okay for Passover) and a little bit of flaky sea salt. You could add dried cherries or other nuts too.
- Then, the whole tray just went into the fridge to set up firm. Didn’t take too long.
- Once it was hard, I just broke it up into random pieces. Super simple.
The Final Verdict
Okay, tasting time! The macaroons were chewy and coconutty, maybe slightly less airy than traditional ones, but definitely delicious. The aquafaba worked surprisingly well as a binder. Nobody would guess they were vegan unless I told them. Big win there.
The chocolate matzah bark was exactly what you’d expect – crunchy, chocolatey, a little salty. It’s hard to go wrong with chocolate and matzah, really. It’s ridiculously easy and always a crowd-pleaser.
So, yeah. Vegan desserts for Passover? Totally doable. It took a bit of planning and careful shopping, but the actual baking wasn’t too complicated. It felt good to make something everyone at the Seder could enjoy, without compromising on the rules or the taste too much. Definitely worth the effort, and I’ll be making these again.
