An International Passover

 Jews all over the world will be celebrating Passover on Wednesday. Almost every  continent has traditional dishes for this holy week.It;s nice to incorporate these into traditional family tables for something different.

One of the most exotic of Jewish food is from the Sephardic sect. These are Jews from Spain,Portugal, NNorthAfrica and the Middle East.Their dishes reflect this with various spices and lamb dishes. There is mina de matza, similar to moussaka.This is a layered dish with soaked matzoh filled with spiced meat,spinach or cheese,Many Sephardim create kefkes de prasa,a deicious leek, egg and matzoh patty fried golden in oil. Potatoes and beef are added to them at times to create a heartier dish.North Africa is represented with fish and chickpeas.This is white fish cooked with tomato paste, garlic paprika, pepper and olives along wit chickpeas, The one thing that they shared with the Ashkenazi sect is tzimmes.Where they make theirs with sweet potatoes and dates the Sephardim add lamb to theirs for a sweet and savory flavor.There are also Spanish style pepper salad too along with a Tishpishti  cake made with ground nuts and matzoh meal.

A sizable Jewish population migrated to the Caribbean.There the dishes were influenced by African and tropical flavors. Fried chicken even gets makeover with using matzoh meal instead of regular white flour. Cinnamon and ginger  are added a long with paprika and cloves are added for zing and color.Red  Red is a Ghanian based dish ,suitable for the holiday .This is a savory dish full of black eyed peas, tomatoes, and onions. habanero give it a distinct fire  along with red palm oil. The bitter herb dish can be replaced by mustard greens or cilantro.Matzoh ball soup can also be served but there's a twist The matzoh balls are stuffed with turnips greens for more color and taste. Sweet potatoes are used in many of the dishes because they also represent hope in African cultures. South American Seders have their own take on dishes. too.There is the specialty huevos haminados taken from Mediterranean Jews .These are eggs cooked with coffee grounds, onions and olive oil.It results in eggs in a creamy brown sauce that has a unique flavor, There is also a matzoh babka made with matzoh eggs and nuts, probably taken from German Jews relocating to Argentina.

Passover has many dishes from all over the world.Try them for a different taste. They're interesting and exciting.