Happy Pesah!

Woops, I suppose I'm a little delayed in my Passover week posting. Fact is, I've been eating a lot of Manischewitz-brand sweet potato pancakes, but I do have a few recipes to share which I will try to get to you in the next day or two. First, though, I need to report on my fabulous trip to Kalona, Iowa. Kalona is a big Amish area, and one of the tourist attractions is Stringtown Grocery, a store that buys everything in bulk, then repackages it by hand and resells for cheap. As you can see, I got quite a bit, and the box was so heavy that I didn't feel like getting it further than the front door. Quinoa, cracked wheat, semolina flour... my little vegetarian heart is full of joy.

Next we went to the cheese shop, where they make their own cheese curds but also sell a ton of import cheeses for cheap, and import chocolates for slightly less cheap. I'd never had cheese curds, so I had to try them. I liked the sharpness, but man are they squeaky! I also got about five other types of cheese. I love that you can sample before you buy - I fell in love with this pear-and-ginger Wensleydale and had to take one home. The bits of pear and ginger make it quite sweet, but I love it just to eat little bits as a snack. It would also be good for crumbling over salad. Next on our tasting tour will be a FABULOUS goat cheese that's just about to go on my super spring squash dish. I can't wait to show you.

Sunday I went to a Seder at a professor's house. I fared pretty well, as there were two types of kugel (matzoh and potato) and plenty of charoset. And then the DESSERT. There were these HUGE fluffy macaroons with a gooey sort of almond filling in them. If anyone knows how to make something like that, please do share!