Passover is only a few weeks away – the first night is April 19! And while there are parts of the traditional Passover seder table that never change (that segmented ke’ara plate you break out once a year), one of the more flexible is dessert.
Passover isn’t exactly a holiday known for great dessert. When you’re required to eliminate all flour from your house, let alone your cooking, baking can be a challenge. Unless your family is content with the same traditional Passover dessert every year (passed down from Bubbe), chances are you’re desperate for dessert ideas that are new and delicious...and sans chametz.
We’ve curated a new, downright miraculous collection of treats in our Passover in a Box. After eating that maror bitter herb and listening to Aunt Phyllis drone on about her visit to the Negev, you deserve a sweet. Lo, our absolute best Passover dessert ideas...
Passover Chocolate Desserts
Chocolate-Covered Matzo Ungapotchkies: Ungapotchka is technically defined as “ridiculously over-the-top and excessive,” like many of the b’nai mitzvah parties you might’ve attended. Matzo clusters mixed with toffee and toasted rice then coated in chocolate proves once and for all that matzo doesn’t only have to be a vehicle for the charoset and can taste a whole lot better than the afikomen. (Let your little cousins fight over that.) In fact, these are so good that we know we’ll be tiptoeing into the kitchen well after the Passover meal to steal a couple more.
Agave, Quinoa & Sesame Milk Chocolate Bar: Creamy, sweet milk chocolate laced with crunchy quinoa and sesame seeds? This nutty, toasty chocolate bar is no typical flavor combination. Sesame seeds and quinoa are both superfoods, and now the latter seems to be approved by most rabbis for eating during Passover week. And luckily, there’s no need to wander 40 years through the desert to find this bar of milk (and honey).
Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Frogs: Why are these purple, green, and yellow froggies hopping into this Passover desserts gift box? These little peepers remind us of the 10 plagues of Moses, specifically plague #2. Creamy, dreamy vegan peanut butter is coated in a bittersweet Venezuelan chocolate shell. Forget plague. These are manna from Heaven.
Traditional Passover Macaroons
The classic Passover sweet is, of course, coconut macaroons. But these aren’t the dried-out, mouth-drying cookies of your childhood. Danny of Danny Macaroons is a fixture of the New York indie food scene, and his cookies are so popular, he churns through an average of 40 pounds of coconut a day. One bite and you’ll understand why these are different from all other macaroons. Satisfyingly chewy with a snap of dark chocolate, you’ll be trying to sneak one before the first cup. (Hey, no questions.)
For dairy-free purists, Danny also offers plain macaroons and, yes, ones covered in rainbow sprinkles.
Passover Fruit Desserts
Candied Orange Peels: At last! A dessert item that can actually function in the Passover seder meal. What’s that orange doing on the seder plate? Many families have added it as a way of acknowledging the role of those who feel marginalized within the Jewish community, yet have made important contributions – particularly Jewish women and LGBTQ Jews. We like to set out little bowls with these tangy-sweet Valencia orange peels around the table. Orange you glad we’re meshugah enough to think of this?
Pâtes de Fruit: For a modern take on those candied fruit slices which have practically become a staple of American seders since the 50s, these jewel tone candies will absolutely delight your holiday host. In six bright flavors (kalamansi, passionfruit, Morello cherry, strawberry, raspberry and blueberry), they’re made with real fruit puree and are actually juicy – vibrant, sweet-tart, with a sweet jammy finish. But please, respect your elders and make sure Aunt Rose sees you unwrap her neon slices that she’s brought to the Passover seder table.
Raw Wildflower Spring Honey: We’ve hunted down so many delicious honeys, but this jar stands out as a great one for a nice cup of tea at the end of Passover meal. Totally raw and made from the nectar of fruit trees in the Catskill Mountains (specifically, springtime apple, pear, and cherry trees), it’s mellow and light. (The fall harvest honey has a bold hit of molasses and spice, and we recommend thinking ahead and grabbing one for Rosh Hashana.)
Be a mensch, and bring your favorite balaboosta a gift, will you? This box of treats is seriously too good to pass over. You can also easily incorporate some of these goodies into your traditional Passover dessert table of meringues and sponge cake. Don’t let Passover desserts get a bad rap – some traditions deserve to be changed.
