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Very Veggie Pesach 2024: Tiramatzu

I recently came across some recipes for icebox cakes made by dipping matzah into coffee instead of using cookies or whatever. When I mentioned it to a friend, she said it sounded like Tiramisu. So I looked into recipes for Tiramisu and... well, that wasn't going to work because you're never going to find Mascarpone certified for Passover and even heavy cream or whipped cream can be hard to find. But I put together something that had a similar texture and tried it out. I left it in the fridge for two hours and it was OK. Then I left it in the fridge overnight and in the morning, it was YUMMY! Since it's vaguely based on Tiramisu, I'm calling it Tiramatzu.

The fun thing about recipes like this is, it doesn't require any baking! You just assemble it and put it in the fridge! This is why these things used to be called icebox cakes (an icebox is an old fashioned refrigerator).

This recipe doesn't take much effort to make, but it does take a lot of elapsed time, between allowing the cream cheese to soften and letting the results sit in the fridge for hours. I think it's worth it!

This recipe is not vegan (dairy products) and is not gluten-free (uses matzah).

Ingredients

  • 8 oz block of cream cheese
  • 8 oz of sour cream (you can substitute Greek yogurt if you can find it for Passover)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 3 sheets matzah
  • 1 cup coffee
  • a little wine or other alcohol (optional)
You will also need two 8 x 8 pans for this: one for dipping the matzah in coffee and one for preparing the dish. The dipping pan can be rinsed out and used for another recipe later; it will not accumulate any debris. The main one will definitely have debris, and you may want to line it with foil or parchment paper or grease it with oil (Extra Virgin Olive Oil is always kosher for Passover), butter (Breakstones usually has a KFP run) or margarine (hard to find; stick with the butter).

Kashrut Notes

  • Cream cheese, sour cream: requires kosher for Passover certification, but Philadelphia brand cream cheese and Breakstones brand sour cream usually have a run at this time of year
  • Sugar: requires kosher for Passover certification but Dominos brand is always certified kosher for Passover year-round  
  • Cocoa powder: actually does not require special certification ... as long as it is 100% cocoa powder, no additives or anything. We're not talking about hot chocolate mix, we're talking about pure cocoa powder
  • Matzah: believe it or not, matzah DOES require Passover certification, and you will commonly find matzah marked "not for Passover use" or some such thing. But certified matzah is very commonly available at this time of year
  • Coffee: the Orthodox Union says that unflavored ground coffee is kosher for Passover ... if it has their OU certification for year-round use. They do not allow decaf because the chemicals used to decaffeinate can introduce prohibited things. If you want instant coffee, Star-K certification says Folgers and Nescafe unflavored instant are kosher for Passover without special certification. I used instant to make my test batch because I don't drink much coffee
  • Alcohol: does require kosher for Passover certification. I frequently use Kedem's cooking wine in several recipes, but you could use regular wine or whatever

Preparation

Filling:
  • Let the cream cheese sit out on the counter until it becomes soft. This may take a few hours.
  • Mash the cream cheese a bit.
  • Add the sour cream and continue mixing until they become well blended
  • Add the cocoa powder and mix until well blended.
  • If desired, add a splash of wine and mix until well blended
The rest:
  • Prepare the coffee and put it in an 8 x 8 pan
  • If desired, add a splash of wine to that and mix well
  • Dip a sheet of matzah in the coffee and let it sit for about 30 seconds. Then flip it over and let it sit on the other side for about 30 seconds.
  • Put the sheet in the other pan (the prepared one) and slather a thick layer of the filling (almost half) over the top
  • Dip a second sheet in the same way and put it on top 
  • Slather a second layer of the filling (most of what's left) on top of the second piece
  • Dip a third sheet in the same way and put it on top
  • Spread a thin layer of the remaining filling on top and sprinkle a little cocoa over that
Let it sit in the fridge for a few hours or preferably overnight.

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