Passover, a Jewish holiday, is a remembrance of the Israelites leaving Egypt around 5 BC after generations of slavery. It starts on the 15th of April of the jewish calendar, when it is spring in the northern hemisphere and is celebrated for 7 or 8 days.
The most obvious traditional aspect of Passover is the cleansing of jewish houses of yeasted dough. This is to remind the jews that when they left Egypt they did not even have the time to ferment their bread. In addition to that, this is a symbolic act to take the "swelling" (self like, pride) off the people. One of the basics of Passover is Matza, made only with flour and water, and continuously stirred while cooking in order to prevent the rise. The first day of this holiday, families get together to have a meal full of rituals, to remind themselves the importance of freedom and that they said no to slavery. Leek patties made with Matza flour is always present at such tables.
My beloved mother-in-law Rita Aktay was a fabulous cook. We lost her at a rather young age, therefore I did not had the chance to record her recipe. Last Thursday as I was watching türkmax gurme channel I ran into a program called Sedef’li Lezzetler‘e Reca Deşilton konuk oldu ve pırasa köftesi yaptı. Elimde net bir tarif ve hanımların paylaştığı püf noktalarıyla donanımlı olarak mutfağa girdim. Ufak tefek ayarlamalar ve fırında pişirmek dışında tarifi olduğu gibi uyguladım. Rita’yı bu çok lezzetli yemekle anabilmek hoşuma gitti. 🙂
ingredients
- 2 kilograms leek
- 250 grams ground beef
- 250 grams potato, boil and thin grate
- 2 tbsp bread crumb
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp mineral water
- 1 cup walnut, chop
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp red pepper paste
- extra-virgin olive oil
preparation
- Cut leeks into 4 lengthwise, then thin slice and wash well.
- Cook for an hour in a pot or half an hour in a pressure cooker, take off heat and flip into a colander. Pressing occasionally, make sure it's completely drained. Extract all the water by squeezing through a cheesecloth in 3-4 portions. You'll end up with about 500 grams leek.
- Knead all ingredients except olive oil with dough hook on slow for 7-8 min. Then knead by hand for 2-3 min, throwing into the bowl from 16 in (40 cm) height to completely blend. Cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate for at least 30 min (preferably overnight).
- Form walnut size mixture into round patties of same thickness all around.
- Brush the tray with olive oil, arrange the patties. Lightly brush olive oil on them too.
- Bake at a preheated 390°F (200°C) oven (withOUT turbo) for 30 min, rotating the tray once.
- 1 çbk = 1 çorba kaşığı = 1 table spoon = 15 ml
- 1 tsp = 1 tatlı kaşığı = 1 tea spoon = 5 ml
- 1 cup ~ 1 su bardağı = 1 cup = 240 ml
- measurements
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