It's That Time Of The Year, Again

In days gone by, when my house was fuller and my freezer smaller, I could ignore my "chametz," the food forbidden on Passover, supply until Purim. Now with an empty nest and double the freezer space, I should have started checking my inventory after Chanukah.

It's already the month of Shvat, meaning that in two months we'll be in the month of Nissan. Passover is smack in the middle of that month. That means that I have no more than two months to empty the freezer.

Judaism requires organization and planning. Kashrut is all organization. There's the separation of meat, dairy and parve, "neutral," which can be eaten with both. Shabbat cooking is done before Shabbat and organizing your time is crucial. Everything must be ready in advance, even the boiled water for coffee and tea.

Technically, Jewish Holidays are easier, because cooking is permitted on the Holiday itself, but I prefer to treat it more like Shabbat, because that allows me the freedom to enjoy the Holiday and not be enslaved in the kitchen.

Pesach, Passover, is the most difficult, because we must clear our homes of the forbidden chametz, store and sell what remains. It must be out of sight. We need special cooking utensils. Some of the regular ones can be specially cleaned, kashered for Passover use. In Israel the various municipalities provide centers with vats of boiling water and blowtorches for that purpose.

Back to my freezer--

There's lots of challah, rolls, pittot etc. They must go. There are a few cakes which I've learned to bake in small pans and then freeze until needed. When I get a call from the "help committee" for a cake, I just take one out of the freezer. There's also flour. We have three birthdays coming up next month and the Purim holiday, so I should be able to finish all that off.

I also have at least one meatloaf ready for heating. Now I have to stop buying meat and fish until we've run out of what's needed. In another month our local "super-grocer" will be getting in only KP, Kosher for Passover, frozen meat and other staples.

We need guests! We need people to eat the food. There's too much for two alter cockers, old fogies.