if you think matzo is gross

you just don't know how to use it as an ingredient.

okay, people. if you're eating matzo plain and complaining about its blandness, then you need to look at matzo as part of a whole meal rather than an individual separate piece. passover doesn't mean having to eat jelly on plain matzo for lunch every day. it doesn't mean a week of eating cardboard. if you are, you're just not being creative.

if course, i'm a gentile, and i find cooking challenges exciting. passover to me is a chance to get creative with limited ingredients. i understand that passover means a whole lot more to my girlfriend, but i'm speaking from an agnostic, non-jewish, obsessed-with-the-food-channel perspective.

matzo shouldn't even be a challenge. matzo is like pasta. pasta by itself is bland. this is why people pour sauce all over it or stuff it with cheese and meat. if there were an iron chef matzo challenge, mario batali and cat cora would kick everyone's ass, because in essence, matzo is analagous to pasta and greek pastry shells in so many ways.

okay, so let's make this simple. what do we do with other bland foods such as dried pasta, phyllo dough, won ton skins, dried beans, or rice? first, if it isn't pliable or edible to begin with (like dried pasta/beans or rice) we make it nice and soft with water. then we add other ingredients like sauces, vegetables, herbs, spices, etc.

matzo is stiff and brittle. so we soak it with water until it is pliable, preferably to al-dente consistency. this can be achieved by running a matzo board under a faucet for a few seconds and then placing it between two wet paper towels for 10 minutes.

see? it's no longer useless cardboard. now you can make lasagna and a whole host of meals out of it.

anyway, here's a recipe for matzo quesadillas. don't laugh. tortilla skins are bland and unappetizing by themselves. how is matzo any different? you don't eat tortilla skins or moo shu skins plain. you use them as wrappings. water-prepared pliable matzo is an excellent substitute.

2 pliable matzo wrappings (see above)
1 summer squash, cubed
1 zucchini, cubed
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 tomato, cubed
sprinkle of chipotle chili powder
sprinkle of regular chili powder
salt
black pepper
1 oz brie
1 oz goat cheese

(caveat: listen if any of this isn't kosher enough - and don't give me shit about how my touching it isn't kosher - that isn't the point of this post. i don't want to hear it. my point is that matzo isn't a useless stand-alone food that sucks and has no redeeming qualities. in fact, quite the opposite.)

heat some olive oil in a skillet. soften the garlic. then add the onion, squash, zucchini and pepper. add both chili powders, salt and pepper. cook until soft. remove from heat and mix in the tomatoes and cheeses.

brush one pliable matzo board with olive oil and place in skillet. add quesadilla filling, and fold one side of the matzoh over the filling. heat until slightly browned on one side. then flip over and heat the other side.

serve with salsa or guacamole. wee!