Dear Friends and Fellow Bakers,

Welcome to the April 2024 Issue of Betterbaking.com and happy holiday Easter weekend!

Ah April ! What a soothing  balm after the sleepy, cold world we called home, at least in this  hemisphere, for past several months.  My friends in Australia, New Zealand and other parts south and east of the planet are just sliding into fall and considering the siren call of brown sugar and cinnamon. By contrast, on this side, I’m thinking about berries, rhubarb and lightness of being. With that in mind, I’ve created a few seasonal recipes that I think reflect the spring-like mood on this side but still offer an appeal for friends throughout the Betterbaking.com global kitchen.

If March is a mercurial curmudgeon then April is a winsome coquette, teasing us with rain and sometimes a wee bit of leftover frost. But there’s no denying the shape of things to come, i.e. the beautiful, sunny baking that will take us from now through fall. Strawberries, rhubarb, leeks, new herbs are just the start. So shrug off your winter coats and moods, lift up your chin and look to the new day and new beginning of spring – where everything in the kitchen and in life, are possible and hope along with great baking, springs eternal

I’ve barely cleaned up after soda breads and hamantashen and now my kitchen is another collision of Easter-ish and Passover recipes which of course are almost a month apart this year making my editorial job that much more challenging. What they have in common is that both are about renewal and appropriately feature recipes that use an inordinate amount of eggs. It seems every day I am trotting out to get more eggs. I buy regular eggs for baking but splurge with organic eggs for my breakfasts. The power of eggs, let alone its symbolism, never ceases to amaze me. Did you know that 97% of the iron in eggs is totally digestible; if you fry some eggs in cast iron pan you can help keep anemia at bay. Don’t take that as medical advice! In case you’re worried about eggs (and apologies to vegans who aren’t worried but who choose not to eat them), according to the Mayo Clinic, Chicken eggs are an affordable source of protein and other nutrients. They're also naturally high in cholesterol. But the dietary cholesterol in eggs doesn't seem to raise cholesterol levels the way some other foods, such as those high in Trans fats and saturated fats, do. So as long as you have your eggs boiled or poached and don’t partner them up with margarine, bacon or sausages you’re fine. Certainly in baking, they’re needed. They offer flavor and leavening but eggs, along with the protein in flour, is a vital part of the structure of a cake or cookie. Plus, egg yolks are a 97% ingestible iron – which most of us could always need more of.

What's doing outside the kitchen?

On the home front, all is well. My family is healthy and all engaged in vibrant lives of work, sports, dance and socializing - it's a joy to see that I've raised a friendly trio of young men.  For my part, I'm registered in too much tango but after twenty-seven years of it, I'm in a golden era of dancing and have fallen in love with it for the umpteeth time. I also squeezed in a trial Samba class which features the connection of tango with the upbeat appeal of salsa. These days, the dance community seems both more friendly and more fun and there's enough material for a second memoir! I've stopped caring about a lot (seemingly the key to luck in life) and I discovered a brand of short-heeled tango shoes with the appeal of stilettos. Perfect. I'm working hard on my bread cookbook (I discovered an easier way to make sourdough but will be dedicating a lot of the book to beautiful, regular, straight dough breads - remember them?) and a novel and my book club has grown as many new and wonderful people have joined. I always have room (on Zoom) for 1-2 more if anyone is interested and it's free. Just drop me a line. On April 9th, I am presenting Molly Molloy and the Angel of Death (it's far more upbeat than the title suggests and falls into speculative fiction). Author Maria Vale will be joining us!

In addition to the featured recipes, including the free-recipe-of-the-month, here are some extra recipe suggestions for your table. Btw, many of  the Passover recipes listed below are in my Jewish Holiday Baking cookbook and there’s a whole new Passover chapter in The Newish Jewish Cookbook.

Here are some extra recipes to consider but the regular April recipe collection is below in their happy little boxes with their links. Enjoy! Btw, all the Passover recipes listed below are in my Jewish Holiday Baking cookbook and there’s a whole Passover chapter in The Newish Jewish Cookbook.

Cadbury Mini Egg Hot Cross Buns
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/cadbury-mini-eggs-hot-cross-buns/

Passover Carrot Cake
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/passover-carrot-cake/

Free!!! Original Matzoh Buttercrunch
https://betterbaking.com/marcy-goldmans-original-matzoh-buttercrunch-aka-matzoh-crack/

Passover Apple Cake
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/deep-dish-passover-apple-cake/

Passover Mock Chestnut Torte
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/mock-chestnut-torte-2/
This remains one of my favorite recipes to make for Passover and it’s one of the first I created for my Jewish Holiday Baking Cookbook. It’s moist and deeply chocolate but not cloying or too sweet, it’s nut-free and keeps for a few days. There’s a trick for the chestnuts or a swap you won’t believe and it’s in your pantry or fridge.

Passover Chocolate Chip Cookies or I Can’t Believe These are for Passover Cookies
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/are-you-sure-these-are-for-passoverdouble-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Passover Almond Horns
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/passover-almond-horns/
A gorgeous, addictive cookie that’s not in my cookbook on Jewish Baking but a beautiful addition to your holiday sweet table.

Warm wishes on this Monday morning, first-of-April Montreal kitchen to yours. It’s a brand new month in a brand new season: how shall you spend the bounty?

Happy spring and happy holidays all,

Warm wishes,

Marcy Goldman
Master Baker, Author, Publisher
www.BetterBaking.com
Est. 1997

 Regular April 2024 Recipe Collection

Springtime Leek and Herb Bread
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/cheese-leek-and-herb-bread/
This seems like a big savoury scone but it’s called Herb Bread in the UK and other places in the empire. Whatever you call it, it’s the easiest, best thing to be made of a few on-hand ingredients. Serve it warm and fresh with butter or slice it the next day and toast it. A beautiful spring-time bread. Did I mention it doesn’t take yeast or any rising?

Free Italian S Cookies
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/italian-s-cookies/
I worked long and hard to make this classic even better. You can finish these with confectioner’s sugar or a fondant and sprinkles with an Easter bonnet finish!

Passover Chocolate Chip Mandelbrot Biscotti
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/passover-chocolate-chip-mandelbrot-biscotti/

Bunny Hop Carrot Cake Cheesecake
https://betterbaking.com/recipe-items/carrot-cake-cheesecake-for-spring/
What is more springy than a spicy carrot cake fused with a spring-fresh cheesecake? This is just perfect for any season but it’s especially welcome in spring when carrots, bunnies and sweet treats all converge. This takes a small carrot cake prepared ahead so I generally make that a day or two ahead. In my cookbook Jewish Holiday Baking, there is a Passover Carrot Cake. You can make this cake for a dairy meal during Passover but swap in the Passover Carrot Cake instead and use matzoh meal to replace the graham cracker crumbs for the crust.