 |
|
 |
 |
|
|
Forum
-> Yom Tov / Holidays
-> Pesach
|
amother
OP
|
 Wed, Apr 13 2022, 7:40 am
Hi all!
Just sharing some random things I've found to make my Pesach prep easier or more fun. Feel free to donate your own tips!
A lot of them sound stupid or small, but for me the small things are what make the stress overwhelming so I love cutting out small stresses.
(We buy very few processed goods so obviously some of these things might be totally irrelevant if you do!)
- New for this year: A masking tape dispenser! I put on a roll of blue painter's tape and it made covering the kitchen SO much quicker and less annoying! It's not QUITE one-handed, but in a pinch I could get a piece one-handed to stop the foil from falling over entirely.
- Press n' Seal to cover fridges. The first year I made Pesach I used foil, the second year I tried taping up garbage bags because it was such a disaster, and then I discovered Press n' Seal! It's a thicker, textured, slightly tacky plastic wrap. It's amazing!!! (I used a bit more than half of a 140 sq ft roll to very generously cover my large refrigerator.)
- Kashering pot and stone. I don't know how on earth we did it before! Actually I do - it was a very messy and dangerous project, involved an awful lot of towels and an iron, and we had to reboil a huge soup pot of water a few times to kasher our small kitchen. Now that one kashering pot does a thorough job on all the counters in one shot, and then I reboil it just once more for the sink.
- Fine mesh strainer. I bought mine at Walmart for a few dollars and I LOVE it! I filter the lemon juice after I squeeze it and I get a beautiful clear juice in no time at all.
- Mini tart pans. So cute, and I love being able to offer the kids mini sweet potato "pies" for a snack.
- 4 oz portion cups and lids. The BEST! I make a big batch of ices and freeze them in individual portion-sized cups. So easy to offer as a treat. I'll also portion out applesauce and then we have little applesauce cups for snacks.
- Huge potatoes. Game changer! It cuts down peeling time by a very significant amount. If you're still using small potatoes for Pesach, you are really missing out.
That's all for now, I'm sure I'll remember more later!
| |
|
| Back to top |
 2
 42
|
yidisheh mama
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 8:14 am
|
I don't recommend press and seal. My fridge still had sticky residue from last year's press and seal when I cleaned it for pesach this year. It was a pain to get off and in the end I had to get goo gone for it!
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
3
|
|
amother
Almond
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 9:23 am
I made 5 cakes in 10 minutes of prep. how?
Used a one bowl brownie recipe.
Lined my counter with 5 baking pans
scooped one ingredient at a time in each baking pan, like a lineup. then mix all either with whisk or hand mixer. 5 in the oven. voila. my kids basically end up eating only brownies anyway. we dont eat cake from the stores.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
28
|
|
amother
Firethorn
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 9:33 am
| amother [ Almond ] wrote: | I made 5 cakes in 10 minutes of prep. how?
Used a one bowl brownie recipe.
Lined my counter with 5 baking pans
scooped one ingredient at a time in each baking pan, like a lineup. then mix all either with whisk or hand mixer. 5 in the oven. voila. my kids basically end up eating only brownies anyway. we dont eat cake from the stores. |
So smart! Does it work to use hand mixer in foil pans?
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
2
|
|
amother
Garnet
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 9:44 am
Hi, OP! You don't sound like a lazy mom, you sound like you're working smarter, not harder!
Excuse my ignorance, but what is a Kashering pot and stone as opposed to the way you used to do it?
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
20
|
|
amother
Almond
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 9:50 am
| amother [ Firethorn ] wrote: | | So smart! Does it work to use hand mixer in foil pans? |
I use a whisk mostly. hand mixer is really not needed, and that gives you one less appliance to clean up. I am almost sure I took the recipe from Between Carpools.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
2
|
advocate
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 9:56 am
|
These are great suggestions!!!
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
4
|
|
amother
OP
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 12:47 pm
| yidisheh mama wrote: | | I don't recommend press and seal. My fridge still had sticky residue from last year's press and seal when I cleaned it for pesach this year. It was a pain to get off and in the end I had to get goo gone for it! |
Interesting. That happened to me once, but it was when I left it up for a few months instead of taking it off soon after Pesach.
| |
|
| Back to top |
1
0
|
|
amother
OP
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 12:53 pm
| amother [ Garnet ] wrote: | | Excuse my ignorance, but what is a Kashering pot and stone as opposed to the way you used to do it? |
We used to boil up a huge soup pot of water which took forever. Then DH would attempt to splash the water onto all parts of the counter without burning himself or me, and I’d attempt to follow the water with a preheated iron to make it sizzle on the counter. One pot would never be enough since the water was going everywhere, there was no way to direct the flow of water. Gallons of water would pour all over the kitchen, the iron would cool down too quickly and need to be reheated, overall it was a messy and overwhelming job!
Now it’s really no big deal. Of course if you have a better system already you might not need to fix it! But ours was DEFINITELY broken.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
1
|
|
amother
Magenta
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:05 pm
| amother [ Almond ] wrote: | I made 5 cakes in 10 minutes of prep. how?
Used a one bowl brownie recipe.
Lined my counter with 5 baking pans
scooped one ingredient at a time in each baking pan, like a lineup. then mix all either with whisk or hand mixer. 5 in the oven. voila. my kids basically end up eating only brownies anyway. we dont eat cake from the stores. |
Please post your kid approved recipe!
| |
|
| Back to top |
1
0
|
Bnei Berak 10
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:05 pm
No press n'seal in israel 
Really seems to be a useful thing
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
0
|
|
amother
Brass
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:15 pm
| yidisheh mama wrote: | | I don't recommend press and seal. My fridge still had sticky residue from last year's press and seal when I cleaned it for pesach this year. It was a pain to get off and in the end I had to get goo gone for it! |
It isn’t sticky at all.
Just a thicker Saran Wrap.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
3
|
WitchKitty
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:44 pm
| Bnei Berak 10 wrote: | No press n'seal in israel
Really seems to be a useful thing |
But we have kumkums instead of ' huge soup pots of water which take forever'.
Plus there's always amazon.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
4
|
|
amother
Garnet
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:49 pm
| amother [ OP ] wrote: | We used to boil up a huge soup pot of water which took forever. Then DH would attempt to splash the water onto all parts of the counter without burning himself or me, and I’d attempt to follow the water with a preheated iron to make it sizzle on the counter. One pot would never be enough since the water was going everywhere, there was no way to direct the flow of water. Gallons of water would pour all over the kitchen, the iron would cool down too quickly and need to be reheated, overall it was a messy and overwhelming job!
Now it’s really no big deal. Of course if you have a better system already you might not need to fix it! But ours was DEFINITELY broken. |
Interesting. Is this instead of covering your countertops, or in addition? (We used to pour boiling water, no iron tho, but now we just cover.)
What is your new way--kashering pot and stone?
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
1
|
seeker
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:53 pm
| amother [ OP ] wrote: | We used to boil up a huge soup pot of water which took forever. Then DH would attempt to splash the water onto all parts of the counter without burning himself or me, and I’d attempt to follow the water with a preheated iron to make it sizzle on the counter. One pot would never be enough since the water was going everywhere, there was no way to direct the flow of water. Gallons of water would pour all over the kitchen, the iron would cool down too quickly and need to be reheated, overall it was a messy and overwhelming job!
Now it’s really no big deal. Of course if you have a better system already you might not need to fix it! But ours was DEFINITELY broken. |
I really don't understand why people would rather do this than just cover the counters. I always had counters that couldn't be kashered (made of synthetic covering) and it was no big deal to clean and cover them. I used contact paper but others got off even more easily by getting corrugated plastic and reusing it every year.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
8
|
|
amother
OP
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 1:57 pm
| amother [ Garnet ] wrote: | Interesting. Is this instead of covering your countertops, or in addition? (We used to pour boiling water, no iron tho, but now we just cover.)
What is your new way--kashering pot and stone? |
We have the minhag to kasher and cover so no shortcuts!
The kashering pot (really a pitcher) and stone is quick and easy.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
4
|
|
amother
Garnet
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 2:01 pm
| amother [ OP ] wrote: | We have the minhag to kasher and cover so no shortcuts!
The kashering pot (really a pitcher) and stone is quick and easy. |
Wow! Can you explain (or link) to what the Kashering pot is and what function the stone has? Is it instead of the iron you used to use?
(I'm just curious, no need to answer if it's too long to type or you're pressed for time)
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
1
|
|
amother
Petunia
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 2:07 pm
We have four or five kashering pots (you're not supposed to use the ones you cook with, AYLOR! we found this out after many years). They're old pots & I got a new set for cooking. The whole family borrows when they kasher.
HOWEVER! DH thought he had a minhag to pour boiling water on counters. Thereby pretty much ruining my cabinets. Finally called a Rov (Lakewood, check with yours!) He said on Formica it is superfluous, does nothing, we cover them anyhow. Other materials may be different.
Also DDIL tip - turn up your hot water heater to max (if u usually keep it lower for safety) an hour or so before you want to boil up your water. It will boil much faster!
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
2
|
|
amother
OP
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 2:11 pm
| amother [ Garnet ] wrote: | Wow! Can you explain (or link) to what the Kashering pot is and what function the stone has? Is it instead of the iron you used to use?
(I'm just curious, no need to answer if it's too long to type or you're pressed for time) |
https://www.shopeichlers.com/p.....27611 - that’s the pot.
https://www.shopeichlers.com/p.....27608 - that’s the stone, basically a brick in a long handled cage.
It is instead of the iron, makes sure the water is actually boiling when it hits the counter. I heat it on a second burner while boiling the water.
The whole kashering process (including blow torching the sink) took under a half hour this year (aside for the time of boiling the water, my Pesach stove is slow). And only one towel!
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
1
|
|
amother
Petunia
|
Wed, Apr 13 2022, 3:04 pm
27.99 for a brick? We just get one from some leftover construction materials and wrap a wire coat hanger around it. DH uses a second strong hanger to pick up the loop he made on the wrapped one. He has two or three used from year to year.
We have a stainless sink & we don't blowtorch, just put in boiling water & add the brick. Not sure why you would need to blowtorch something that doesn't get used for cooking, only for hot pots at most.
| |
|
| Back to top |
0
2
|
|
Imamother may earn commission when you use our links to make a purchase.
© 2024 Imamother.com - All rights reserved
|  |
 |
|
 |
|
|
