Chocolate Toffee Matzoh with Figs & Pepitas

Chocolate Toffee Matzoh with Figs & Pepitas

Passover dessert recipes don’t have to be fancy. In fact, we have a hunch your family and friends will find chocolate toffee matzoh with figs and pepitas to be a new favorite at your seder table.

Matzoh—flat, cracker-like bread—is the traditional food for the Jewish holiday of Passover, when Jews are forbidden to eat bread or other leavened foods.  One of the most delicious and indulgent ways to dress up plain matzoh is to drench it in buttery toffee and rich chocolate. This is a beloved tradition among Passover dessert recipes that Jewish families look forward to all year, especially after eating preserved lemon chicken with almonds and California Figs.

Turn basic matzoh into an elegant, no-bake chocolate toffee matzoh by topping it with traditional Sephardic ingredients such as chopped Orchard Choice and Sun-Maid California Figs and green pumpkin seeds (pepitas). For extra color and a hint of spice, you can also add pink and white peppercorns. This beautiful confection is a fitting way to end a Passover Seder or simply keep it around as a snack to enjoy during the eight day-long festival. It’s almost impossible to resist! When it’s not Passover, this same technique can be used to make California Fig and chocolate toffee with Saltines or other crispy, flat crackers.

Caramel Matzoh Crunch with Figs & Pepitas

Chocolate toffee matzoh will quickly become one of your favorite Passover dessert recipes, especially topped with chopped California Figs and pepitas.
caramel matzoh with figs
Nutrition
Servings 8

Ingredients

  • 4 boards matzoh
  • 1 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 1/3 cups sugar
  • 3 tbsp water
  • 2 tbsp Lyle's Golden Syrup or light corn syrup
  • 1 bag semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1 1/2 cups Orchard Choice or Sun-Maid California Figs stemmed and diced
  • 1/4 cup green pumpkin seeds or pepitas
  • 1 tbsp pink peppercorns or white, optional

Instructions

  • Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place two boards of matzo on each baking sheet.
  • Melt butter in a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan.
  • Add sugar, water, and syrup to the pan and stir to dissolve the sugar. Once sugar is dissolved, do not stir again. (Stirring can cause the sugar to crystallize and make the toffee grainy. If sugar crystals appear on the side of the saucepan, brush them down with a pastry brush dipped in water.)
  • Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and boil until caramel reaches the hard crack stage (300°F) on a candy thermometer), approximately 8 to 10 minutes. You will see the mixture darken, and it will begin to smell like caramel.
  • Pour toffee mixture over matzoh and spread evenly. Allow toffee to firm up for a few minutes.
  • While toffee is cooling, place chocolate chips in a glass bowl and microwave on medium power for 30 seconds. Stir. (If chocolate is not completely melted, continue microwaving for thirty-second intervals and pausing to stir until melted.)
  • When toffee is set, pour melted chocolate over matzoh boards and spread with an offset spatula to coat toffee evenly.
  • While chocolate is still warm, top each piece of matzoh with chopped figs, pepitas, and peppercorns, if using.
  • Allow chocolate to cool completely, about one hour. Break into pieces with your hands. Store caramel matzoh crunch in an airtight container.

Notes

Note: When making toffee, it’s important to add an inverted sugar, such as corn syrup, to prevent the granulated sugar from crystallizing. However, many people do not consider corn syrup to be kosher for Passover. Thus, I suggest using Lyle’s Golden Syrup, which is a British cane syrup. You can find it in better grocery stores or online.
Recipe and photo by Emily Paster
This Passover, look forward to making chocolate toffee matzoh. It will quickly become one of your favorite Passover dessert recipes, especially topped with chopped California Figs and pepitas.

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