When it comes to dessert for Passover, you don’t have to make anything fancy. That’s the genius behind caramel matzoh crunch with figs and pepitas. They make a great sweet to serve up at the end of your seder.
Made with Matzoh
With a nod to toffee topped Saltines, this simple caramel matzoh crunch features matzoh —flat, cracker-like bread. Matzoh 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. Many people look forward to this dessert for Passover all year long. It’s a beloved tradition for Jewish families.
Easy Elegance
Turn basic caramel matzoh crunch into an elegant dessert by topping with traditional Sephardic ingredients such as chopped California Dried 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!
Toffee Hack
Start making this dessert by gathering your ingredients, toasting pepitas (if you like), chopping Orchard Choice or Sun-Maid California Dried Figs, and crushing pink peppercorns for a citrusy twist. Then, get ready to make a saucepan of toffee using three ingredients: butter, sugar, and water. The secret ingredient in giving this toffee its snap is in the form of a thick viscous sweetener called Lyle’s Golden Syrup, more often an ingredient you might find in the U.K. There is no exact equivalent to this golden syrup (though you could try light corn syrup as a possible substitute), but we would encourage you to seek out the Golden Syrup either online, at a specialty grocer, or store that supplies foodstuffs from the U.K.
Easy Swap to Eat All Year
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
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.