Easter (brioche) bunnies at Proof Bakery

Proof Bakery in Atwater Village is celebrating this Passover-Easter weekend with a menu of spring dishes and holiday baked goods. 

Owner Na Young Ma's farmers market quiches with crème fraiche custard are always a big draw. (The last piece usually goes to someone who likes to gloat while the rest of the line suffers quietly.) They include Swiss chard, Gruyere and leek, or, if you prefer, chard, Gruyere and bacon. 

But this weekend the show-stopper might be her brioche bunnies. And if those go fast, there are consolation sweets: coconut macaroons; flourless chocolate torte; and fresh fruit tart with berries and Diplomat cream.

For Passover, there's "Mazel-Toffee!" (crumbled matzo mixed with sliced almonds, butter and brown sugar topped with dark chocolate) and matzo bark (matzo sheets coated with dark chocolate, sprinkled with toasted pistachios and dried apricots). 

3156 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 664-8633, www.proofbakeryla.com.

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Photo: Proof Bakery

Brisket tacos: Jonathan Waxman's Mexican Passover

Beef brisket tacos, huachinango "gefilte fish," matzo chilaquiles.... It must be Passover at Rosa Mexicano. It's the 10th anniversary Rosa Mexicano’s Mexican Passover dinner, and this year's Latin-inspired versions of Seder specialties were created by Jonathan Waxman, chef-owner of Barbuto in New York, cookbook author and a pioneer of California cuisine. (Rosa Mexicano has brought on Waxman as culinary advisor to develop seasonal menus including Foods of Baja and Day of the Dead.)  

So on Waxman's Mexican Passover menu are: charoset, with dates, coconut, tangerine, pomegranate, almonds, cinnamon and rose apples; hierbas amargas (Passover maror), a beet, romaine, scallion and avocado salad with horseradish, parsley and matzo; huachinango “gefilte fish,” or red snapper dumplings with jalapenos; and pulled beef brisket tacos. What, you've never had sangria at Seder? The sangría de Passover is Herradura silver tequila, apple and lemon juices with Manischewitz reduction.

Mexican Passover at Rosa Mexicano is available April 6 to 13 at both L.A. locations. 

 At L.A. Live, 800 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, (213) 746-0001, and 8570 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, (310) 657-4991; www.rosamexicano.com.

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Photo: Pulled beef brisket tacos. Credit: Rosa Mexicano

Kosher-for-Passover gin: Bring on the martinis

In 1999, Napa Valley wine producer and entrepreneur Leslie Rudd (Rudd Oakville Estate and Dean & Deluca) discovered an old distillery just off the Silverado Trail on one of his vineyard properties. Established in St. Helena way back in 1882, the distillery was the 209^th to get a permit in the U.S. Why not revive it to make small-batch gin? thought Rudd.

And so he got the distillery going again and decided to call it simply Distillery 209. Rudd's No. 209 Gin is intensely aromatic, with citrus notes, plenty of juniper and other botanicals — the equivalent of a big, bold Cabernet. In other words, not a bit shy. It makes an intense martini and can be found behind the bar at some of L.A.’s best drinking establishments. In fact, I'm planning on sitting back on Sunday night with a dry No. 209 martini to watch the first episode of Season 5 of Mad Men.

But as of a couple of years ago, it also has a fraternal kosher twin called No. 209 Kosher-for-Passover Gin. Rudd and his "ginerator" Arne Hillesland couldn’t use the exact formulation as their original model (the cardamom used in No. 209 gin isn’t kosher, for example, nor is any grain-based spirit). Instead, after much experimentation, Hillesland managed to achieve a similarly aromatic profile by employing a slightly different combination of herbs and other elements. The kosher version is based on juniper from Tuscany, plus eight or more botanicals that adhere to kosher dietary law. These include bergamot orange from Calabria, Italy, California bay leaf, lemon peel from Spain, cassia bark from Indonesia, angelica root from Britain and coriander seeds from Romania. 

Those who keep kosher will appreciate that Kosher-for-Passover exists at all. The rest of us will appreciate it for what it is: a different, but equally valid, expression of gin. 

I can see a test martini in the near future.

No. 209 Gin, $34.99 for 750m1 bottle. No. 209 Kosher-for-Passover Gin, $37.99. Available at wine and liquor stores.

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Photos: No. 209 Kosher-for-Passover Gin. Credit: S. Irene Virbila/Los Angeles Times

A Passover meal without matzo? That's nuts

 
There is an alternative to a Passover meal that's heavy on the matzo: Use nuts.

All tree nuts are kosher for Passover, and they have been used throughout culinary history as flours, binders and thickeners. Best of all, nuts taste 100% better than matzo, have a heart-healthy reputation and are considerably kinder on the digestive system. Nuts can also be an excellent solution for those who are gluten-intolerant. Read more here in this week's Food section cover story, plus find recipes such as this chocolate pecan brownie fudge cake.

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Why are there so many kosher foods?

There are roughly 6.5 million Jews in the U.S., according to the Census Bureau, and only about 1 million of them keep kosher. So why do so many food manufacturers, such as Coca-Cola, go through a lot of trouble to rejigger their recipes to make their products kosher for Passover? The Times' health blog Booster Shots has the answer.

Sampler Platter: placentas, piroshkis and classic cocktails

Tons of tasty food news for today...

• Yelp will finally allow small business owners to respond to negative comments. New York Times
• Most disgusting food trend ever, placenta cuisine: "It's a good 6 pounds of meat that's just chock full of lingering blood, vitamins and hormones." Momlogic
• Changes in the kitchen at the French Laundry. SF Gate
• Canelé is named one of the top 10 brunch spots in the nation by Bon Appetit.
• The first ever Passover Seder at the White House included traditional matzo ball soup, brisket and kugel. Mrs. O
• Ritz Bites blogs about the piroshki lady of Plummer Park.
• 10 classic cocktails that have stood the test of time. Saveur
• Amelia Saltsman, author of the "Santa Monica Farmers’ Market Cookbook," reports on the best finds at Wednesday’s market. Eat LA
• Kansas legislature approves bill 2295 restricting dairy farmers from labeling their products as free of bovine growth hormones. The Pitch
• Is "big food" is the new "big tobacco?": "Both industries dismiss legitimate scientific studies as junk science; both put scientists on their payrolls to make it appear that there is a lack of scientific consensus about the bad health effects of their products; both have knowingly marketed unhealthy products to children." The Daily Bread

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo: Beef stroganoff, black bread, piroshki, shchi (a soup loaded with cabbage, beef and carrots) and Russian lemonade at Cafe Rus. Credit: Paul Morse / Los Angeles Times

Sampler Platter: Fatburger woes, Golden State and kosher Coke

Scoops of food news...

• After rapidly expanding in the last few years, California and Nevada Fatburger subsidiaries file for bankruptcy protection. Oregon Live. This shouldn't affect Montel Williams, who owns the exclusive franchise rights to Fatburger in Colorado. BV Newswire. But it might affect the outcome of NBCLA's "Best Burger under $5" competition.
• Colorado DMV nixes ILVTOFU vanity plate, citing obscenity concern. Colorado Independent
• Woman calls 911 over lack of shrimp in fried rice. Newsweek
• Golden State co-owner Jason Bernstein talks to LA.com.
• How Il Forno in Santa Monica has managed to keep all 32 employees during the recession. Huffington Post
• Limited batches of kosher-for-Passover Coca Cola are always a big hit in New York. New York Post
• LAist's latest recession obsession: Guatemalan market Guatemalteca in Hollywood.

--Elina Shatkin

Join us on Twitter @LATimesFood

Photo: Earvin "Magic" Johnson at Fatburger. Credit: Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times.