Flourless dessert ideas for Passover

Passover starts this weekend and, along with near-continuous TV showings of The Ten Commandments (starring Charlton Heston, of course), those who celebrate the holiday are obligated to abide by some rather strict dietary requirements. There is a fast before the holiday starts, a seder full of symbolic dishes and a ban on leavened bread. That ban on leavened bread generally extends to an almost total ban on flour, excluding only the flour that is used in making matzo. The reasoning behind this is that flour and some other grains can ferment and produce natural leavening over time and, although that risk seems low with something like chocolate chip cookies these days, it’s tradition and flourless desserts are the order of the day.

When I was younger, I remember that some kids would bring chocolate-covered matzo in their school lunches around Passover. That is a quick fix – although it can be a good one with high-quality chocolate – and we can certainly do better.

Flourless peanut butter cookies, plain or chocolate, are quick to make and dangerously addictive. Mini-Coconut Macaroons and Wheat Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies would be good choices, too. They’re also dairy free recipes. Cloud-like Lime Souffles, Light Chocolate Mousse and Silken Raspberry Mousse are all also dairy and wheat free. The raspberry mousse is a chilled dish, made with tofu at the base. It adds a rich texture, but berries are so flavorful at this time of year that you won’t taste anything but their sweetness in the dessert. This Silken Chocolate Pie has a similar recipe and can be served as a mousse, as well.

If you don’t mind a bit of dairy in your dessert, whether from butter or milk, your options expand to include Custard and Rice Pudding, both of which can be made with nondairy milks, as well as Raspberry Chocolate Mink and Boca Negra cakes. Flourless Chocolate Cakes are usually a big hit, too.

For more ideas, including links to other flourless chocolate cakes, meringue-based cookies, flour-free cheesecakes, take a peek at Smitten Kitchen‘s list of Passover Dessert Ideas.