Charoset is the sweet snack you're looking for this week. It’s naturally sweet from the dates and apple, and has the perfect texture for smearing on matzo.
We eat it during the Passover seder as a symbol of the brick and mortar used by the Jews for building while they were enslaved. It’s very easy to make and keeps great in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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Why this Recipe Works
The spice blend of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg are beautifully aromatic in the mix and work so well with the blended date and walnut paste.
The cooked date mixture is pulsed in the food processor making it the perfect consistency for spreading on the fragile matzo.
Walnuts are mixed in on their own, ensuring they are fine enough to thicken the cooked fruit, and big enough to add the perfect amount of texture.
Ingredients & Substitutions
walnuts - you can use halves or pieces.
apple - I use Granny Smith in this recipe.
wine - you can use any Kosher for Passover wine, even Manischewitz.
spices - I use a combination of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. You can also use a charoset spice blend.
How to Make this Recipe
In a food processor, pulse 1 ½ cups of walnut halves or pieces until about half of them are finely ground. Transfer them to a bowl and set aside to mix into the date mixture later.
Add the 1 cup of pitted dates, 1 cup of orange juice, ½ cup of wine, ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground cloves, ⅛ teaspoon of nutmeg, tablespoon of lemon juice, pinch of salt, and a peeled and diced Granny Smith apple to a saucepan.
Cook the date mixture until most of the liquid is absorbed and the apples begin to soften. The apples will release their own liquids, about 8 minutes. Let it cool slightly, then pulse the mixture in the food processor until it forms a loose paste.
Fold the date mixture into the walnuts. Store the charoset in a sealed container in the refrigerator. It should last all week.
Charoset FAQs
The Hebrew word translates to "clay" and the dish signifies the mortar that the Israelites used for building during their enslavement.
Yes. It can be made up to 3 days in advance.
Yes, charoset is on the seder plate along with maror (horseradish), karpas (greens like parsley), zeroah (shank bone), beitzah (egg), and matzo.
Related Recipes
If you're looking for Passover recipes, I've got you covered. Here are some guides and a few of my favorite recipes.
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Charoset
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups walnut halves or pieces
- 1 cup dates pitted
- 1 apple Granny Smith, peeled and diced
- 1 cup orange juice
- ½ cup red wine like maneschevitz
- ¾ teaspoon cinnamon 1 tsp? less
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Pulse the walnuts until about half of them are finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- Add the pitted dates, orange juice, wine, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, lemon juice, salt, and apple to a saucepan. Cook until most of the liquid is absorbed and the apples begin to soften and release their own liquids, about 8 minutes.
- Let it cool slightly, then pulse the mixture in the food processor until it forms a loose paste.
- Fold the date mixture into the walnuts.
- Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
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