Charoset, haroset, or charoses (Hebrew: חֲרֽוֹסֶת [ḥărōset]) is a sweet, dark-colored paste made of fruits and nuts eaten at the Passover Seder. The color and texture are meant to recall mortar (or mud used to make adobe bricks) the Israelites used when they were enslaved in Ancient Egypt. As mentioned in Tractate Pesahim (page 116a) of the Talmud, which says ” The word “haroset” comes from the Hebrew word cheres — חרס — “clay.”haroset is one of the symbolic foods on the Passover Seder Plate.
After reciting the blessings, and eating a matzah “Hillel sandwich”(with two matzot) combining haroset and maror, the remainder is often eaten plain, spread on matzah. – – Wikipedia
Haroset is used to remind us of the mortar the Jews were forced to make in order to make bricks in Egypt. There is no standard recipe for haroset and customs vary. Many use a mixture of ground fruits such as apples, nuts, cinnamon and wine. Some communities use date syrup mixed with walnuts called “Haleq”.
Sephardi traditions
Sephardi haroset is a paste made of raisins, figs and dates.
Egyptian Jews make it from dates, raisins, walnuts, cinnamon, and sweet wine.
Greek and Turkish Jews use apples, dates, chopped almonds, and wine. Italian Jews add chestnuts.
Suriname Jews add coconut.[4]
Iraqi Jews make it from a mixture of dates and nuts.
Ashkenazi traditions (from Wikipedia)
Eastern European (or Ashkenazi) haroset is made from chopped walnuts and apples, spiced with cinnamon and sweet red wine. Honey or sugar may be added as a sweetener and binder. The mixture is not cooked.
Many Ashkenazim refer to any haroset that includes fruit other than apples as [name of fruit] haroset, as they consider haroset made with apples to be the default and any other kind to require specifying.
Moroccan Passover Haroset (Charoset) Kosher Recipe
DESCRIPTION
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups pitted dates
- 1/2 cup golden raisins
- 1/2 cup dark raisins
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1-2 tablespoons sweet red Passover wine
- 1-½ tsp Allspice, ground
- 1 tsp Clove, ground
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place dates, spices, raisins, and walnuts in food processor and finely chop until mixture begins to stick together. Add enough wine to make mixture pasty.
- With moistened hands, roll walnut-sized balls of mixture and place on baking sheet lined with wax-paper. Refrigerate until firm.
Notes
NUTRITION
See all the Passover recipes here.
A million thanks to you! 🌟
Thank you so much for your kind words, Isaias! 🌟 I’m thrilled to hear you enjoyed the Moroccan Passover Date Raisin Walnut Haroset recipe. It’s always wonderful to know our recipes are bringing joy to your celebrations.
I put a LOT more wine in there, otherwise, it’s the same recipe that I grew up with. My Askhi friends never knew what to make of it. Thanks for all of your amazing recipes!
That’s awesome! You can never go wrong with more wine. Chag sameach!