I hate following trends. I prefer to start them. Everyone is wearing Hokas, I wear Asics. Everyone switched to earbuds, I’m still on my first pair of Earpods. Everyone was making Dubai chocolate, I was making chocolate clusters.
But now that the Dubai chocolate craze has died down and Adeena Sussman has come out of nowhere with a matza version, I feel comfortable to attend the party.
Adeena is a sweetheart. I actually met her in LA at her Shabbat cookbook signing. I went in half-expecting to dislike her, probably because I’d been envying her for being such a gifted writer and bestselling author. But she was humble, warm, and impossible to dislike.
Anyway, what she did with her Passover Dubai chocolate version was clever and symbolic. She replaced the crunchy kataifi noodles with crunchy matza. She wed an Arab staple with a Jewish one. Of course it worked. Why wouldn’t it? If you remove radicals from the equation, it always works. It worked a little too well, that my teenager almost finished the entire batch I made. Before I got to photograph them 🙁
I don’t think I’ve ever had a Dubai chocolate that was actually made in Dubai. I keep seeing them at Jon’s supermarket, but one look at the ingredients and nutritional label tells me that they overly processed and too sweet. The only Dubai bar I’m happy to pay fifteen dollars for is John Paul’s Maramba Chocolate. You can’t find it in stores, but you can order directly from him through their Instagram.
My version
is slightly different from Adeena’s. I melt dark chocolate with ghee to make it richer and more caramel-like, and I process the pistachios with maple syrup instead of sugar, plus a generous pinch of coarse salt for contrast. Feel free to swap the dark chocolate for milk or white chocolate if you prefer something sweeter.
Notes & Substitutions
- Instead of processing the pistachios yourself, you can use store-bought pistachio paste. I processed them in a food processor until pasty but still slightly chunky.
- If you don’t have silicone molds, you can use an ice cube tray, or simply make one large chocolate bar in a loaf pan — line it with baking paper, pour in half the melted chocolate, add the filling, then pour the remaining chocolate over the top.
- Bought a whole box of matzah and not sure what to do with the rest? Don’t let it go to waste — make matzo brei, matzah layered cake, and matzah slathered with chocolate.
Dubai Chocolate Kosher for Passover (4 Ingredients)
Equipment
- Silicone chocolate mold or ice cube tray
- Food processor
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons melted ghee or butter
- 1 matzah
- ½ cup raw shelled pistachios
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon coarse salt
- ¾ cup 72% dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place the matzah on a baking sheet and brush with ghee. Toast until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, process the pistachios with maple syrup and salt until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
- Let the matzah cool, then break it into small pieces and add to the food processor. Pulse a few times until the mixture is sandy but still has some texture.
- Combine the chocolate chips and remaining ghee in a small heatproof bowl and microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until fully melted and smooth.
- Spoon the melted chocolate into each mold cavity, filling halfway. Add a ¼-½ teaspoon (depending on the size of your mold) pistachio-matzah filling, pressing it down gently. Cover with the remaining chocolate and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Once hardened, remove from the mold and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
