The Trick to Matzo Balls Is Bubbles

Some recipes for matzo balls call for seltzer instead of plain water. It’s an old grandma device to keep them light. So when my granddaughter Julia Fabricant craved matzo balls for the batch of chicken stock she made while quarantining at home from college last winter, she asked for a recipe; mine included seltzer. Though she had matzo meal in the pantry, there was no seltzer in the house. So she improvised and used beer with fine results, but kosher for Passover beer is hard to find. “How about cider?” she suggested. “Or Champagne,” I replied. It works. I’m swapping kosher for Passover sparkling wine for seltzer this year.

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