European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 22, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                By Leonard Hill. Assistant feature editor passover the jewish Spring festival of Freedom begins this year at Sundown on March 29. A in hebrew the Observance is known a Pesach which Means Quot passing by Quot or Quot passing Over Quot a to recall the time god passed Over jewish Homes when he slew the firstborn of Egypt. A. A. A a observed for an entire week the joyous event i celebrated mainly on the first two nights when families gather around festive tables for the seder an elaborate. Service and meal that Ushers in the  come to eat drink wine and to listen to the Story of the exodus of the ancient jews from bondage in Egypt. Seder is aramaic for the hebrew word Terekh. Meaning order. A a a a a much of that Story is symbolized in the foods served or placed on the table most of which appear on a special seder plate that serves As Centrepiece. ,. Made of porcelain or earthenware Silver or Glass the seder plate May be an object of rare antique Beauty or an inexpensive adaptation but the food on it follows strict requirements. A. A 1 the roasted Shank Bone of a Lamb symbolizes the a a sacrificial Paschal Lamb. A roasted hard boiled egg represents offerings brought to the ancient Temple in Jerusalem. Sharply Flavoured strips of horseradish Root Are reminders of the bitter lives jews led As slaves. Chopped apples nuts Ginger and wine a a fragrant Sweet paste known As Pha roses a signifies the mortar that jewish slaves worked with when building temples for the pharaohs and finally sprigs of Parsley or radishes with Green tops symbolize both the meager fare jews ate As Staves and the renewal of springtime. But by far the most important passover food is matzo the thin Crisp Cracker like squares symbolizing the unleavened bread jews eat for the entire week. Not Only is bread forbidden but All products based on Ordinary wheat flour and Leavening agents because of this matzo is ground a coarsely into meal More finely into what is called cake meal to be substituted for. Conventional flour in preparing Holiday dishes. The result is a whole series of dishes with a very special flavor and texture beloved from childhood on by a those who observe this Holiday most strictly. \ so specialized Are they in their Appeal most do not even taste tight when served at other times of the year. Here Are some traditional family recipes typical of the flavor of passover. You Don t have to be jewish to enjoy these tastes. Try them a chances Are you la be hooked. Larger military commissaries in  Stock. Passover food items. A y -. A readers action line clarifying red Cross messages matzo brie a favorite passover breakfast treat this is really a first Cousin to French Toast in some families it is served Sweet sprinkled with sugar or spread with marmalade or with ground Black Pepper possibly accompanied by cottage cheese. 8 matzo squares 3 to 4 cups boiling water 4 extra Large eggs lightly beaten 1 Teaspoon Salt or to taste veto i Teaspoon Black Pepper i Pound stick or 8 Tablespoons Sweet butter cottage cheese Lor Garnish. Break matzo into 1 vie to 2-Inch squares or approximate size pieces. Place in a Large bowl preferably with a handle or in a Large Saucepan so draining will be easy. Bring water to a boil and pour Over matzo. Drain immediately through a Sieve or colander. It is not necessary to stir matzo pieces through the water nor to let them stand. They should be Only very slightly moistened so they absorb egg but should not become soggy. Drain thoroughly and return to bowl or Saucepan. Add beaten eggs Salt and Pepper. Toss slightly with a Fork until matzo pieces Are Well coated with egg and seasonings Are distributed evenly. Do not mix or stir vigorously As matzo should not be broken up any More than necessary. Matzo is Bland so Salt and Pepper will be needed. A heat butter until hot and bubbling but not Brownin a 1 heavy 10 Tot 2-Inch Skillet. Turn matzo mixture into butter and. Fry Over moderate heat. When underside begins to Brown. Turn in sections with a Spatula. / a keep turning until All sides Are Light Golden Brown. Itis not necessary or even desirable to keep a Pancake shape. A. Use ,.some Golden Brown contrasted with others a a that Are slightly Golden and tender is the Ideal Check seasoning once during frying and adjust As. A. Needed. Total frying time will be about 0 minutes. Serve on a a heated Platter or on individual plates with cottage cheese on the Side optional ,. Yield 4servings.vav a 1 a y a y 12-egg passover sponge cake 12 eggs separated a a cups sugar y grated Rind of 1 Large Lemon grated Rind of 1 medium Orange a cup Orange juice Pinch of Salt 1 cup matzo cake meal a 2 cups potato starch i cup finely ground walnuts preheat oven to 325 f. A a using a Large clean piece of Brown wrapping paper gut a Circle to fit the Bottom of the Spring form. Then Cut a band to fit the inner sides. This can be about v2 Inch deeper than the. Pan. Run both pieces of Cut paper under cold water very quickly slightly dampening both sides of each place Circle on Bottom then fit band around the inner sides. Set aside. Beat Yolks with 1 cup of sugar until they Are thick almost White and ribbon when a Little of the Batter is allowed to drip Back from a spoon. Stir in grated rinds and fruit juice. Beat egg Whites with a Pinch of Salt and As they begin to thicken gradually beat in the remaining half cup of sugar. Whites should stand in stiff but Glossy peaks. They Are perfect a a when they slide easily  mass if the Bow is tipped. A Sprinkle cake meal potato starch and ground nuts Over egg Whites. Add Yolk mixture and fold All together gently but thoroughly with a rubber Spatula. No egg Whites should be showing. Turn mixture into prepared pan. Bake for about 1 to 1v hours or until a tester inserted in the Center of the cake comes out clean and the top of the cake when pressed with your fingertip Springs Back to. Shape. Quot a turn pah upside Down on a rack to Cool. After about 2 hours or just before serving remove sides of Spring form and Peel off paper. Y a. A a. If you Are using Only part of the cake remove paper Only from the Section to be Cut As the rest of the cake will keep Bette with paper on. Stored in the refrigerator leftover a sponge cake can be kept in Good condition for a week to 10 Days and can even be Frozen with excellent results. Yield one 12-Inch cake a. A a you had an article about the red Cross delivering messages from the Stork to the soldiers in the desert. Delivered my baby on Jan. 29.1 called red Cross on the 30th. They told me that my husband should have the message in about two to three Days. I was waiting in the Hospital and then at Home to hear from my husband. Finally on feb. 6, he called me at Home and asked what was wrong he did t know then that he had a healthy baby girl. He. Had thought that there was something wrong because my due Date was on Jan. 29 and he had t heard from me. A a. It was our first baby and he wanted to be Here with me. But he. Had to serve his country and i m proud of him for doing that. A a. A. All the dependents left behind were told that the red Cross would get the message to the soldiers in saudi Arabia my husband never got the message. And i know that it was important for him to hear his baby had been. Born. I Hope that he was the Only one to whom this happened because i know How i Felt waiting to hear from him and How. He Felt not knowing if everything was of with me and the baby. ,. A a a a. Barbara Southworth Vilseck Germany. A Joanne Jones Public relations director american red Cross european Headquarters replies a a by. A a. We appreciate the Opportunity to respond to this letter and to help you and others understand some of the difficulties that we face in getting messages to  saudi Arabia As fast As we want them to arrive. In checking out your Case we found that you called our station in Schweinfurt at 9 30 a m. On Jan. 31 and that the message went out at noon the same Day. We do consider these birth messages an important priority and we get them out within a few hours. When the message was received in saudi Arabia it. Was passed on to military authorities for delivery to the a Serviceman on Jan. 31 american red Cross later pursued confirmation of delivery of the message. First armed div confirmed delivery of birth message to Soldier. We. Regret that the delivery and confirmation of the. A message took longer than usual. We have 150 american red Cross workers serving the troops in the Gulf. These experienced Case workers often work seven Days a week 12 and 14 hours a Day. Some of. Them Are near the front line. We very much regret that we Are not always Able to personally deliver these a messages in that area because of the wide dispersal of a individual units. \ a when our workers cannot personally deliver a message it is passed on through the military command. We Are experiencing extreme delays in obtaining confirmation of the delivery of the messages. We have delivered More than 110,366 messages to saudi Arabia since the beginning of the Gulf crisis. While it is unfortunate  Are taking longer in the Gulf situation than the usual red Cross message we Are Happy to say that most of the messages reach the. Service member within two Days. To write us readers action line is the readers Quot court of last resort Quot striving to answer some of the questions about life overseas in a military environment or questions about policies and guidelines when other avenues for answers Are not readily available. If you have a question and Don t know where to turn for the answer write to readers action line co the stars and stripes Apo 09211-4211. All letters must be signed and preference will be Given to those seeking information of general interest to our readers. A. A a the stars and stripes Friday March 22, 1991