We only ever ate sweet matzo brei in my family, cooked and served as a pancake rather than scrambled into bits. In fact I’d never even heard of or considered savory matzo brei (with onions and salt) until I moved to New York City after college. I don’t know if there is some cultural propensity for one or the other, the way it is said that Polish Jews like sweet gefilte while others prefer savory, but who knows. I find both delicious but this is my Passover comfort food.
2 ½ square matzos, broken into 1-inch or smaller pieces
1 small apple or pear, peeled, cored and cut into small dice, or ½ cup canned pineapple chunks, cut small
2 large eggs, beaten
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Directions
In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon and mix well. Place the broken matzos in a medium mixing bowl and pour over ¾ cup cold water. Let soak for a minute or two until the matzo softens. Drain off any excess water. Add the fruit, eggs, and salt, and stir to combine.
Heat the butter in a 10-inch nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, dump in the matzo mixture. Use the back of a spoon to smooth it out in an even, flat pancake, to fill the pan. Let the matzo brei cook for about 5 minutes on the first site, until has turned an even, dark brown.
With a spatula, check to make sure the matzo brei is loose from the bottom of the pan. Invert a large, clean rimless dinner plate (or a flat pot lid, or the underside of a baking sheet) over the top of the pan and flip the whole thing over so that the matzo brei has transferred, cooked side up, onto the plate. (Quoting Julia Child, have the courage of your convictions.) Slide the matzo brei off the plate back into the pan and finish cooking the second side for about 3 or 4 minutes, or until set and browned. (Alternately, you can use a spatula to divide the giant pancake into quarters and flip each quarter individually.)
While the second side is cooking, sprinkle the entire surface of the matzo brei with the cinnamon sugar. When done, slide out onto a clean plate and serve hot.
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