Passover is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the liberation of Jews from slavery in Egypt over 3,000 years ago. By celebrating a vegan Passover, Jews can continue the battle for freedom—not just for humans, but for all creatures.
Now admittedly, a traditional Passover seder plate will make a vegan recoil, since it includes an egg and a lamb shank. One way to honor the symbolism is to simply cut out an egg shape and a bone shape and put in on the plate, or to use a roasted beet in place of the lamb and a potato or ripe avocado instead of the egg. You’re sure to get creativity points with the family! The rest of the seder plate is vegan-friendly: herbs, horseradish, bitter herbs, charoest (apple mixed with chopped nuts and wine), and salt water.
Throughout the course of the meal, it is customary to drink four glasses of wine (or grape juice for kids). It’s easy to find vegan wine to uphold this tradition. Other traditional Passover foods include matzah ball soup and matzah brie, and recipes for vegan versions of these dishes can easily be found online.
Vegan Holiday Kitchen is a highly rated cookbook that includes recipes especially for passover, with both Ashkenazi and Sephardic versions.
Carol Leifer, the comedian who inspired the creation of Elaine Benes on Seinfeld, made created an informative and funny three minute video on how to have a vegan Seder.
