One seder plate — and table — mainstay is charoset. That sweet mix of fruit, wine and nuts is something many look forward to all year.

“Growing up, we always had my mother’s shepherd-style charoset, which was my favorite at the Passover seder table,” Alon Shaya, co-founder of Pomegranate Hospitality and author of the cookbook “Shaya: An Odyssey of Food, My Journey Back to Israel,” told The Journal. “After moving back from Italy, I adjusted it to include hazelnuts, pistachios and vin santo, which, I think, is a beautiful complement to all the dried fruits.”

He added, “Today, I love it with roast duck for dinner or toast and labneh for breakfast.”

Alon Shaya’s Charoset

Yield: About 4 cups

10 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped

7 or 8 dried figs (6 ounces), chopped

6 ounces (about 1 cup) dried apricots, pitted and chopped

½ cup hazelnuts, toasted

½ cup pistachios, toasted

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and chopped

1 small yellow onion, chopped

1/3 cup rice wine vinegar, preferably seasoned

1/3 cup sweet sparkling white wine, preferably Moscato d’Asti

1/3 cup sugar

3 Tbsp honey

3 Tbsp apricot preserves

¼ tsp Morton kosher salt

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cardamom pods

¼ tsp ground allspice 

Grated zest from ½ orange

Grated zest from ½ lemon

1 ½ Tbsp lemon juice

1 ½ Tbsp orange juice

Roughly chop the dates, figs and apricots, removing any woody stems or ends. Add them to a food processor along with the hazelnuts and pistachios, and pulse to chop coarsely, taking care not to pulverize the mixture into a paste. It’s okay if some of the nuts remain whole. Set aside. 

Add the apples and onion to a large saucepan with the vinegar, wine, and sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then turn the heat down to low and cover the pot. Cook until the onions are translucent but the apples still hold their shape, 6 to 8 minutes.

Scoop everything from the food processor into the saucepan with the onions and apples; add the honey, apricot preserves salt, spices, and zests. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until all the dried fruit has softened and absorbed the juices from the pan and the liquid has reduced to a point where it’s no longer bubbling. When you give it a taste, the flavor should be warm with fruit, alive with spice, with just a savory note in the background. The apples should still have some body to them.

Remove from the heat, and cool to room temperature before stirring in the orange and lemon juice. Leftovers keep well in the fridge for several days.

Beth Lee grew up eating Ashkenazi-style charoset with apples, walnuts, cinnamon and sweet kosher wine. 

“[It was] chunky so it never stayed on the matzah but oh does it taste like comfort and Passover to me to this day,”  Lee, author of “The Essential Jewish Baking Cookbook” and blogger at OMGYummy.com, told The Journal.

“I’ve modernized my version a bit with a suggestion of smaller pieces of nuts and apples — maybe even a food processor — [and] the option to use regular, not sweet, red wine and some currants and orange zest,” she said. “But it still rings true to my childhood flavor memories every time!”

Ashkenazi-style Charoset from Beth Lee

1 medium sized apple, peeled, cored and chopped (will be about 1.5 cups)

Juice of ¼ of a lemon

½-1 cup walnuts toasted and chopped

¼ cup currants optional but recommended

½ tsp cinnamon or to taste

2-3 Tbsp of kosher wine or red wine (adjust to your taste)

¼ tsp orange zest optional but recommended

Toast and chop the walnuts.

Peel, core and chop your apple and then sprinkle with a bit of lemon juice to retard any browning. 

Remember, the smaller you chop the nuts and apples, the better the charoset will stay on your matzah when you eat it.

Once the walnuts have cooled a bit, mix with the apples and if using, add the currants.

Add cinnamon and wine and if using, the orange zest,  if using and mix well.

Taste for flavor, adjust if needed. Charoset is all about your own preferences so adjust as you like it. Also, let it sit for a little while to let all the flavors come together and then taste it again.

Notes: 

Ashkenazi charoset gets better tasting with time so feel free to make this hours or even a day in advance. Leftover charoset also keeps well for several days in the refrigerator.

I put a variation of ½-1 cup of nuts in the recipe because it’s really up to you what balance you want between apples and nuts. If you’re not sure, start with a half cup, taste the mixture and then add more nuts if you want a nuttier feel and taste. Also, apples vary in size so sometimes you’ll have more or less apple. Let your taste buds be your guide!