This Mandel Bread recipe (Mandelbrot) is essentially a twice-baked, traditional Jewish cookie that's similar to Italian biscotti. They're finished with a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar and made with Kosher for Passover ingredients. Enjoy this soft and crumbly delicious treat for breakfast or dessert with your favorite warm beverage!
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📋 About the Recipe
- Perfect for Passover (Pesach). This traditional Mandel bread recipe (Mandelbrot) is one of my family's favorite Passover recipes. Since it's made with cake meal and potato starch, instead of leavened grains, it is perfect for Passover. However, it can also be enjoyed for other Jewish holidays, such as Rosh Hashanah and Hanukkah too.
- Only 8 ingredients. Making your own bakery-worthy Mandel bread is easier than you think! All you need are a few baking staples and about 15 minutes to get it into the oven.
- Made without nuts. Most recipes are made with slivered almonds, almond extract, and almond flour. This version is completely nut free and safe for family's with tree nut allergies!
🛒 Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- Vegetable oil - It's important to make this cookie dough with a neutral tasting oil such as vegetable oil. Oils such as coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil will add a strong flavor to the dough that will overpower the flavor of these treats.
- Eggs - The eggs help bind the dough together and add moisture and richness.
- Cake meal - Also known as finely ground matzo meal. This ingredient is similar to all purpose wheat flour, but is unleavened and Kosher for Passover. Note that cake meal is much finer in consistency than matzo meal. Save course matzo meal for making Matzo Ball Soup instead.
- Potato starch - This common Passover ingredient combines with the cake meal to act as a flour substitute. You can often find potato starch in the Kosher foods aisle of your grocery store around March or April.
- Mini chocolate chips - I use semi-sweet (or you can use dairy free for pareve). I like to use the mini chocolate chips because the cookies are easier to cut with them. However, you can use the normal sized chocolate chips but the bread might crumble more when you cut into it.
⁉️ Substitutions and Alterations
- Oil substitutes: If you don't have vegetable oil, use another neutral oil such as canola oil, sunflower oil, or avocado oil.
- Potato starch substitute: If you are not making this chocolate chip mandel bread for Passover, you can substitute the potato starch with cornstarch, but note that cornstarch is considered "kitniyot" (or legumes) and many choose not to eat legumes on Passover.
📓 Instructions
- Preheat and prep. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, then line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a small mixing bowl, whisk the oil, vanilla extract, and eggs together.
- Mix the dry ingredients. In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl using an electric hand mixer, mix the cake meal, potato starch, sugar, and salt until combined.
- Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix using the paddle attachment or electric mixer on medium-low speed until just combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips. To prevent over-mixing the dough, do this with a rubber spatula.
- Form the dough into loaves and bake. Split the smooth dough into even halves, then form each halve into a long, flat loaf, about 10 ½ inches long and 4 inches wide. Bake for 35 minutes on the middle oven rack.
- Make the cinnamon sugar mixture. While the Mandel bread loaves bake, mix a half cup of sugar with 1 teaspoon of cinnamon until well combined.
- Cut the mandel bread. Cut each loaf into ½-inch to 1-inch thick slices. Turn the cookies on their cut side, then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
- Bake for 5 final minutes. Place the cookies back into the preheated oven for a second bake, about 5 minutes, or until a golden brown color.
❄️ How to Store
To store: These cookies can be stored in an airtight container in your pantry for up to 5 days. To store, allow the Mandel bread to cool completely to room temperature, then transfer the treats to a storage bag or covered container.
To freeze: To freeze, allow the cookies to cool, then place in a freezer bag or freezer safe container for up to 1 month. Defrost the Mandel bread at room temperature until soft again. Alternatively, each cookie can be individually wrapped in plastic wrap before freezing to help it last 2 to 3 months.
🔍 Recipe FAQs
Italian biscotti and Mandel bread are very similar cookies, but have a few differences that set them apart. Most notably, Mandel bread cookies are higher in fat, making them slightly softer and richer in flavor. Mandelbrot cookies are also often made with oil instead of butter, making them "pareve."
The name is derived from the Yiddish word Mandelbrot and translates to "almond bread." As mentioned this crunchy Jewish cookie is typically made with almonds as a main ingredient, but this nut free version is a modern take on the popular dessert.
These cookies can be enjoyed for either breakfast or dessert and are delicious served with a cup of coffee or tea. Try pairing these cookies with my Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam, Instant Pot Hot Chocolate, or however you desire.
💭 One More Tip
Cut the Mandel bread with a serrated knife. This helps cut the dough without any cracking or crumbling, very similar to cutting a loaf of bread. If you have a bread knife or a knife with a serrated edge, use it to perfectly cut these cookies.
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Share your cooking with me! If you make this recipe, I'd love to know! Tag @yourhomemadehealthy on Instagram or leave a comment with a rating and some feedback at the bottom of this page!
Mandel Bread (Kosher for Passover)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups cake meal kosher for passover
- 1 cup potato starch kosher for passover
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips (use dairy free to keep this recipe pareve) SEE NOTE
For Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.
- Whisk together oil, vanilla, and eggs in a mixing bowl.
- Add cake meal, potato starch, 1 cup sugar, and salt to the bowl of your stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment. Mix to combine.
- Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Beat on medium low until just combined.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in chocolate chips.
- Split the dough in half evenly. Form a long, flat loaf with each half of the dough. Place loaves side by side on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 35 minutes. (My loaves measured 10 ½-inches long, 4-inches wide, and ½-inch tall.)
- While loaves are baking, mix together ½ cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon for the cinnamon sugar topping in a small bowl.
- Remove loaves from the oven. Cut each loaf into ½-inch to 1-inch thick slices. I had 26 total.Turn the pieces of mandel bread on their side. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 5 more minutes.
- Remove from the oven, turn the pieces onto the other side. Sprinkle again with cinnamon sugar and bake for a final 5 minutes, or until golden brown.
Notes
- I highly recommend using mini chocolate chips. This mandel bread is pretty fragile when you initially cut it. The smaller chips help keep it together because they are easier to cut through. Regular sized chocolate chips will make the bread more crumbly.
- Cake meal is a common flour substitute used during Passover. It is made of ground matzo meal and can be found in the Kosher aisle of the grocery store. In some stores, it may only be sold right before or during Passover.
- Potato starch is also a common flour substitute. It is often used with cake meal to help provide a better texture in baked goods. Corn starch would work too. However, some do not consider corn to be kosher for passover.
Nutrition
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Nicole Marks says
Fabulous! This is the best Mandelbread recipe I've ever tried!
Alana Lieberman says
Aw that's so amazing to hear! It's been a family recipe for as long as I can remember.
Tzillah Schwartz says
Thank you. An easy recipe that works!! Love it
Alana Lieberman says
One of our favorites 🙂