Passover gift for neighbours? Advice.

[ScarlettOYara]

I'm not Jewish, looking for advice.
I have lovely Jewish neighbours, an elderly couple in their 80s. They were telling me it's Passover.
Would it be appropriate to give them a gift?
If so, what do you give?
Many thanks.

It’s a nice thought but not really necessary unless they have invited you round for a meal. It’s not a gift giving festival. If you are going to give something, don’t give food or drink as it has to be specially supervised as kosher for Passover. Flowers would be ok.

That’s such a kind idea, although as above, it’s not a gift giving festival, but given the state of the world right now (antisemitism) I think you’re neighbours would love to be though of. Just a card and you can write “chag peseach samech” which means happy Passover, and a small bunch of flowers would be lovely. ☺️

Thank you both so much, I just wanted to do something nice. For context we live in a small cul de sac in a quiet suburb. One or two of the neighbours have now put Palestinian flags in their windows, and in the street WhatsApp have got very vocal about protests. (They are white middle class English).
In our town centre we had some antisemitic graffiti, I've never seen that before. I called round to Jack and Estelle and said you can always call on us, or we'll take you to the supermarket or anything if you ever feel anxious.
They put a card through the door with thanks and said that had reassured them and that had made them feel better.
I just found out it's Passover, so I just wanted to do something nice. I'll get some flowers and a card. Thanks 👍

This is so lovely and thoughtful of you. Thank you.

Not at all, just trying to be a decent person. Thank you so much 🌻

But in a world where so many stand by and watching their Jewish friends, neighbours, colleagues, associates, etc. feel vulnerable and afraid by the rise of antisemitism, your concrete actions will help them feel supported.

You know, @BeretInParis , I have been very alarmed by events recently. I never thought I would see and hear antisemitism like I've witnessed recently.
What's that phrase? The only way evil can succeed is if good people do nothing.

@ScarlettOYara you sound lovely what a beautiful thing to do.

Gosh what a lovely post this is.
agree a card is lovely, flowers are above and beyond but perfect.

Quick update, I bought some tulips and a card, I wrote that phrase in it which you told me about, @BakedAlaska12 . They seemed very pleased, and gave me some matzah crackers.
So thanks everyone and have a peaceful Passover. 🌻

Oh dear. Matza crackers.
Eat the with LOADS of butter and jam and they may be ok!
Or break them up soak in milk for 10mins, tip out the milk and add a whisked egg salt and pepper to taste (1 egg to one cracker) and fry in hot oil like a frittata. Nice with a salad!

Oh, thanks, @AniBocha I did maybe think with cream cheese, but that sounds like good advice. They do look a bit hard and dry 😄!
There's an interesting explanation of Pesach on the back of the box, though.

I'm still thinking about how lovely this is. My daughter's friend texted her to wish her a Happy Passover and I thought that was so kind but this is next level!

My kids are a fan of matzah brei - millions of recipes but my family one is to break up the matzah and soak in eggs, then mix with a splash of milk and a bit of sugar. Fry in a pan and top with cinnamon and sugar - my kids like it with tinned peaches on top as well but I have no idea when or why we started doing that! That will be breakfast this weekend :-)

That sounds delicious! Here's me thinking they were just crackers - they're obviously the basis for some tasty recipes 😋!

Well they're a replacement for things - so my mom would make matzah lazagna, we'd have matzah sandwiches for school lunch, etc. They are 'not' delicious on their own (although I quite like egg matzah and my kids like chocolate covered matzah) so you kind of want something to soak into them.

Oh, I see - they're a replacement. All the recipes sound great.

If you grind them the powder is called Matzo meal and you use that in place of breadcrumbs for frying.
You can buy the matzo meal in packs in the supermarket (I don't grind my own!)
Some chip shops offer it as a lighter alternative to battered fish.

Yes! Religious Jews don't eat leavened bread etc on Passover so the matza replaces bread / pasta etc.

Thanks, that makes sense. 👍