Welcome to Passover, a seven-day matzah festival in which Jews everywhere remember their history of slavery and celebrate their freedom by concocting appetizing ways to eat the plain crackers for an entire week. And like every other symbolic Jewish food, matzah has a dramatic story behind it.

Matzah, which is referred to as lechem oni, or the “bread of affliction,” represents the hardships that our ancestors faced in fighting Egyptian slavery. In the story of Exodus, the Israelites escaped their bondage in Egypt and hurriedly fled in the middle of the night before the dough had a chance to rise and become leavened.

On their way to the promised land of Israel, the Jews took the dough with them and baked the flat, hard cakes, called matzot, in the hot desert sun.

This unleavened bread, made of only flour and water, has pretty much remained the same over the centuries. Aside from a satisfying crunch, matzah is basically flavorless unless spread with butter, jelly, cheese, or your favorite “kosher for Passover” topping. Actually, my favorite way to eat matzah is like a crispy pancake. First, I wet a sheet of matzah with water.

Second, I beat an egg in a bowl and break the matzah into the bowl and coat it with egg. Third, I shape the crumbled matzah into a patty. Then, I fry the matzah in oil until golden brown.

Now for the good part — I dip the pancake in honey and pop it in my mouth like I did when I was a kid.

With a little imagination, matzah can be a tasty treat. Most importantly, this simple unleavened bread has a message: we must hurry today to help all those who are not free. And in the meantime, a laxative wouldn’t hurt either.

With these recipes, matzah never tasted so sweet.

“The Mishegas of Motherhood” is the creation of Ellie S. Grossman, a St. Louis freelance writer and stay-at-home-mom who never stays home. Her stories are inspired by the real life of her family, including her two children, toy poodle named Luci, and her husband, but not necessarily in that order. Feel free to send any comments, prayers or recipes to her new email: [email protected].