It was all meringue, all the time at my house this weekend. Late last week, I called my friend Kathy Gunst to see if she could share a Passover recipe with us. Kathy is the author of 16 cookbooks, the resident chef of NPR’s Here and Now, and has been coming to the Vineyard for 47 years, so I knew she could set us up with something delicious. Since flour and leaveners are off-limits during Passover, Kathy suggested a meringue cake (sometimes called a Pavlova) filled with whipped cream and berries. Well, yes! Thank you, Kathy.

I wound up making two big batches in the pursuit of a perfect and photographable meringue shell. (And with each I dolloped a little extra into a mini, too — see below.) I wasn’t happy with my first go, but I slowed down and turned out a beautiful one the second time. My satisfaction reminded me of how much I enjoyed cooking school, when mastering something simple and beautiful made me feel great.

I hope, Passover or not, you’ll make a meringue cake and fill it with whipped cream and fruit. (Yes, I realize we’ve got to use berries or fruit from afar this time of year, but hold on to the recipe and you can make it again in summer with local fruit.) If you are keeping Kosher for Passover, or want to make a vegan version of this dessert, consider substituting whipped coconut cream for the whipped cream.

But if meringue is not your thing, remember we’ve got that incredible Ultimate Flourless Chocolate Cake from Abby Dodge that also works for Passover.

Actually, once I started poking around our dessert files on Cook the Vineyard, I realized we have a coconut macaroon recipe from the old Rickard’s Bakery and Gluten-Free Spiced Brownies from Jan Buhrman, too. (If you wanted to drop the baking soda in the brownies, you could fold a whipped egg white into the batter.)

Well, I suppose you have to eat something before dessert during Passover, and while I don’t have a Seder menu for you, I can suggest some main dishes to enjoy.

There’s Arnie Reisman’s Casablanca Chicken, of course. Roast Fish Peperonata closely resembles a Sephardic dish of fish with peppers. I think Spanish Pot Roast with Roasted Roots or Braised Short Ribs with Ginger, Coriander and Apricots would be nice, too.

Serve those with a slice of Gruyere Potato Galette or Whipped Yukon Gold Potatoes with Horseradish.

I don’t have any new vegetable recipes for you this week, but as we ease out of winter cooking, it’s worth remembering some of the really yummy dishes we did this winter. Four of my favorites were:

• Stir-Fried Broccoli and Peppers with Crispy Orange Peel, Ginger, and Shallots
• Butternut Squash, Kale & Parmigiano Gratin
• Roasted Root Vegetables with Ginger Batons
• Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with Smoky Tomato Rub

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And speaking of easing out of winter, Beach Road restaurant has opened for takeout – hurrah! That mean’s baker Leslie Hewson’s amazing bread is available to go, too. State Road opens April 1. Can you say Limpopo?

Happy desserts and pastries to you! We’ll see you on Instagram @cookthevineyard.