Amateur epicurean: Matzo Man.

• Author: Foscolo, Ted
• Position: Recipe

Secret ingredients make matzo ball soup a hero

For most recipes, you make changes over the years to get the taste, ease of preparation and such down to a science, so that one of your favorite dishes will deliver what is promised. The evolution of this recipe has such a story, just as most things I make in the kitchen.

My first attempt at making the matzo balls was so dismal, I was ridiculed by my son Theo the next morning. With the help of my wife, he formed a doll--complete with a little cape--out of the hard inedible balls. He was called Matzo Man. You can imagine the humiliation for a dad when he has failed his son in the kitchen. I was determined to make this right in Theo's eyes, so I went on a "Mission from God" to come up with...