Tova and the Lost Cookies
An original Passover story for children 4-8, with background information and recipe
"Well, Tova," said Mom, "We are almost finished with cleaning for Passover! This is the last room. You are a big help to me."
Tova sat on the floor. "I have cleaned Sammy's and my toy crates They were lots of crumbs," she said. She stood up and brushed off her skirt.
Mom swept the floor. She dumped crumbs, dirt and junk into a big, black plastic bag.
"I can clean Mazal's crate quickly," Tova said. She dumped out all the toys and shook out the crumbs and bits of junk. Then she took her damp cloth. She wiped each toy with the cloth and put it back in the crate.
Mom swept the floor one last time. "I hope you don't find more chometz!"
Tova finished putting Mazal's toys back in its crate. She took the first crate and put it on the shelf. Then she took the second crate and put it on the shelf, too.
She picked up the third crate. "Oh no!" she cried.
"What happened?" Mom rushed in.
"We didn't pull the bookcase out," Tova said.
"No," said Mom. "But I swept underneath it. We're okay." She went back to the kitchen.
Tova slowly put the third crate on the shelf. Something bothered her. What was it? She sat back down on the rug and stared at the shelf. She crawled in front to see underneath. There wasn't anything there, not even dust. She returned to the rug and stared some more.
Something was wrong. She just knew it! She took each crate off the shelf and then put it back. Something bothered her, something about chametz. But she didn't know what.
She went into the kitchen, dragging her feet.
"Here," said Mom, handing her a plastic bag with some carrot sticks. "Don't worry."
Tova took the bag and went back into the playroom. She took out three carrot sticks. She put the bag on top of the shelf. Then she took a book and sat down. She chewed the carrots and opened her book. But she didn’t start to read.
Suddenly she jumped up. "I know what it is!" she said. "We cleaned everything on the shelves and we cleaned under the bookcase. But we didn't clean behind it!"
She ran to the kitchen. "Mom, I think there's a bag of cookies behind the bookshelf! I remember putting them there. Then I forgot them. I think the bag fell behind the shelf!"
Mom took the broom, dustpan and brush and went back to the playroom. She pulled the bookcase away from the wall.
"Look!" she said. She bent over and picked up a book. "It's the library book that was lost. The library said we had to pay for it by the end of this month. Now we can return it!" She handed the book to Tova. Then she picked up a pink sock with lace trim. "And here's Mazal's lost sock! She will be so happy to have these socks for Seder night. They will look perfect with her new dress." Mom handed the sock to Tova.
"And yes! Here are your cookies!" Mom handed them to Tova. Then she swept behind the bookcase. They pushed the bookcase back.
Tova looked at the old cookies. She wrinkled her nose and tossed the cookies into the black trash bag. Then she put the books and the three crates of toys back on the shelves.
"What if we had not found the cookies?" she asked.
Mom said, "Good question! The morning before Passover begins we make a special bracha. We ask God to forgive us if we didn't find all the chametz and to consider any chametz left as though we had gotten rid of it. He knows we are not perfect. He does not expect us to be perfect. He just expects us to try. In fact, in Pirke Avot1 Rabbi Tarfon says, "It is not your responsibility to complete the task, but you have to work on it."
Tova smiled. "I like that. I like that God doesn't expect us to be perfect."
"Yes," said Mom. "He just expects us not to be lazy. And you are not lazy. Look at you, you thought and thought about the problem until you remembered. We got an extra reward because you weren't lazy: we found the library book and Mazal will have her pretty pink socks for the seder. I think this deserves a little ice cream, don't you? We have just a little bit of cookie crumb ice cream left. It's chametz, too, so now is a great time to finish it."
Leaving the perfectly imperfect room, the two of them went to the kitchen for their treat.
For Parents, Teachers and Others
Cleaning for Passover
We are forbidden to own chametz (pronounced ha'-metz) over Passover. Chametz is "any food product made from wheat, barley, rye, oats or spelt that has come into contact with water and been allowed to ferment and "rise."2 In order to ensure that we rid ourselves of chametz, we give our homes a thorough cleaning. This is especially onerous if we have small children, who carry food wherever they go. In many homes, an incredibly thorough cleaning is done, from washing windows and drapes to opening each book and shaking it out for crumbs. The critical part of the cleaning is places where food and ingredients are likely to have been.
What about me? I am very sensitive to gluten. The only chametz I have are gluten-free oats and anything related to them. I also live alone and eat only in the open kitchen-living room area. My Passover cleaning, then, is much simpler. My two cats are on special grain-free food all year round because one has health issues. When my dog was alive, I had to be careful about his food and treats.
When there was a serious economic downturn in the Massachusetts economy many years ago, I spent a year cleaning houses. I remember one home that had a marble pedestal dining table. When I was cleaning for Passover, I pushed the table aside. Underneath was a saltine, which of course I threw out. When the homeowner came home she asked if I had found any chometz. I said, "Just a saltine." She turned pale and said, "I have not had saltines in this house in at least three years. Where was the cracker?"
"Under the table." Turned out she had never moved the table because it was heavy. "Thank God for the blessing cancelling all our chametz," she said to me as her color slowly returned. "I never really understood why that prayer was necessary if we did a complete Passover cleaning. I guess we just can't be sure we are cleaning as thoroughly as we would like to think."
What is Pirke Avot?
Pirke Avot, or Ethics of the Fathers, is an ancient but still important book of Torah wisdom and ethical teachings. It is common for people to read a chapter of the book each Sabbath between Passover in the spring and Rosh Hashana in the fall. The teachings stand alone, but there are many commentaries that give deeper insights into these important lessons. Some sources for more information are:
Recipe
Best Passover Brownies (Excellent year-round for gluten-free families)
Based on a recipe from New Kosher for Passover Cookbook, Revised & Expanded, Feldheim Co.
2 Tbs. potato starch to "flour" the pan
2 large or 3 medium eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa or kosher-for-Passover carob powder
1/4 cup potato starch
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1. Lightly oil an 8x7 or 8x8 baking dish. Put a thin layer of starch all over the oil to prevent sticking.
2. Beat the eggs and sugar very well. The longer you beat them, the lighter the brownies will be.
3. Sift the starch and cocoa or carob powder over the sugar-egg mixture.
4. Add everything else.
5. Mix well. Pour into a prepared baking dish. Bake at 350 deg. F (175 deg. C) for 35-40 minutes.
I found that these were less successful if I lined the baking pan with parchment (baking) paper.
Pirke Avot: Ethics of the Fathers, 2:16. For more information see https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/516680/jewish/Chapter-2-Pirkei-Avot.htm,
Shurpin, Y., What is Chametz (Chometz)? Chabad.org, https://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/pesach_cdo/aid/1742/jewish/What-Is-Chametz.htm, accessed Apr. 2, 2025.
What a wonderful, heartwarming and feel good story with a meaningful lesson. I think I'll read it again!