8. Question:What are the criteria for reciting mezonos on desserts during a bread meal? Background: Baked dough products are by default hamotzi unless they can be classified as pas habo’oh b’kisnin, in which case their brocho is mezonos (Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim Siman 168 Se’if 6). The definition of pas habo’oh b’kisnin is subject to major debate among the Rishonim (see Beis Yosef and Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim Siman 168 Se’if 7): • The Rashbo explains that pas habo’oh b’kisnin is dough that is filled with “pockets” of honey, sugar, or similar substances, for example a pie or tart that consists of a regular plain dough and is filled with a sweet filling. However, the filling must be present at the time of baking, not added after the dough is baked (see Graz Siman 168 Se’if 9). The Shulchan Aruch (Siman 168 Se’if 7) rules that all these three classifications are independently applicable l’halocho. I.e., if a bread-like product fits into any of these three classifications then the food item in question is mezonos and not hamotzi. It should be mentioned that there is a machlokes between the Shulchan Aruch and Remo regarding the application of the opinion of the Rambam – the Shulchan Aruch (ibid) learns that as long as the taste of the other substance is merely discernible in the bread it suffices to render the bread mezonos; whereas according to the Remo (ibid) there has to be present a large amount of the other substances “until the taste of the other components is more discernible than the taste of the flour (Mishna Berura s.k. 33)”. Discussion: Regarding making a brocho on a mezonos item eaten as dessert at the end of a bread meal: Even though the Shulchan Aruch (ibid) rules to say mezonos (and not hamotzi) on any item that is pas habo’oh b’kisnin according to any one of the three opinions, during a meal it is not possible to say mezonos until all the aforementioned opinions are satisfied that the item in question is not bread (Bi’ur Halocho Siman 168 Se’if 8 d.h. “te’unim”; Siman 176 d.h. “borech”). This is because the only reason to say mezonos during a meal is if the food item that one intends to eat has not been exempted with the hamotzi recited at the beginning of the meal. Since the definition of pas habo’oh b’kisnin is subject to major dispute among the Rishonim, effectively each pas habo’oh b’kisnin item is a sofek hamotzi and may therefore be exempted by the hamotzi recited at the beginning of the meal. Of course, we are only discussing mezonos eaten as dessert and not for satiation (see Shulchan Aruch Siman 168 Se’if 8 and Mishna Berura s.k. 40). Summary: The only scenario that validates saying mezonos on a pas habo’oh b’kisnin dessert eaten at the end of a bread meal is if the dessert item in question is pas habo’oh b’kisnin according to all opinions (see Shulchan Aruch ibid). I.e., the product contains a sweet filling, the dough itself contains sweet ingredients and is brittle. In such a case, all opinions will agree that the food item is mezonos and will therefore not be exempted with the hamotzi recited at the beginning of the meal and will require mezonos during a bread meal. |
Brochos
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