Around the Jewish Year

How is it possible to obtain amaranth and quinoa for Pesach, since they don't have kosher-for-Pesach certification? It is possible to buy them without a special Pesach certification, check them carefully, and eat them on Pesach?

After baking matzot mitzvah, we put all the matzot together and we took challah with a blessing. Just then, accidentally, the challah got mixed up with all of the questionable matzot given to the children following the matzah baking. When I noticed what had happened, I took the matzot from the children. Most probably the challah was not eaten, but my heart is very heavy about the whole thing. How do I go about rectifying the matter?

I wanted to know—can garden cress (rashad) be used as maror? Garden cress is an herb, very similar to mustard, and its stems are very sharp-tasting. It is, of course, edible. It is also easier to digest despite its spiciness, as opposed to sharpness like that of sechug, since it passes more quickly (similar to wasabi, Japanese horseradish, for those who are familiar).

Is it possible to fulfill the mitzva of eating maror on lettuce grown hydroponically?

Is wheat conditioned (where the kernels are exposed to moisture before being milled) in modern milling? There is a responsum by Rabbi Epstien in Chevel Nachalato about wheat conditioning (letita). I recently heard that this is not done today (including to a taped conversation with a professional on the matter; yet I don't know who the speaker is and what the context of the discussion). My question is if conditioning is still performed in the wheat milling process, or has technology changed and with it the halacha with regarding to chametz. Have the rabbis recently reinvestigated the matter? Thank you!

I have celiac. In recent years, gluten-free matzah has now been made available. I'm somewhat confused: leavening is caused by the gluten, so how can I observe the mitzvah of eating matzah on Seder night by eating matzah that can't become leavened?

Do I need to separate terumot and ma'aserot from horseradish (chrain) with a blessing?

My workplace is not particularly observant, so the religious employees take off on Pesach. The reason is primarily because our work, which involves raising insects (for agricultural research), requires handling a substrate that is possibly chametz. The mixture consists of sugar, yeast, water, a little bit of acid, and bran. Is this actually chametz? What should we do? Some of the employees are resentful that their religious coworkers "can't work" on chol hamo'ed, since this prevents everyone else from taking off during that time. In short: is it permissible to work on chol hamoed Pesach at this place?

Here are answers to clarifying questions:

• Was the substrate prepared before or on Pesach?  Before Pesach.
• Is it wet or dry?  Wet
• Is it edible?  Not in the least. Not even fit for a dog. The larvae (of the flies we cultivate in the lab) feed off of it.
• What is done with the substrate?  We place the fly eggs in it, and the larvae that develop from them feed off of it.
• Is the yeast synthetic or from barley?  They are beer preserves.
• Is the bran free of wheat kernels?  Yes, it consists of parts of the shell of the wheat kernels, but it does not include the kernels at all.

I'm performing my national service at the Science Garden, and we are planning an activity for Pesach about trees, burning, and renewal. We would also like to hold a workshop on sprouting seeds. Is it possible to sprout legumes (beans, hummus, lentils, peas, etc.)? Are legumes forbidden only to eat, or are all the prohibitions that pertain to chametz apply also to legumes?

Is it permitted to those who avoid legumes (kitniyut) to eat watermelon and pumpkin seeds on Pesach?