Shana Tova from our Bayit to Yours | A New Round Challah Shape

Well hello there, little blog. Hellooooo out there in Feedly land. Anyone still following? I'm still baking, but my focus is elsewhere. Mainly it's on this little one.

...who's not really so little anymore. We've been cooking and baking up a storm. Earlier this week, I made a batch of challah using my trusty half-batch recipe and tried out a new round shape. This shape is from Maggie Glezer's A Blessing of Bread, one of my favorite challah cookbooks. Here's how it came together for me.

First, I rolled out my dough (about half of my batch), wide and round like a pizza. Once it was pretty round (not as round as the picture in the book, but oh well), I cut it using my pasta cuter.

Since I wanted to fill it, I melted a bit of margarine and brushed it over the top of each side. Then I added a 3-to-1 sugar-cinnamon/spice mixture. I ran out of cinnamon, so it was part pumpkin pie spice and part cinnamon. Sprinkle 1 gala apple, peeled and cut into small chunks, and roll up from the small side.

The next part was the fun part. Take those loooooong noodles and, one at a time, fold them up on themselves and twist them a la those old camp friendship bracelets. Magic, right?

Arrange them together circling each other, and ta-da! Another fun challah shape for a sweet new year (More shapes here, here, here, and here).

So, little blog, I miss you, and I'm glad you're still here, and I'm glad any of you readers are still out there. Wishing you all a happy, healthy, and peaceful new year, filled with lots of joy.

Rosh HaShanah 5774 | Favorite Recipes

This year, we'll be doing some of our favorite recipes for Rosh HaShanah!  How will YOU be celebrating with food?

iChallah (Apple Challah)

Stuffed Apple Challah

Pumpkin Challah

Pomegranate Challah

Whole Wheat and Oat Challah

I'm constantly searching for the perfect whole wheat challah.  I've tried upping the egg yolk quantity, mixing in warm milk, and tried and true recipes of the greats.  I've experimented with spelt, kamut, and adding in flax seeds and millet.  I keep trying, and I'm never full satisfied with the result.  Here's another experiment, and this one... we were REALLY happy with.

3/4 c water
2 1/4 tsp active dry or instant yeast (1 packet)
2 tbsp honey
2 eggs plus 1 more for egg wash
1/4 c neutral oil like vegetable or canola
1 1/2 c white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 c bread flour
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 c old fashioned oats

Approach this challah as you would normally bake an egg bread.  Proof the yeast in warm but not hot water with the honey.  After 10 minutes have passed (or the yeast is foamy and smells strongly), add 2 eggs and the oil.

Add the flours, cinnamon, salt, and oats.  Mix in a stand-mixer or by hand until a ball forms.

Let rest for about an hour and a half until dough has doubled in size.  Braid as normal.  Let rest an additional 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.  Use final egg to egg wash the challah and top with honey and a few oats.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, turning halfway until internal temperature reaches 180 degrees.

This challah has inspired me to try more oat recipes or perhaps even oat flour.  The result here is quite soft, aromatic, and hearty.  Have YOU worked with oats in bread before?

Shabbat Shalom from our bayit to yours!

Rosh Hashanah 5773 | Article Link: This New Year, give new life to your challah

I am thrilled and excited to have had the opportunity to share my challah journey with my local community in our city's Jewish newspaper, The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle.  Click here to read the article.

Please note: I did not receive anything for writing the article or for you making that click over.

Rosh Hashanah 5773 | Pomegranate Challah & A Giveaway!!! {closed}

As I wrote about in my post on pomegranate-shaped challah, it's no secret that I love pomegranates. I have a pomegranate-shaped necklace, and our ketubah has a pomegranate on the scroll. There is a powerful symbolism around pomegranates and fertility, abundance, and the new year. Many people eat them on the second night of the holiday as their traditional "new fruit." Additionally, pomegranates supposedly contain 613 seeds, the same number as the mitzvot in the Torah.

This challah turned out to be quite a challenge, but I learned a few things in the process of making it. Besides a recipe, I'm excited to share with you the amazing way of removing the seeds from a pomegranate without staining your fingers and your clothes (no kidding, I actually wore a white shirt while seeding my pomegranate... totally clean!). Pomegranate seeds--arils--are watery, sweet, and crunchy. For some reason, I sort of expected them to change consistency in baking... which they really didn't. I had an idea that they'd become like cranberry texture. They don't. But don't let that deter you. This bread is delicious and the additions of extra aromatic spices and pomegranate juice are a fun twist.

1/2 c water
2 1/4 tsp (1 packet) active dry or instant yeast
1 tbsp honey
3 tbsp sugar or more for a sweeter challah
2 egg plus 1 more for egg wash
1/4 c neutral oil such as canola or vegetable
3 1/2 c bread flour
1 tsp salt
scant 1 tsp cinnamon
pinch ground cloves (just a pinch)
3-5 tbsp pomegranate juice (I used Trader Joe's organic)
Arils (seeds) of 1 pomegranate

Yield: 2 nice-sized round challot. You can either coil or make a braided round.

Please note, adding juice to challah may change the brakha said of this bread depending on the customs of your community. Check with your rabbinic authority for clarification on the laws of challah.

Place very warm but not boiling water in mixing bowl. Add yeast and honey, mixing lightly. Allow to sit for about 10 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.  Add eggs and vegetable oil and mix with wood spoon.  Add the flour, salt, cinnamon, and pinch ground cloves.  At this point, your dough should be on the shaggy side because it's lacking in liquid.  Don't worry too much about this.

If you have a stand mixer, beat dough hook or knead by hand. Add the pomegranate juice slowly (I poured it into a glass) until a ball forms and holds together, cleaning the sides of the mixing bowl.  This dough has a lovely dark color due to the addition of the juice.  If the dough is very sticky, add more flour.

Turn the ball out onto a floured work surface and knead a few times until very smooth.  Place in oiled bowl and cover in plastic wrap or a towel.  Now you can prepare your pomegranate!  Place a piece of paper towel over your cutting board and cut open the pomegranate (the paper towel keeps those staining juices from trickling down onto you and your clothes).  Take half of the fruit and place it a bowl of water, using your hands to break out the seeds underwater.  The heavy seeds will sink to the bottom, while the membrane and skins will float.  Amazing right?  No mess!

When you're done, you can skim off the membrane and skin and then pour the contents of the bowl through a strainer.  Ta-da!

Allow to rise at least one hour, preferably more (usually about an hour and a half), until doubled in size.   With some extra flour ready, knead the pomegranate seeds into the dough by hand and shape as desired.  I ended up adding about 1/4 c of additional flour.

Allow to shaped loaves to rise an additional 20-30 minutes. Top with an egg wash and sprinkle with sugar if desired.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.  Since round challot tend to be doughy in the middle, check at 20 and 25 minutes, foiling the top as necessary to prevent over browning.  The challot are ready when internal temperature reaches 180 degrees.

As I said, these challot are different. The seeds are a little juicy and a little gummy. They pop in your mouth and have a lovely tang. The spices of the bread are aromatic which I think is one of my favorite parts along with the pomegranate juice. This particular pomegranate also didn't seem quite as ripe (the seeds weren't all bright red like you sometimes get). However, I'm calling this a success. The Hazz and I enjoyed one loaf, and we're freezing the other to serve in a few weeks. I can't believe it's already the middle of Elul!

This High Holiday season, Nirbeh zchuyoteinu k'rimon, may our merits increase like the seeds of a pomegranate.

Rosh Hashanah Blogger Party & Giveaway

This week, I am thrilled to be participating in the Rosh HaShanah Blogger Party where you'll find some AH-MAZING links to other great recipes this year for your High Holiday table.  I'm so happy to be included, and I can't wait to try some of these recipes out!

Welcome to the first ever Jewish Holiday Blog Party, hosted by Jessie of Taste and Miriam of Overtime Cook, and sponsored by Kitchen Aid! As you may know, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year is coming up, and Jewish bloggers from all over the world are celebrating with all kinds of twists on traditional Rosh Hashanah foods. 

To kick off the celebration, Levana Kirschenbaum is giving away a copy of her fabulous new book, The Whole Foods Kosher Kitchen to three lucky winners. To enter, leave a comment on this post sharing with me your favorite part about Rosh Hashanah (it can be food, services, family, whatever you like!). Limit one entry per reader per blog so click over to the other participating blogs below for your chance at additional entries! Giveaway ends 5 am eastern time on September 11th, 2012. 

Prize is sponsored by Levana and available to readers from all blogs participating in the Rosh Hashanah Blog Party. Prize can only be shipped within the US. 

This is the first of hopefully many exciting Holiday Blog Parties, so if you would like to join in the fun, please email holidayblogparties@gmail.com.

Stop by and check out some of these amazing Rosh Hashanah themed recipes on the following blogs: 

Challah and Bread:

Marlene of The Jewish Hostess made Apple Challah

Amanda of The Challah Blog made Pomegranate Challah

Shelly of The Kosher Home made Apple, Honey and Pomegranate Challah!

Sides, Salads and Starters: 

Sarah of Food, Words, Photos made Tzimmes (Rosh Hashanah Carrots)

Tali of More Quiche, Please made Roasted Beets and Butternut Squash

Roberta and Lois of Kosher Eye made Simanim Salad

Chanie of Busy In Brooklyn made Pomegranate Coleslaw

Rivki of Life in the Married Lane made Super Salad

Hannah of Cooking Manager made Beets Marinated with Ginger and Garlic

Sina of The Kosher Spoon made Pomegranate, Almond and Raisin Couscous 

Shulie of Food Wanderings made Rosh Hashanah Salad

Hindy of Confident Cook-Hesitant Baker made Warm Roasted Beets with Farro

Sarah of Kosher Street made Sweet Potato Apple Tzimmes

Main Dishes:

Jessie of Taste made Smoked Salmon

Samantha of The Little Ferraro Kitchen made Chicken with Dates

Michele of Kosher Treif Cooking made Coconut Chicken Strips with two dipping sauces

Melinda of Kitchen Tested made Key Lime Glazed Duck

Stephanie and Jessica of The Kosher Foodies made Chicken Braised in Pomegranate 

Liz of The Lemon Bowl made Beef Brisket

Estee of Anyone Interested? made Easy Breazy 5 Minute Brisket

Desserts and Drinks:

Miriam of Overtime Cook made Mini Apples and Honey Tarts

Laura of Pragmatic Attic made Fresh Ginger Honey Cake

Susan of The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen made Honey Caramel Apple Galette

Danielle of Hugs and Cookies xoxo made The World's Best Rugelach

Amy of What Jew Wanna Eat made an Apple and Honey Cocktail

Nick of The Baking Process made Apple and Date Honey Squares

Lisa of The Monday Morning Cooking Club made Honey Chiffon Cake and Traditional Honey Cake

Leah of Cook Kosher made Pomegranate Ice Cream

Nossi of The Kosher Gastronome made Non-dairy Key Lime Cheesecake Bar with Key Lime Caramel

Single-Stranded Braid Challah Shape

When making stuffed or coiled challah, one thing has always bothered me... the ends.  The ends of the bread never seem to have any of the goodies.  No Nutella, no cinnamon sugar... which is really why you spent all that time making the stuffed challah in the first place.

Enter The Single-Stranded Braid, which will fix all your problems with the ends of your challah lacking in the fillings.  Plus, this shape works awesome to achieve small-size rolls that mimic the overall braided look of a three-strand challah.  Cute, simple, and successful.

I started with a long, flat piece of dough that I rolled out and filled with a melted margarine base topped with cinnamon sugar. I then coiled the roll-up, length-wise, being careful to avoid too many air pockets.

As you can see in the following pictures, I didn't seal this challah as well as I could have. As a result, the filling did leak out. Ultimately, I don't mind too much because cinnamon sugar just crystallizes into deliciousness when it leaks out. You can always pinch the seam tighter if you like.

Start with the right end tucked under about the middle of the long strand.

Bring the long tail beneath and through the circle you've created.

Now grasp the circle and twist it once toward you.

Bring the long tail underneath and through.

It's that simple!  Bake as normal.  I can tell you this week how much we liked this cinnamon sugar challah, because between just The Hazz and me, this challah is GOOOOOONE.  Success!

Shavua tov from our bayit to yours!!!

PS: I'm thrilled to be participating in a Rosh Hashanah Blogger Party coming later this week! Stay tuned.

Maple Cinnamon Challah

I rarely make challah in loaf pans, but every so often, it seems like the right choice.  Since we're normally "tearers/rippers" in our family (as opposed to "slicers"), sliced challah only comes around when the loaf really necessitates a knife.  This challah is one of those.

For this challah, I used Trader Joe's Maple Sugar, which I have been wanting to try since I made Wisconsin Maple Syrup Challah back in March. Maple sugar is created when sap is boiled beyond the point of maple syrup and into a crystallized state. It's so sweet, and, when I opened the bag, I found out how wonderfully fragrant it is!

In this challah, I also introduced margarine into the baking process.  Margarine is not something I've ever used in bread before, and I think it does add something to the flakiness of the dough.  You could, of course, always use butter for a dairy challah.

3/4 c plus water
1/4 tsp plain white sugar
2 1/4 tsp (1 packet) active dry or instant yeast
2 eggs plus 1 more for egg wash (you can also reserve a little of the 1 egg in the dough)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) margarine or butter, at room temperature
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp maple sugar
3 - 3 1/2 c bread flour

For the cinnamon swirl filling, adapted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.

1 cup sugar
2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp water

You can make this challah with or without the cinnamon swirl. If making without, simply proceed as normal with braiding. Conversely, you can simply substitute maple sugar into your own basic challah. Because maple sugar is very strong and sweet, I recommend 2 tbsp of maple sugar to replace every 1/4 tbsp sugar (about half the original quantity of sugar).

Before you start, take out your margarine and allow it to reach room temperature. Proof yeast in very warm water with the 1/4 tsp white sugar. Allow to rest about 10 minutes, or until foamy. Add the room-temperature margarine in small pieces (kind of like you would for a pie) and add the eggs. Mix gently to break the yolks and add the maple sugar, flour, and salt. I usually mix briefly before going to the dough hook on my KitchenAid.

   

I'm not sure if it was the margarine or just the humidity of baking the summer, but for this challah, I probably ended up ultimately using closer to four cups of flour. Add more as needed if you dough is not holding together. Once a ball forms, punch by hand a few times and place in an oiled bowl. Let rest for about an hour and a half until doubled in bulk.

While the dough rises, you can make the filling if you are doing a cinnamon roll challah. I've done challah with cinnamon several times before; it's definitely one of our favorite flavors. My mom's technique for cinnamon rolls is to use melted margarine or butter as a base for the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Here, I followed a recommendation in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook, where Martha suggests you simply mix the cinnamon and sugar together with a little water to create a paste. It worked really well! I think you could also sub out some of the sugar for maple sugar if desired. Definitely trying that next time!

Punch down the dough. Divide with a bench scraper (FYI: Up until just before publishing this, the recipe said "Divide with a bench press!) or sharp knife into two large pieces. Either braid as normal here or you can make the filled challah. I flattened each piece with my hand and then gave a quick roll with a rolling pin.

Add the cinnamon-sugar mixture and then fold over the two long sides. Remember, the longer your roll, the more coils of cinnamon you'll have but less soft dough. It's your preference.

Start at the top. Roll down toward you and place in an oiled loaf pan. I didn't seal my seams as good as I could have, so my cinnamon edges kind of leaked out. It made the whole loaf very sticky, but oh so crystallized and delicious!

Let rest an additional 20 minutes. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes, rotating halfway!

Slice and enjoy! (In the interest of journalistic integrity, I made these on Thursday night at around 10pm. The Hazz had already gone to bed, and I managed to eat about half of one of the loaves by myself. Then when I got home from work this afternoon, he had polished off the good portion of the rest. Yum! We're saving the other for Shabbat along with a Basic Challah.

Shabbat Shalom from our bayit to yours!

PS: Are you thinking about the High Holidays yet? I'm married to a Hazzan, so I'm already HEARING about them ;) But, I've got a few fun things in the works for Rosh Hashanah this year that I'm really excited about. Stay tuned and Happy Baking!