Zomick’s Challah
Zomick’s Challah bread is traditional Jewish bread with braid shape. Is eaten for the Sabbath and for other festivities. For the Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, the Challah is rolled in a circular way. It symbolizes the desire for long life. It is braided because the Talmud says that when a knot is made with three fibers, it is impossible to be destroyed.
The word Challah also refers to the practice of Hafrashat Challah by which a portion of the mass is separated symbolically, as an offering to the priests of the Temple of Jerusalem.
Zomick’s Challah Bread is different from European brioches. The main difference is that it does not contain any dairy products, such as milk or butter. The reason for that is because according to the Jewish law, kashrut, dairy products, and meat cannot be mixed in the same food.
Challah bread from Zomick’s kosher bakery is one of the best in New York. It is prepared by experienced bakers following the traditional Challah recipe. It is a bread made with eggs, with a light texture which is served during the celebrations of the Jews. It is prepared using three or four dough strips which are braided. However, for very special occasions, up to 8 strips are added in order to give the bread a more festive look.
Zomick’s Challah Recipe is used at Zomick’s bakery for the production of their famous Challah Bread. This recipe dates from the Middle Ages, while its certain origin region is quite unknown. There are many theories and some historians suggest that it comes from Europe. This belief is contrary to the popular belief that this bread is solely Jewish.
There are more accepted challah recipes in the world, but most of them use various eggs, fine white flour, water, sugar, yeast, and salt. Zomick’s challah may utilize fewer eggs and may replace white flour with whole wheat, oat, or spelt flour. In some cases, they also include raisins. At Zomick’s, bakers prefer to sprinkle sesame or poppy seeds on top for flavor. There is one more special thing about this challah, and it is the fact that Zomick’s kosher bakery uses special kosher salt for their baking goods.
Preparation time: 3½ hours
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
5 cups of flour for bread
2 tbsps. of salt
¾ oz. of fresh yeast
1 cup of warm water
2 tbsps. of sugar
2 whole eggs
6 tbsps. of butter
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp. of water
2 tbsps. of poppy seeds
Just like any other Zomick’s bread, and Challah is typically ‘parve’. This means that it does not contain dairy or meat, obeying the laws of Kashrut. This is the difference between Zomisk’s Challah bread and the brioche and other enhanced European bread, which contain butter and/or milk. And that is what makes the Zomick’s Challah recipe a special one.
