Challah

This month's theme for What's Baking is Baking Bread.  I was excited to cross something off my bucket list - challah.  I had always had in mind to make it but had never made the time to actually do it.  As it was, I didn't even find the time to make it for Shabbat, I ended up making it on a Wednesday!

I looked up recipes from a few sources and noticed that the techniques were different in each.  Some were instructions on how to knead the entire thing by hand, some (like the one I ended up using) use an electric mixer.  Some had several long rising periods, others had much less rising time.  Then they all ended with different ways to present it - a round loaf, a few small loaves, a simple braid or an intricate one.

I think that challah is going to be one of those things that take time to perfect your craft.  The end result of the recipe below came out a bit more dense than I usually like in my challahs.  And my braid was a bit uneven.  Don't get me wrong, it's still delicious, but I will definitely be futzing around with this one and trying alternate recipes to get the perfect airy challah.

Someone was too excited to eat the challah to wait for me to take the picture

This Shabbat is going to be a little extra special with homemade challah on the table.  And this weekend we will most definitely be enjoying some challah french toast for breakfast!

Challah (slightly adapted from Arthur Schwartz's Jewish Home Cooking)

Ingredients
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (no more than 110 degrees F)
1/3 cup sugar plus 1 tsp for the egg wash
4 1/2 cups bread flour plus more for flouring the board
3 eggs plus 1 more for the egg wash
1/4 cup peanut or canola oil
2 tsp salt

Directions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the yeast and the water on low speed.  Mix for a minute or so to dissolve the yeast.
- Add 1/3 cup sugar and mix again for a few seconds, then add 1/2 cup flour and mix again.
- Add 3 eggs.  Increase the speed slightly and mix again.  Once the eggs are well incorporated, add 1 more cup of flour.  On medium-low speed, work in the flour (scraping side of the bowl as needed), then add the oil and salt.
- Turn off the machine and add 3 cups of the remaining flour (a total of 4 1/2 cups).  Starting slow and working up to a medium speed, continue to work the flour into the dough, shutting the machine off once or twice to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Let the machine knead the dough for 10-15 minutes, making sure to turn off the machine every few minutes to scrape down the sides of the bowl and/or to give the motor a rest (it can overheat while working this dense a dough).  If it is still sticking to the sides of the bowl after a few minutes, add a little more flour (one tablespoon at a time).  In the end, the dough should be firm, smooth, elastic and only slightly sticky.
- Put the dough into a large, oiled bowl, turning to completely coat it with oil.  Cover with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and let rise until tripled in volume (1 1/2 to 2 hours).
 - Punch down the dough and prepare it for it's final shape:
***for a braided loaf: cut the dough into equal strands (as many as you want to work with).  Place the strands on a floured board, cover with a clean dish towel and let rise for 30 minutes.  Braid the dough (pinching the ends together) and place the loaf on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
***for a round loaf: form the dough into 1 long rope and coil the rope into a road loaf on a floured board.  Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise 30 minutes.  Place the loaf on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Position an oven rack in the center of the oven.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Make an egg wash by beating 1 egg and 1 tsp sugar in a small bowl.  Brush the surface of the loaf with the wash, making sure to glaze the crevices between strands.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes.  To test for doneness, tap the bottom of the loaf with your fingers.  It should sound hollow.  Transfer to a rack to cool thoroughly before slicing and serving.

Holiday Tarts

When my cousin got married back in the early 90s our aunt compiled a booklet of family recipes for her.  At my bridal shower I was handed the booklet which my cousin lovingly passed down to me.  Considering our aunt had since passed away, this was even more special as it made me feel that the gift was from our aunt as well.

As I was deciding what treats to make for my family this year, I flipped through this booklet and came across this recipe for holiday tarts from my grandmother.  Because my grandmother passed away a week after my 11th birthday I don't necessarily remember her making these, but as soon as my mom opened her package she exclaimed "you made my mother's holiday tarts?!" so I knew I made them well.  My grandmother would make them as free-form thumbprint cookies but I made use of my mini muffin tin to make mini tarts.  What I love about her recipe is the "old school"ness of it.  She suggests using a thimble to make the nest.

I love family traditions, especially around the holidays, so it made me very happy to incorporate my grandmother's recipe this year.

Holiday Tarts (slightly adapted from my grandmother's recipe)

Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup pastry flour
1 egg, separated
1/2 cup pecans
jelly (I used strawberry, but my grandmother used mint)

Directions
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar.  Add slightly beaten egg yolk.  Gradually add flour.
- Roll into small balls by hand then dip in lightly beaten egg white.  Roll balls in chopped nuts.
- Press ball into greased mini miffin tin, shaping so the sides are higher than the center, creating a "nest".
- Bake for 20 min at 300 degrees.
- Let cook for 5 min before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
- Allow to fully cool, then fill centers with jelly.

Passover Favorites

With Passover a week away I wanted to re-share some of my favorite dishes I have posted about in the past two years.  My eating habits on Passover have changed a lot since I was a child (I used to think that it had to come from the Passover aisle or from the catalog of candy I would sell for Hebrew school) and I now realize that most of what I make during the rest of the year can still be eaten during this time.  However, there are some things that I make specifically during Passover, usually using matzah meal or the Passover cake meal as a substitute for flour.  I can't wait to try new things this year!

Here are links to some of my favorite Passover dishes:

Veggie Kugel

Gefilte Fish

Fudge Brownies

Geshmearto Matzah

Matzah Meal Pancakes

Matzah Ball Soup



What are your favorite dishes to make?

Gingerbread Cookies

I love the holiday time and all the yummy treats that come with it.  I think no matter what religion you are, you can appreciate a good cookie.  When my running club announced the date for our annual holiday party and said that everyone could bring either an appetizer or a dessert, I knew I wanted to make something festive.  I had never made gingerbread men before, but I always enjoyed eating them, so I decided to whip up a batch for the party.  First stop was to NY Cake & Baking Supply, which is not too far from my office to pick up the proper cookie cutter.  I had to leave the store quickly or else I would have bought almost everything they sell!

I turned to my trusty How to Cook Everything where I found the recipe for "Aunt Big's Gingersnaps" which has an adaptation to make them into Gingerbread Men.  The recipe is very simple to follow.  As with most cookie recipes, you have to let the dough chill for a bit in the fridge, so I made the dough Friday night, then chilled it until Saturday morning.  That afternoon I decorated them and let them set before the party that night.  For the icing, I mixed 1 cup confectioner's sugar with 2 tbsp boiling water (if the icing is too thick, just add more water).  I put it into a sandwich bag, cut the tip of the corner off and piped the icing right onto the cookies.  For the most part, they came out looking well, though there were a few "special" ones.  A few I salvaged, turning a wonky face into something different - one ended up with eyebrows, and another became a vampire.

The cookies were a hit at the party, too!  It was crowded, so not a lot of people saw me bring them in.  The pile kept getting lower and lower, and when people found out I brought them, they told me that they'd already had a few of them.  If they were going back for seconds, then I don't doubt these were delicious cookies!

Gingerbread Men (as printed in How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman)

Ingredients
2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup molasses
1 heaping tsp baking soda
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 heaping tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
pinch salt

Directions
- Use an electric mixer to cream together the butter, sugar, and molasses until smooth.
- Mix the baking soda with 2 tbsp hot water and beat into the dough.
- Combine the flour, spices, and salt in abowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the dough and beat well.
- Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
- Remove from the refrigerator about 15 minutes before you are ready to roll it out.
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
- When the dough is sightly softened, roll it out as thinly as possible; use a gingerbread man cutter (or hand-cut if you're brave) to cut the cookies out.
- Bake on ungreased  baking sheet until golden around the edges (about 10 minutes), watching carefully to prevent burning.  ***For softer cookies, remove the dough from the oven when the center is still puffy and soft
- Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to a rach to cool.
- Decorate if you wish.
- Store in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to several days.