Sep 12, 20206 min read

The History of Challah and Adeena Sussman's Challah Recipe.

Updated: Sep 19, 2020

Where Did Challah Come From?

The Torah states that on Shabbat a person is obligated to have a meal with “two loaves of bread.” It is said that on the Jewish people's journey out of Egypt, the work God asked of them was to get “manna” and God took care of everything else. When God saw that his people were struggling, he sent a double portion of “manna” on Fridays. The Torah also states that when God says,” it shall be that when you will eat of the bread of the Land, you shall set aside a challah (portion) for God” (Numbers 15: 18-19)

The ancient Temple in Jerusalem had twelve unleavened wheat loaves placed next to a golden menorah, each representing a tribe of Israel. Each challah is technically supposed to have twelve mounds to represent the tribes as well. At home we can become a “Mikdash Me’ at,” or a miniature temple when we light the Shabbat candles and place the challah next to them. Challah is sometimes blessed, cut, and dipped into salt to remember the salt that the leaders in the ancient Temple used to sprinkle on the sacrifices they offered God.

Challah is often covered until the blessing as a reminder of Judaism's emphasis on kindness and sensitivity to others. The first blessing, the challah is covered, is for the wine and the second, the challah uncovered, is for the challah. By not letting the challah hear that it does not come first, we are guarding its feelings. It is a reminder to take care when handling and understanding other people’s feelings. The cover also represents the dew on the manna in the morning.

Challah has become the primary word for Shabbat bread in the US, but the name has a long history. South African Jews call Shabbat bread kitke. Eastern and Western European Jews called it Khale. Other words like berkhes, dacher, koylatsh, shtritsl described the Shabbat bread.

Khae came from the Hebrew word hallah which in the Torah was a flat cake, baked on coals, and was the simplest and most inexpensive sacrifice. Khale used to be the general term for Shabbat or holiday bread and usually referred to plain bread. Today Challah is most commonly thought of as the fluffy and tall loaf, but some communities such as Moroccan Jews have flat and round bread. In Yemen, lachoch, a fried flatbread, is served on Shabbat. Koylatsh was used in Poland and Russia to describe braided challah and in some areas, it meant decorated challah for weddings and holidays. The earliest trace of the etymology of Koylatsh was used by French Jews in the 11th century and they called it a coilush, a long and thin bread, like a baguette. In Germany, Shtritsl had the same vague meaning, but was similarly a yeasted dough and referred to a Christian bread rather than a Jewish one.

The braid was made a tradition by, Germanic, Teutonic tribes whose women offered their hair to their Goddess. To create a more “sustainable” sacrifice, braided bread replaced the hair. The bread was called berchisbrod or perchisbrod and today berches or barches for German Jews and the name has stuck in many places in Europe. The first record of “challah" was in the 15th century in Austria and followed Jews as they migrated east. Originally, dark rye was eaten during the week and white flour was used to differentiate the bread for Shabbat. Braiding became popular in the 15th century in Germany and Austria. The braid symbolizes love because it looks like arms embracing. Three braids stand for peace, justice, and truth.

Challah comes in round loaves for Rosh Hashanah until Simchat Torah. The roundness symbolizes the circular nature of the Jewish year. It also resembles a crown to respect God on the holy days. Schlissel challah, or key challah, is made after the first Shabbat after Passover. The key shaped challah remembers when God provided our ancestors with manna when they could not fend for themselves. It is said that god, “unlocked the key to His treasure box,” for our own livelihood.” Sometimes, challahs are decorated to look like ladders, resembling Moses as he climbed Mount Sinai and a wish that our prayers cover the heavens on Yom Kippur.

Pictured above is my attempt at Adeena Sussman's Honey Olive Oil Challah.

The recipe only took a couple of hours in total and resulted in these crispy, soft, and slightly sweet challah! I accidentally forgot to add salt which is a vital ingredient because it strengthens the gluten and absorbs moisture. I sprinkled some salt and flour on the tops of my loaves to compensate, but with that came some bumps on the top. Regardless, it was super tasty and I would definitely make this recipe again. Hopefully next time I can do it proper justice!

The Recipe I used is in her cookbook Sababa and can also be found here... https://mag.jewishinseattle.org/holidays/2019/09/adeena-sussman-believes-cooking-delicious-food-shouldn-t-be-difficult

Recipe Outline:

Ingredients...

5 tsp instant (rapid-rise) yeast

7 c all-purpose flour, plus more as needed and for shaping

3 large eggs

½ c sugar

⅓ c honey

1 T fine sea salt, plus more for egg wash

⅓ c extra-virgin olive oil

⅔ c sesame or poppy seeds, or a combination

Steps...

Make the dough. Once formed, flour a work surface and fold the dough over its self by folding into the middle. Making quarter turns between each fold, turning 15 times.
Lightly flour a bowl, place the dough in, cover with a kitchen towel, proof for 45 minutes to an hour (until the dough has doubled) in a warm place.
Take the dough out, divide into 3 long pieces. Place one of the pieces in the fridge for another use like her Za'atar Chili Feta Bread or make another challah later.
Cut the remaining 2 sections of dough into 3 small equal parts crosswise. You should have 6 rectangular pieces now. Fold the top portion of a rectangle over, flatten with the palm of your hand, and press 3 more times until you have a 7-inch cylinder. Repeat with the other 5.
Roll each cylinder (you should have 6) into 14-inch ropes with tapered ends and lightly flour them. Pinch the rope of three ropes together and put a heavy object on top of the pinched section. (I used a can of beans) Braid by lifting each piece up and over so the braid is more stacked than long and fatter than taller. Press the ends together. Repeat with the other three stands.
Place the challah loaves on a baking sheet with parchment paper, cover with a kitchen towel, let them rise for 45-45 minutes.
Place the racks on your oven to the 1st and 3rd positions. Preheat the oven to 425F.
Once the challah loaves have roughly doubled in size, do the press test: Press your finger lightly into the dough, remove it, and see if the depression fills in by half. If the depression fills back in quickly and completely, the dough needs more time to rise; if you press the dough and it slightly deflates, the dough has over-proofed and will be heavier and less airy after baking.
Make the egg wash by beating an egg and with 1tbsp water and a pinch of salt. Gently brush the surface of the challah loaves. Try to avoid getting it in the cracks. Sprinkle with seeds (I did not sprinkle mine because of personal preference).
Bake for 15 minutes. Transfer the bottom sheet pan to the top and the top sheet pan to the bottom, turning each sheet around as you go, and bake until the loaves are golden brown, about 10 minutes longer. Remove the loaves from the oven and set them aside to cool completely on the sheet pans.
Enjoy! I served mine with some lox and goat cheese as well as pumpkin butter!