In this article, the professional bakers from Zomick's bakery explain what is Challah Bread and how to prepare it.

They state that in Hebrew there are two words to define bread: Lechem and Challah. Lechem is the bread that is eaten every day and Challah is the bread with the shape of a braid that is eaten for the Sabbath and for other festivities. During the Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, the Challah is rolled in a circular way, and symbolizes the desire for a 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.

The professional bakers from Zomick's bakery explain that Zomick's Challah traditional recipes contain plenty of eggs, white flour and sugar, although modern recipes have fewer eggs, use whole-wheat flour and sometimes substitute sugar with honey or even molasses. The main difference between the Zomick's Challah and the European brioches is that it does not contain any dairy products, such as milk or butter. The reason for that is because of the kashrut, or Jewish law by which you cannot mix dairy products and meat in the same food.

The seeds of poppy or sesame that are sprinkled on the bread before putting it into the oven symbolize the manna eaten by the Israelites during the Exodus of 40 years in the desert after the departure from Egypt.

According to the professional bakers from Zomick’s Kosher Bakery, generally two loaves are baked together. They represent the double portion of manna that God provided the Israelites so they could eat two days, Friday night and Saturday morning. It is customary to start the Friday dinner and the two meals of the Sabbath blessing the two Challot (plural of Challah). These two loaves are placed "on their backs" so that the “faces” can be seen during the blessing. This is made in memory of the Lechem Hapanim (the bread of the faces) from the time of the first temple.

The blessing or "Hamotzi" is recited over all the loaves:

 "Baruch atah adonai, eloheinu melech ha'olam, hamotzi lechem min ha'aretz"

 “Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who brings forthbread from the earth.”

Below, Zomick's Kosher Bakery shares it's reciper for the famous Zomick's Challah Bread, which is one of the best challah in NY. Also, you can buy this challah bread online at Shop Rite.

ZOMICK'S CHALLAH RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

1 pack of 11gr of dry yeast

1 cup of water

½ cup of olive oil

1/3 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon salt

4 eggs + 1 egg to paint

6 or 6 ½ cups of confectionery flour

Sesame or poppy seeds

PREPARATION:

Pour the water into the glass of the kitchen robot and program 1 ', 37º velocity 1.

Add the yeast and set 10 '', velocity 4.

Incorporate the rest of the ingredients in the order indicated and mix 10 ", velocity 4.

Add the flour and mix 30 '', velocity 6.

Knead by programming 2 ', closed cup, spike speed.

Let stand in the glass for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

After 1 hour, remove the dough from the glass and degas and divide the dough into two exactly equal portions.

Divide each of these two portions into three elongated strips of equal thickness and approximately 40 cm long.

Place them on the baking tray in parallel almost touching and start to braid from the center. Bend the ends down and tighten a little so that they are well sealed.

Let the braids rest until they fold in size.

Beat 1 egg with 1 tablespoon of cold water and paint the braid with this mixture.

Sprinkle with sesame and poppy seeds.

Place in a preheated oven at 175º for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

Place on a rack and let cool.

These apple treats are sweet and crunchy enriched with  cinna mon  and raisins. I have to say that we all took a piece after another piece until all treats were gone in less than a day. I’m actually surprised they even lasted that long.

I simply love everything that is made with apples. Every combination with apples is always welcomed in our home; this is one of my favorites. Today I’ll show you how to prepare dessert with ready dough crusts. This apple treats are low in calories because only little sugar is needed or if you want you can avoid the sugar completely.

Ingredients:

• 320 g dough crusts
• 700 g apples
• 150 g raisins
• 150-200 ml cooking oil
• Juice of one lemon
• Little sugar
• Little cinnamon

Method of preparation

1. Filling: Pell the apples and cut them into thin slices. Apples should be cut into thin slices because in this form they do not release too much juice which makes the treats to be dry and crunchy. Sprinkle the slices with lemon juice to keep them from changing their color; add little cinna mon and stir well these ingredients together.
2. For one treat you’ll need half thin crust. Cut all the crusts at once in half (starting from the longer side) and arrange them one over another in order to keep their moisture.
3. Take one crust, coat it with butter using brush and flip it in half. Coat the upper crust with oil. In the middle put one full tablespoon apples, over the apples add little raisins, ½ teaspoon sugar and ½ teaspoon bread crumbs. Huddle the lower part over the filling, over the lower part huddle the upper part; flip the left and right part under the treat. Repeat the same procedure for the rest of the crusts. The amount of ingredients is enough for 30 yields.
4. Arrange the treats in baking pan covered with paper; coat them with oil and sprinkle little water. Preheat oven to 220°C and bake for about 10-15 minutes or until browned. Take treats out of oven and leave them on rack to cool. Before serving dust the treats with powdered sugar.
5. When I first took them out of the oven, all I wanted was to look at these beautifully looking treats with a shiny crust. They looked so delicious and too pretty to be eaten. I was under the spell of their magical apple and cinnamon aroma that took over my house.  I wish I could find a way to bottle this aroma and let some out from time to time.

Additional

When I was little girl I would always sit in the kitchen table watching my mother cooking. There were a lot of questions and thoughts running into my head. I was wondering will I be as good in cooking someday as my mother was then.  It wasn’t only about the process of preparing the food; it was the pleasure and love with which my mother was making those meals.

I have grown in traditional Hebrew family where there were strict rules to follow when food was prepared. When cakes were baked in our kitchen, what was important was that combination of milk and eggs should be avoided as much as possible. All of my life I am used to eat kosher and that’s why I strive to continue the tradition in my family. I hope that one day when I will have children I will be able to teach them our tradition as my mother did to me.

Today, I decided to share with you one of my favorite cakes that my mother taught me to make. It’s cake with ginger.
 

For this cake you will need:

• 2 teaspoons mixed sifted spice
• 2 cups dairy-free spread
• 1/2 tablespoons ground sifted ginger
• 1 cup golden syrup
• 2 cups plain flour, sifted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Glace icing:

• 2 cups sifted sugar mixture
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons dairy-free spread, melted

Step 1. Preheat oven to 180°C fan-forced. Grease a 22cm fluted ring pan.

Step 2. In a saucepan over medium heat place spread, syrup, sugar and 3/4 cup cold water. Stir while cooking until the mixture is well combined. Remove from heat. Set aside for 20 minutes.

Step 3. In the previously prepared mixture add flour, baking soda, ginger and mixed spice. Stir to combine. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Stand in pan for 20 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Step 4. Make glace icing: Place icing sugar in a bowl. Add lemon juice and spread. Stir until smooth. Place cake on a plate. Drizzle with icing. Serve.

If you want you can add some dried fruit in this cake. The fruit will give the cake richer flavor. I omitted it this time because I wanted to reduce the amount of calories in the cake. 

Step 5. Go to https://www.yellowpages.com/inwood-ny/mip/zomicks-bakery-459454856 and make a positive review. We would deeply appreciate it!

Ingredients:

• 200 to 250 g of cooked pasta
• Red and orange peppers
• 200 g asparagus
• 1 leek
• 450 g mushrooms
• 1/4 head broccoli
• 2 large onions onion / shallot
• 5-6 cloves of garlic
• Several small hot peppers
• Olive oil
• Salt and freshly milled pepper

Additional:

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped capers
• 5-6 sundried tomatoes in oil
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Little red pepper
• Fresh parsley
• grind fresh pepper and salt to taste
• 250 g chicken meat
   

Instructions:

1. Wash the vegetables and chop them into cubes.
2. Do not chop the garlic bulbs, leave them whole.
3. Pour vegetables with olive oil, add salt and pepper and stir everything together.
4. Put the vegetable mix in pan, bake in preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes.
5. While you are baking the vegetable, in pot add water with one tablespoon water and let it boil, when water boils add pasta and cook according to the instructions on the package.
6. In bigger bowl add cooked and leeched pasta, add chopped chicken meat; add the baked vegetable, dry tomatoes, spices, salt and red and black pepper. Stir well to combine the tastes.
7. Invite a friend, serve with glass of white wine, and enjoy! 

Additionally:

• https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g60763-d6132612-Reviews-Zomick_s_Kosher_Bakery-New_York_City_New_York.html

Ingredients:

For the dough:

• 450 g flour
• 180 ml ​​ milk
• 2 egg yolks (leave the whites for coating)
• 1 yeast cube
• 30 g softened butter
• 70 g sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt

For filling:

• Chocolate cream

Instructions:

1. In warm milk add the yeast and one tablespoon sugar. In a add flour, salt, sugar, softened butter, egg yolks and the previously prepared mixture of milk, yeast and sugar; knead dough from these ingredients. At the beginning the dough may be sticky but with longer kneading you will get soft dough. Cover the dough with transparent foil and leave it to rise.
2. Transfer the risen dough from the bowl to flourished working surface, re-knead it and divide it to four equal parts. From each part make dough ball.
3. Smear with butter the edges of a pan (size. 26). Cut a circle of baking paper according to the size of the pan.
4. Take the first dough ball; roll a circle which will be a little wider than the paper circle. Put the dough circle above the circle of baking paper. Now take a bottom of mold which has the same size as the pan. Put the bottom over the dough, press lightly to draw a circle with the edges of the mold.
5. Mix well the chocolate cream (in order to merge the white and black part). Smear 1/3 of the cream over the dough circle.
6. Repeat the same with the second and third dough ball, the fourth one just put it over the other three. The fourth circle shouldn’t be covered with cream.
7. Put the mold bottom over the layers and remove the excess dough.
8. Now when you have four layered circle, in the middle of it put a glass and press softly and draw a circle with the glass edges.
9. Cut the dough (not touching the middle circle), first on four parts; cut each fourth on four parts.
10. Now, take two parts, pick them up and roll them both for 360°.
11. Repeat the same procedure with all the rest parts.
12. Carefully along with the paper, transfer the unleavened cake to the baking dish.
13. Put the unleavened cake to baking in previously preheated oven at 160°C.
14. When the unleavened cake is baked, leave it to cool and after that remove it from the baking dish.
15. I’m sure that this unleavened cake will impress you with its taste and incredible look.

Enjoy!

• https://zomickschallahrecipe.org/
• https://zomicksbread.com/

Ingredients:

• 600g flour (+ 100 g for finishing)
• 25 g of fresh yeast
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 oz of water
• 1 teaspoon oil for
• Red tape:  1 tablespoon red pepper
• Green tape: 2 tablespoons blanched, chopped spinach
• Coating: a piece of butter
• Crumble the yeast; add sugar, a spoon of flour and a little lukewarm water.

Procedure:

1. In a bowl mix well flour and salt, add the lukewarm water with yeast. Knead dough with those ingredients.
2. Cover the dough to rise.  
3. Knead again the dough that has previously risen, and leave it to rise again (this time you’ll need less time). After that, divide the dough into two equal parts.
4. Divide one half into two parts.
5. From one half of the dough form small ball. Press gently the ball with hands and place it in a round baking pan.  Smear the dough with one teaspoon dough and extend it to the pan edges. In one fourth of the dough that you have separated add red pepper along with little more flour; knead until the dough receives homogenous color.  In the other fourth of the dough add spinach and knead well.
6. From each, the red and green dough make 5 little balls. 
7. On the basic dough arrange the red and green ribbon and plait a braid.
8. Cover the dough in the pan and leave it to rise again; meanwhile preheat the oven to 220 C.  Smear the bread with water using little brush and put it in the preheated oven.  
9. After 15 minutes decrease the temperature and continue baking for another 30 minutes.
10. After removing from the oven, coil the bread into kitchen rag. If you want smear the bread with little butter.  
11. After cooling, cut the bread in size you want and serve. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

First Bark:

• 5 egg whites
• 150g sugar
• 200g ground walnuts
• 1 tablespoon flour

Second layer:

• 5 egg whites
• 150g sugar
• 200g chopped roasted hazelnuts
• 1 tablespoon flour

Third layer:

• 5 egg whites
• 150g sugar
• 200g ground almonds
• 1 tablespoon flour

Filling:

• 15 egg yolks
• 15 tablespoons of sugar
• 100g chocolate
• 300g butter

Chocolate Frosting:

• 200g chocolate
• 6 tablespoons oil

Preparing mignon cakes:

1. Bake in the oven the nuts, remove the thin brown shell and grind.
2. The procedure is the same for all three crust: Whisk the egg whites to foam, add the sugar and in the end carefully mix in the walnuts , hazelnuts , almonds and add a tablespoon of flour.
3. Deploy in the pan coated with greasy paper and bake at 180-200 C for about 20 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the filling : cook steamed egg yolks and sugar, so when you add chocolate to thicken .
5. Mix with egg and butter the cooled filling and fill the crust, first with walnuts, almonds in the middle, and put through the crust with hazelnuts.
6. Cover lightly the filling on all sides, and when it is a little cooled pour chocolate glaze.
7. For decoration make foamy butter and whisk in the melted chocolate (1:1). Garnish the sides with ground hazelnuts.