The dog and the challah bread that wasn’t

Some things are just too good to last long. In kitchen it translates into an even simpler formula – the better something is the less long it lasts. Good things are meant for sharing and experiencing together.

When I was a teacher at the Jewish primary school we would all gather together in the school hall every Friday to celebrate Sabbath and share challah bread. We would tear a piece of chałka while saying a Hebrew blessing that I learnt sheerly by repeating the sounds every week, and that I still remember today:

Baruch ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kidshanu b’mitzvotav vitzivanu l’hadlik ner shel Shabbat.

Blessed are You, God, Ruler of the universe, who sanctified us with the commandment of lighting Shabbat candles.

When you bake challah bread you usually get two loaves which makes it perfect for sharing. One day our lovely neighbour, Kasia, baked chałka at home and brought us one loaf. The smell of the freshly baked challah that filled the whole kitchen was amazing and even though some of us were very tempted to have a slice straightaway, we decided we will all wait and share it for breakfast the next morning.

It was one of those grey and chilly autumn morning that does not make you jump out of bed to rise and shine. Still, the alarm clock went off reminding us it was the time to start a new day of the weekday routine. When I, half-asleep, made my way downstairs into the kitchen, Maciek was already there, eating … cereals. It did not occur to me at first but after a few seconds I burst, “Why, for God’s sake, would you have cornflakes this morning if there’s home-made challah bread for breakfast?” He had another spoon and mumbled that he didn’t see any and, sort of, forgot. I went dumb for a moment clearly digesting what I had just heard and then retorted, “But how the hell could you not see it if it is right here on the kitchen top?” And I turned gesturing behind me to the kitchen top. And there is was – a clean wooden kitchen top, with absolutely nothing on it. “But … , ” and I went speechless again. This time for slightly longer.

We were both staring at the kitchen top trying to envisage the scene that happened overnight. The challah bread, that was there on the kitchen top smelling divine. The dog, that loves bread and that could not contain himself. Was it a planned operation that took him a few walk-arounds, sniffs, jumps and snaps? Or was it a spur of a moment and all it took was one precise coordination of paws, jaws and tongue? We never found out what exactly happened in the middle of the night in our kitchen but one thing we know was that there was not a single crumb left. When we called Lucky, he had this distinctive “it wasn’t me” look on his face that we all know means guilty as charged.

Surely and truly, Lucky, whose other adventures are here, here and here, ate the entire challah bread one night. With no remorse and no desire to share. After all, doesn’t it prove how good the thing was. Definitely, too good to last too long …

The original recipe that my neighbour shared with me is the one adapted for Thermomix. I do not have the appliance myself but I tried the recipe out – with a little tweaks – and I must admit it works fine for both – Thermomix-equipped and Thermomix-less households. The recipe below does not require any special equipment. The original recipe for Thermomix can be found here.

Challah Bread

from the Thermomix recipe at www.przepisownia.pl 

makes 2 loaves

Challah dough

1 cup milk

50 g fresh yeast

550 g flour

2 tbs butter (unsalted) plus some more for greasing

2 eggs (at room temperature)

1 tsp salt

4 (1 and 3) tbs sugar

5 tbs lukewarm water

Crumble:

1 tbs butter (fridge cold)

1 tbs caster sugar

3 tbs flour

Warm a large mixing bowl by rinsing with hot water and pat dry. Mix together the yeast, 1 tablespoon of sugar, warmed milk and 3 tablespoons of flour. Gently stir the mixture for about 3 minutes and leave in a warm place for about 10 minutes by when it should double its size.

In the meantime separate one of the eggs so that you can keep the yolk for brushing the bread. Beat together the remaining egg white, whole egg and 3 tablespoons of sugar.

Gently melt the butter and set aside to cool.

Once the yeast mixture has risen, add 350 g of flour, eggs with sugar, salt, water and melted butter. Mix the dough until nicely combined and smooth.

Add the remaining flour and knead until silky for about 10 minutes. If it gets too sticky add a little bit more of flour and knead on.

Cover with a cotton cloth and leave in the bowl for about an hour or two. It should double its size again.

Once the dough has risen, preheat the oven to 180°C and grease 2 baking tins with butter.

Take the dough out of the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Press gently down to remove the extra air from the dough. Divide the dough in two and then each of the halves into three parts. You will get 6 equal parts that will make 2 plaits. Stretch and roll each of the pieces until longer than the length of the baking tin. Gently gather three strands and start braiding. Once finished carefully place the challah bread in the baking tin and tuck in the edges. Repeat with the other loaf.

Leave to rise in a warm place for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime prepare the crumble by combining sugar, butter and flour.

Brush the challah with the egg yolk and sprinkle the crumble on. You could also use the traditional poppy seeds or both.

Place in the preheated oven and bake for 25 – 30 minutes.

Serve freshly made with butter. I love to pair it with this home made plum spread.

Enjoy and by all means keep away from the dog.