On the Chocolate Trail

Weddings this summer sure are different. Cocktail hour? Not likely. Dancing? Probably not. Friends and family? Perhaps a very few. With the pandemic limiting celebrations this year, perhaps it’s time to turn to the comforting traditions of Jewish bridal breads. Read more… *Photo by Clara Shoots Weddings, Used by permissionMarriage of Anthony Russell to Rabbi

Aka Ataïf, atayif, qata’if, qatayif, katayef, these pancakes may be filled with nuts or also prepared with cheese fillings for Chanukah or Shavuot. They are also popular at weddings spread with cream and rose petal jam or simply topped with pistachios or almonds. This recipe guides you through a nut stuffed option. Read my story

While we tend to think of panettone as a Christmas bread, Jewish food writer Edda Servi Machlin shared this version of panettone from her childhood experiences in Italy of eating it for breakfast. She provides an authentic yet simpler process than most panettone recipes and a very tasty one at that. Enjoy it whenever you

Eat kaak all year round or save them for special celebrations, as do many communities of the Middle East and Sephardim (Jews descended from Spain). Kaak (kahk, ka’ak) are ubiquitous, multi-faith and multi-cultural doughy treats eaten throughout the Middle East where they take on regional flavors. In Arabic kaak means cake or baked good.The Egyptian

Almost cake-like, though not a cake, this orange tinged bread enhances any holiday table. My story about diasporic High Holiday celebratory breads was published at the Jewish Week, “Beyond Challah and Honey.” More will be forthcoming in On the Bread Trail. Prep time: 2-2.5 hours Rising time: 40-45 minutes Baking time: 30 minutes Yield: 2

This bread brings fall ingredients to your festive meals and reflects the longtime usage of pumpkin among Sephardi Jews. See the Jewish Week for my story about unusual Rosh Hashanah breads, “Beyond Challah and Honey: Rosh Hashanah Breads From Around the World.” Prep time: 30 minutes Rising time: 1 hour 45 minutes Baking time: 45

This sweetly spiced bread maximizes honey, both inside and out. For more about this and other unusual Rosh Hashanah breads see my story at the Jewish Week “Beyond Challah and Honey: Rosh Hashanah Breads From Around the World.” Prep time: 30 minutes Rising time: 2-2 ¼ hours Baking time: 1 hour Yield: One large bread

This stylish Ethiopian celebratory flatbread derives its unique elements from the hand styled design and sweet flavorings. It was probably initially baked over coals. While many recipes give instructions for baking it in the oven, I prefer to use the stovetop for speed and for keeping my kitchen cooler in the summer. adapted from: My

Yemenite Jews prepared lachuch and saluf for daily and Shabbat consumption. Several food writers claimed it took them a long time to master this bread so I have collected their tips and recipes to make it easier, for you, too, I hope. Lachuch turns out to be pretty easy since you don’t even have to

Easily made without turning on the oven, using a mixer, proofing the yeast, or flipping the bread, or washing lots of dishes. All the prep happens in one bowl and one stove top pan. Simple, tasty and cool!
 Read my story about saluf at the Jewish Week: “Too Hot for Challah?” based on a recipe

On the first Shabbat following Passover, after a week deprived of yeasty breads, hassidic custom serves up not just any challah, but a shlissel or key challah. About seven weeks or fifty days later at Shavuot, challot boast ladders and other symbols signifying ascension to heaven. This key shaped bread or bread embedded with an

I used this shaping dough for the five symbols for the Sephardi “Seven Heaven Challah” for Shavuot: The tablets of the Ten Commandments, a Jacob’s ladder to recall the ascent and descent of angels to and from heaven, a hand or hamsa recalling the five books of the Torah, a bird representing the dove of

Sometimes made with phyllo dough or without yeast, here is a top knotted, circular shaped, yeast-raised khachapuri. This exotic bread works for Shavuot and has been enjoyed by Georgian Jews for the festival. Read my story at the Jewish Week “Exotic Celebratory Breads for Shavuot“ Adapted from Darra Goldstein’s The Georgian Feast: The Vibrant Culture

This stunning challah makes a great centerpiece and tastes delicious. Allow time for the shaping of the various elements of this celebratory Shavuot challah and enjoy the anise flavored liqueur in the dough. Read my story at the Jewish Week “Exotic Celebratory Breads for Shavuot“ The recipe is adapted from Rabbi Robert Sternberg’s The Sephardic

This celebratory, cheesy babka belongs on a festive Shavuot table, for sure. Read my story at the Jewish Week “Exotic Celebratory Breads for Shavuot“ Adapted from Beth Hensperger’s The Bread Bible: 300 Favorite Recipes Yield: One large cake DOUGH 1 tablespoon active dry yeast Pinch sugar ¼ cup warm water (105º to 115º) ½ cup

When I found this recipe for challah baked with brandy, it called out “Purim.” What could be better than a shikker challah to fulfill the Talmudic opinion of Rava: “One must drink on Purim until that person cannot distinguish between cursing Haman and blessing Mordechai.” (Megillah 7b) Chaleh I “Chaleh I” was published in the