'Challah at me!': Jewish community hosts bake-off

The Bible may say that man cannot live by bread alone but it would be hard to prove by the tasty loaves of Challah being prepared hot and fresh out of the kitchen in a special bake-off this week.

About 120 women from Brevard’s Jewish community will get together to mix a little fun — and spirituality — with more than 600 cups of flour and several gallons of oil for the "Mega Challah Bake" at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22, at the Lansing Island Club House in Satellite Beach.

Challah, pronounced "ha-lah," is a kneaded bread with a soft, doughy texture. It's used in prayer and typically served during the weekly Sabbath dinners held in Jewish homes.

“Baking Challah is a time-honored (commandment) dating back to our matriarchs,” said  organizer Shulamit Konikov of Chabad of the Space and Treasure Coasts. “There is something very special and unifying about so many Jewish women, from so many backgrounds, coming together and doing a mitzvah.”

The event also coincides with a tradition of holding special gatherings once every seven years.

Just weeks before the beginning of the High Holiday season, each woman will mix the ingredients, knead the dough, bake the bread, with a few laughs and spiritual insights along the way, organizers say.

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The goal is to foster tradition and allow the women readying the bread for use in celebrating the Jewish Sabbath – which begins at sundown each Friday. They will also learn the special prayers associated with the making and serving of the bread.

“Each participant will go home with two loaves. One to keep for their family to celebrate Shabbat and the other to give as a care package to a friend or someone in need,” Konikov said.

Challah, a knotted egg bread known for its fluffy, chewy texture and slight sweetness, is also mentioned in the Torah as a piece of dough separated while breaking the bread and sanctifying it for God, Konikov explained. During Rosh Hashanah, the two-day holiday celebrating the Jewish New Year that begins Oct. 2, challah is typically served in a round loaf and dotted with raisins.

The ingredients include yeast, sugar, oil and flour. Oil is used instead of butter since many people traditionally eat meat, such as chicken, for the Sabbath dinner and scriptures strictly forbid the mixture of any meat and milk products, Konikov said.

"Baking challah is very special to me — something I do each week," Konikov said. '"Enjoying the fresh warm sweet challah adds something tremendous to our family Shabbat dinner and is really something I look forward to."

Contact Gallop at 321-242-3642

or jdgallop@floridatoday.com.

Twitter: @jdgallop

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