Dearest makes a mean soup. It has taken some time but it finally registered that while I don't mind a thick soup I really object to bits floating about. No chunky soups for me. So Dearest, bless his heart, began experimenting to render all the goodness down then strain it so that we are left with a very rich broth that everyone in the house really likes & appreciates, especially on those nippy winter nights when nothing warms the cockles of the heart more than a hot bowl of good rich soup.
If Dearest was making soup I decided I'd better do some experimenting of my own because to my utter surprise as I began sharing within my own household what I have been learning in regards to the biblical festivals I found everyone, bar Ditz of course, was interested. Not interested enough to do their own study, mind you. They are all quite happy to leave the hard slog up to mummy but they are far more interested than I expectedDearest went so far as to suggest the new moon festival was a real goer so we are planning for that soon. It always amazes me how when something is truly of God everything just falls into place, hearts already prepared to receive & follow His leading, information miraculously arriving. It looks like we are about to begin a journey away from the man made traditions of Christmas & Easter back to more biblical roots. Should be interesting ~ especially as it will require that one skill I am so noticeably lacking ~ organization!
So I got my act together to try my 'prentice hand at hallah. It's been a while since I've made bread & I've never made bread with eggs. Nor have I ever made a braided bread. Oh, & I'm not the world's best cook either. When I had trouble with the yeast not really doing it's job I thought I'd have to ditch the first lot & try again. The weather doesn't help. Cold & drafty. In the end I chucked the bowl in the car & there was some improvement but not as much as I would have liked.
I went with what I had knowing that American recipes & I are barely on speaking terms most days & I would have to do some tweaking. There must be a knack to braiding too but I'm bound to get better with practise, aren't I? I'm sure the bread isn't meant to *pop its lid* like this either but it smells fine.
Tonight I will make a simple savoury mince to go with the bread, & a few buttered beans. Ditz isn't at all sure about this. She saw how *sticky to the touch* this was in the early stages & doesn't seem at all convinced that cooking it has improved the texture somewhat.
14 comments:
I find it is more often called challah around here. I have never made one, but I think it is a tasty bread and perhaps I will have a try at it.
Ganeida, with bread it is always about practice and patience, isn't it? I think I wrote something about that in my own blog not so long ago--I had a feeling I was writing that for you. ;)
I am so with you on many of the modern, more secular traditions. Easter is the one that bothers me the most, I think. It would be good to be familiar with traditional Jewish practices and know the meaning behind them. For instance, challah/hallah was representative of manna that fed the Israelites during their years of wandering. Imagine that your every meal was so completely dependant on the Lord!!!
Yes, I remember your post, seeking. I will go back & re~read it but I was hoping you'd say something. The Hallal is quite a sweet bread
~ honeyish when there is no honey in it. Next time I will choose a better day or plan ahead to have a really warm spot so the dough rises better. Some breads I've made aren't too fussy & will rise no matter what you do to them. Others seem to be a bit fussier & hallal seems to fall into that category.
My dearest has always got pretty upset over Christmas but you can't take away a festival unless you replace it with something so we compromised & no~one has been happy.
When Hebrew is spelled out in English, the 'ch' is an 'h' sound. So after a while the 'c' has been dropped. Chanukah has become Hanukah, etc.
My kitchen is not very warm in the winter, so I turn on the oven and place the rising bread on the stove. It works well. Enjoy your bread!
Sandra: I know nothing & am working blind but I find the linguistic changes fascinating. Over time you get quite marked variations. Celtic mutated into Welsh, Irish, Max, Cornish ~ with similarities but enough differences they became largely unintelligable to each other.
The bread looks absolutely lovely. I'm really surprised to see how much you are learning through this whole experience. It's almost as though you are homeschooling yourself. :]
girl you'll be pleased to know that "popping its top" as you so aptly put it is the mark of a truly good batch of bread! well done, hon♥
and oh, i do wish you'd post more about how you are replacing the traditional traditions and going with more Biblical ones. i am extremely interested in this, but honestly don't even know where to begin! as the noah and all the other boys shout at the beginning of their karate class; "please teach me sensei!!" ;)
I'm with Persuaded, in wanting to know more about how you are replacing traditions. I am getting a wee bit tired of all the commercialization of holidays. It's fun and all, but it's just toooooo much! I want to get back to how it "should" be - and I want my kids to appreciate it as it "should" be.
Of course, I can't remember the exact title, but I remember flipping through an encyclopedia of Catholic traditions as a teen. It was quite detailed and explained Christian traditions in addition to Catholic-specific ones.
MrsC: This is how I really am. lol. I get interested in stuff & bore everyone blind as I dig & dig for understanding. I do try & restrain my worst impulses on here or you would all have been Celticized into the nether worlds & no~one at all would visit me. ;)
Britwife: the commercialism is what has always upset us. I'm so over Christmas starting in the shops in October & Easter eggs appearing by the New Year.
Diane., my love, I don't *know* anything just yet. I am still reading & sorting through & the change [if it happens] will be gradual but I will keep posing what we are doing. The New Moon festival is a once a month thing & that is where Dearest wants to start because we can get the boys involved as well. It means I have to learn to cook differently for some things too & not only am I not a keen cook I am know to have some spectacular disasters on occassions! :D
Alison: Catholic traditions are interesting but they are notorious for blending pagan with Christian & man~made stuff. I undestand why, given they were making pictures for a largely illiterate population but it's sure muddied the waters.
well girl.. i hope you'll take us all along for the ride as you learn☺
Ganeida, try allowing it to rise placed on the top of the refrigerator toward the back. There is usually just the right amount of warmth there.
As I said, I have not made challah before, but to get my bread to stop popping the top, I kneaded and allowed it to rise an additional time.
I have used several methods for rising bread dough, but what my mother always did (and it seems foolproof) was this:
Fill a large baking or roasting pan with steaming hot water, and place it in your oven (that's the cooker), turned off, on the lowest rack. Then put your covered bread dough on the rack above the hot water. Shut the oven door, and it becomes warm and damp - just perfect for rising.
Thanks for all the great suggestions ladies as no doubt we will be trying this again.
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