Gator Pam Posted September 15, 2020 Share Posted September 15, 2020 (edited) L'shana Tovah (Happy Jewish New Year 5781), GottaDeal community! Besides Shabbos, this coming Friday is Erev Rosh Hashannah, the Jewish New Year and start of the 10 Days of Awe. Yesterday I was a Zoom participant in Eastside Torah Center - Chabad's Grand Rosh Hashannah Challah Bake. It was fun socializing virtually, and I enjoyed the learning and the demonstration of the simanim platter while our dough proofed. Of course, when it came time for shaping, I did my own thing. Both designs are from The Challah Prince on Instagram. The one on the left is the basic 4-strand round braid, only he makes 8-strands and put two side by side in each strand pattern. The "star" shape on the right is 5 mini 4-strand braid challot, curved together in the center and then fanned out to make the circle. I did the second rise overnight in the refrigerator, so I think they over proofed a little and I lost some of the design on each. Egg wash to bake, and since they're for Rosh Hashannah, honey wash as soon as they were removed from the oven. For a first attempt at each design, I'm quite happy! Edited September 16, 2020 by Gator Pam 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reinholt1 Posted September 16, 2020 Share Posted September 16, 2020 Shana tovah Gater! Those look yummy! Hope you are enjoying the holidays! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 19, 2020 Author Share Posted September 19, 2020 (edited) *cross posted* Last night's festive meal's dessert was a new recipe from the Kosher Keto Ladies Facebook group: a keto-fied "honey" cake. Other than a few technical baking difficulties, as I am truly not a baker, it came out great! The "honey" cake fresh out of the oven. Turned out of the pan. Dusted with confectioners Lakanto monkfruit sweetener blend. Autopsy shot. Since I am inexperienced with making bundt cakes, I don't think I baked it quite long enough, allowed it to cool long enough, and tried to unmold it on a wire cooling rack rather than a solid surface. So, the honey cake crumbled. Since it crumbled in sections, we served it with Halo Top ice cream , strawberries, and sugar free whipped cream . The typed up recipe with my notes. Shared with permission from Lisa Libman of the Kosher Keto Ladies Facebook group. Edited September 19, 2020 by Gator Pam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reinholt1 Posted September 19, 2020 Share Posted September 19, 2020 ::watching as the sun sets here:: good shabbos! Kosher keto...:: shaking head:: it takes all the fun out of the holidays...all that good food....such a shame. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 20, 2020 Author Share Posted September 20, 2020 Kosher keto...:: shaking head:: it takes all the fun out of the holidays...all that good food....such a shame.I do make my family's traditional receipts, but honey cake is not a tradition I grew up with. I've had it in recent years at the local CHABAD's, but had never learned to make it myself. When I saw this recipe I was like, "Why not?" I tried it, and IMO it's as good as, if not better, than the other honey cake I had in the past. So, in this instance, I'm not feeling like I'm missing out, nu? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reinholt1 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Well, as long as you are happy....... :: now you've got me wondering about all those little kosher bees you need to make all the honey....:: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 21, 2020 Author Share Posted September 21, 2020 :: now you've got me wondering about all those little kosher bees you need to make all the honey....:: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 28, 2020 Author Share Posted September 28, 2020 Yesterday this non-baker took on a new baking project for Break Fast after sunset tonight. Here is my first ever chocolate babka, and done in a shape of a star. Recipe is from Frum It Up. She posted it on YouTube, but I had to email her for the written instructions. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
packratfamily Posted September 28, 2020 Share Posted September 28, 2020 Yesterday this non-baker took on a new baking project for Break Fast after sunset tonight. Here is my first ever chocolate babka, and done in a shape of a star. Recipe is from Frum It Up. She posted it on YouTube, but I had to email her for the written instructions. That looks amazing. Bet it taste great too. Happy baking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 28, 2020 Author Share Posted September 28, 2020 (edited) Thank you! The little spiral on the right side was made from what scraps I wasn't able to combine in to another layer. We split that and ate it as soon as it was cool enough, before the holiday fast began. I'm hoping sitting overnight with the other half of the syrup, covered by the flour sack towel allowed the syrup to penetrate the dough. The spiral was a little tough for my taste. The flavor was excellent, though. Edited September 28, 2020 by Gator Pam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 28, 2020 Author Share Posted September 28, 2020 In the Low Carb thread in the Lounge, Fresia asked what challah recipe I use. Since challah is eaten for nearly all Jewish holidays (except Passover and any holiday which involves fasting, except at the end of the fast) I figured the recipe would fit in better here, since it is not a low carb food. This recipe can be found online, but the versions I have seen appear to leave out some steps. This copy has all the steps I follow, although I use my KitchenAid to mix and knead the dough, and my Instant Pot for the first rise. Use the paddle in the KA on low to k7x the dry and wet ingredients together, then the dough hook for about 10 minutes on medium. Use the glass lid to proof the dough on Yogurt Less in the IP; you do not want to risk the dough rising in to the lockable lid. I'll post a photo of my doygh in the IP under the recipe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 29, 2020 Author Share Posted September 29, 2020 We had the babka for dessert tonight, with Break Fast. I highly recommend this recipe. It came out really good! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freesia39 Posted September 29, 2020 Share Posted September 29, 2020 Thanks! The recipes I've been looking at are slowly starting to look similar, and yours looks like a great base. I'll probably start with just a simple three braid, although braiding a round loaf doesn't look super difficult. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted September 29, 2020 Author Share Posted September 29, 2020 Many recipes for challah are similar. I think the one I make uses a lot more yeast than most, and the adding the additional flour a cup at a time (I use bread flour, not all purpose) seems to make a difference. All I know is this challah comes out much more tender than other recipes I've tried. We really prefer it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freesia39 Posted October 5, 2020 Share Posted October 5, 2020 I have never made a more attractive loaf of bread in my life. And I don't know why the picture comes out upside down, considering it was taken in the correct orientation. Sigh. Oh well. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Pam Posted October 5, 2020 Author Share Posted October 5, 2020 Beautiful! Which recipe did you finally settle on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freesia39 Posted October 6, 2020 Share Posted October 6, 2020 Beautiful! Which recipe did you finally settle on? I used Smitten Kitchen's, which is based on Joan Nathan's recipe (which is the one in the NY Times cooking section.) I did a four braid and of course, promptly messed it up, but took the photos from the angle where you can't see the strand that didn't get woven in very well. The only adjustment I made is I halved the recipe - one loaf is already huge, although I may have overproofed in the final rise. It comes out beautifully light, a little sweet, not overly eggy. I'm glad the crumb was light, as I kneaded by hand, and I'm still not great at determining if I kneaded the dough enough. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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