FEATURE
THE SYMBOLISM & GLORY OF CHALLAH By Gilly Balcombe
If you live in London, or any other city where there is a decent sized Jewish community, you’ve probably tasted challah. For those who haven’t, I can only compare its flavour and texture to that of a scrumptious French plaited brioche or ‘tresse’, made from a yeast dough enriched with eggs and sweetened with a little sugar, though challah isn’t usually as sweet as brioche. This symbolic and special bread is traditionally eaten by Jewish people on the Sabbath and other important festivals. It was first mentioned in the 36
Torah, or Old Testament, as representing the ‘manna’ or bread that fell from the sky and fed the ancient Israelites during their 40-year desert trek. Once their long trek was over, it is said that God decreed that whenever they made bread for the Sabbath, they would set aside a portion of the dough as an offering at the temple, to demonstrate how grateful they were to have been allowed into the Holy Land. Making this ritual offering became the task of the wives and daughters who baked the bread, and the small piece became known as ‘challah’. It symbolises gratitude to this day, and the making, blessing and eating of challah heralds the beginning of the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week when no work is permitted, or of a holy festival. For this reason, the person who recites the blessing for the bread tears off small pieces from the loaf which are then distributed to all those round Cibare Magazine
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PICTURE CREDITS: Gilly Balcombe
Challah – the delicious, pillowy bread so keenly anticipated throughout the working week by Jews all over the world. Baked specifically for the Sabbath, it has a long and rich history, as rich as the dough it’s made from. In fact, there are probably as many versions of this history as there are of the loaf itself.
