This recipe is part of Asif’s Open Kitchen Project initiative, where cooks who were evacuated during the war are invited to a home in Tel Aviv to cook a dish that they miss from their own home. Would you like to participate? Register here.
Valerie Chen, who was evacuated from her home in Moshav Manot in the Western Galilee, expresses her frustration as she prepares her Shabbat menu midweek. She’s cooking at her niece’s home in Givatayim as part of our Open Kitchen Project. “The challahs just don’t feel right,” she laments. “There’s something about Friday’s challah. When you prepare it midweek, it loses that special touch. The dough feels different, less sticky,” she says.
“It really does turn out differently. Friday’s challah is blessed,” adds her friend Malka Sadki, who was also evacuated from her home in the nearby Moshav Avdon. The two connected at the Metropolitan Hotel in Tel Aviv.
Valerie refers to Friday’s challah as “homemade bread,” and there’s nothing quite as poignant as preparing it away from home. While kneading the dough, she reminisces about her kitchen in Manot. “Back home, I’d stand facing the Galilee view, which always inspired me.” She always makes three challahs — two for the Hamotzi blessing, and the third for snacking. She longs for the hours before Shabbat dinner at her own home. “Everyone would sneak matbucha from the kitchen and dip the challah in it when they thought I wasn’t looking. By 5 p.m., waiting became impossible, and everyone would start eating,” she says. Alongside the challah, she prepares a pot of aromatic fish patties and, of course, the matbucha. “Anyone who doesn’t stir matbucha with a wooden spoon doesn’t understand a thing,” she mutters as she hurries to prepare bites for her niece, her pregnant daughter, and her grandson, who is wandering around the living room.
8 cups (1kg) all-purpose flour
2 eggs
5 tablespoons (80 grams) sugar
1 tablespoon (14 grams) active dry yeast
½ cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon (20 grams) salt
3 cups (720 ml) water
For the topping:
1 egg, beaten
Sesame seeds
- In a bowl, mix the flour, eggs, sugar, oil, and active dry yeast with your hands until they form a sticky mixture, about 30 seconds. Add salt and knead for a minute.
- Grease your hands lightly with oil. Gradually pour in the water while kneading in the bowl until the mixture forms a very sticky dough, about 10 minutes. Cover with a clean towel and let rise for 1-1½ hours, until doubled in volume.
- Line 1 or 2 baking trays with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 9 equal pieces and roll into smooth round balls. Roll 3 dough balls to thin strands and braid to a challah. Transfer to the baking tray and repeat with the remaining balls, for a total of 3 challahs. Cover with a towel and let rise for 30-40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180C (350F).
- Brush the challahs with the beaten egg and sprinkle sesame seeds on top. Bake until the crust is golden, about 25 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack.
