Foreign Flavours — Israel: Challah + Home-made Hummus

A happy hannukah if ever there was one! Yummy!

CHALLAH RECIPE (from The Cuban Reuben)

Ingredients

• 2¼ tsp dry active yeast
• 1½ tsp plus ¼ cup sugar
• ¾-1 cup warm water
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 1½ tsp table salt
• 8x 1/2 cups flour

Instructions

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, add yeast, 1½ tsp sugar, and between ¾ to 1 cup of warm water, and mix until dissolved. Let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Mix in vegetable oil, 2 eggs (1 at a time) and egg yolk, with remaining sugar and salt.
3. Slowly add flour, ½ cup at a time.
4. When the dough holds together, switch to the bread hook, and knead until smooth.
5. Transfer dough to a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for at least 1 hour.
6. Punch dough down, and leave it to rise again for 2 hours.
7. Cut dough into 6 pieces, and roll into approximately 12 inch strands. Pinch the top of the strands together.
8. Take the strand all the way to the right, and move it over to the left by 2 strands.
9. Take the strand that is second to the left, and move it all the way over to the right.
10. Take the strand that is all the way over to the left, and move it to the right by 2 strands.
11. Take the strand that is second from the right, and move it all the way to the left.
12. Repeat this process until the challah is completely braided. Pinch ends, and tuck them under the loaf. Place braided loaf on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
13. Use one egg to brush an egg wash over the top of the loaf.
14. Let sit for one hour.
15. Use another egg to brush a second coat of egg wash. (At this point, you can sprinkle poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or any other seeded topping you want).
16. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.

 

HUMMUS RECIPE (adapted from My Jewish Learning)

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp chopped chives
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbsp pine nuts
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt + 13 turns of the black pepper mill
• 1/4 cup tahina
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (I halved this)
• 1 cup dried chickpeas
• 1 tsp sumac

Directions

Put the raw chickpeas in a bowl with cold water to cover and soak overnight.

Drain and rinse the chickpeas, then place them in a heavy pot with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, then simmer, partially covered, for about an hour or until the chickpeas are soft and the skin begins to separate. Add more water as needed.

Drain the chickpeas, reserving about 1-1/2cups of the cooking liquid. Set aside 1/4cup of the cooked chickpeas for garnish. In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process the remaining chickpeas with the tahina, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, and at least 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking liquid. If the hummus is too thick, add more reserved cooking liquid or water until you have a paste-like consistency.

Heat a frying pan and add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Spread the pine nuts in the pan and stir-fry, browning on all sides.

To serve, transfer the hummus to a large, flat plate, and with the back of a spoon make a slight depression in the center. Drizzle the remaining olive oil on top and sprinkle the reserved chickpeas, pine nuts, sumac, and chives over the surface.