The Panevėžys Jewish Community joined the Shabbos Project November 11 to bake challa bread. Participants included staff from the educatio department, teachers and Community members.

Preparations for the baking event got underway in the morning and all the necessary ingredients were purchased: eggs, yeast, oil, salt and poppy seeds. The main ingredient was of course highest-quality flour. Kosher flour left over from last year worked perfectly for making the dough. Different recipes were suggested, but in the end the traditional recipe was used, because the Panevėžys Jewish Community’s oven is not large and can’t be used for large-scale production. Housewife Virginija prepared the dough.

Administrator Lina gave a brief talk about challah-baking traditions in Jewish families. Although every housewife has her own recipe for challah bread baked for the Sabbath, the result is always the same: a blessed and delicious loaf of challa.

Community chairman Gennady Kofman said a prayer before the bread-making began. Then everyone got to work: the children made smaller braided loaves while grown-ups made much larger ones. There was a lot of noise, fun and memorable impressions. Everyone was satisfied with the end result as well.

After the baking was over everyone sat down around the Sabbath table set with a cloth decorated with challa from around the world. When it got dark the Sabbath prayer was said, the candles lit and people sipped kosher wine. The Sabbath dinner had begun. There was much talk of Jewish traditions. By candle-light we shared memories of childhood. Many remembered how their mothers used to make challah and how comfortable and cozy it used to be to be at home.