S.PETERSBURG, Russia – The Great Choral Synagogue in S. Petersburg hosted a special workshop for participants to master the skill of challah baking. Among the participants were women and girls of all ages, including participants in the STARS university program as well as a number of mother-daughter teams.
"There are different ways to shape the special bread that is made in honor of the Sabbath, known as challah,” explained Leah Goldberg, who led the class. “For Shabbat, the challah is customarily braided with six or four strands of dough. For Rosh Hashanah, round challah is more suitable, as it symbolizes the year’s completion. There can also be intricate shapes or designs, such as the form of the Magen David.”
During the workshop, the women had the chance to make the dough and fulfill the commandment of separating a small portion known as “challah.” Jewish teachings consider the separating of challah as one of the three mitzvot (commandments) especially entrusted to Jewish women.
Participants also learned to braid challah in a variety of different ways. "The most challenging shape was to learn how to make a round challah ring comprised of a three-stranded braid,” admitted Asya Slutskaya, as she proudly displayed the challah she had shaped.
Once the challah was put into the oven, the participants held a raffle for a book on challah preparation from Israel after which participants took part in an educational role-playing game.
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