I went back teaching Montessori preschool this fall. The school that I am working at is a Jewish Montessori School which I taught cooking classes last year. Chabad of the Main Line represents the Montessori environment beautifully, and they pride themselves on how they incorporate Judaism throughout every area of the classroom.
This Catholic school girl has learned many things since working at Chabad, and one of my favorite days is Friday because it’s Shabbos, which is the Yiddish word for Shabbot. Shabbos is the centerpiece of Jewish life. It’s a day of rest and celebration that begins Friday at sunset and ends the following evening after nightfall.
To help the children get ready and excited for Shabbos each week we have our own Shabbos party. Each class takes turns making Challah dough on Thursday then the children design their own Challah breads to take home with them that day to eat at with their family. We also make a big Challah for the class party.
Even though we make Challah every week in class, I wanted to mix it up a bit for our weekly cooking class. The kids loved making a mixed fruit Challah bread, and I had some ingredients leftover, so I brought them home for my boys to make their own, too. The recipe we use is an egg-free recipe because of allergies. If you are looking for a more traditional egg recipe, my friend over at Vegging at the Shore has a yummy one.
FIRST: Roll out the dough into a round disk or at least as round as you can make it.
SECOND: Spread on your favorite fruit preserve. We used apricot preserves which went nicely with the fruit.
THIRD: Using a knife or kitchen scissors cut the apricots into small pieces
FOURTH: Place the little pieces of apricots, cranberries and raisins on top of the apricot preserves
FIFTH: Start at one end and begin to roll the dough. Then tuck in the sides and place into a small bread pan or baking sheet.
The recipe will make three large egg-free Challah breads or a half dozen smaller loaves. You can also make the dough, freeze before it rises and use the dough at different times when you want it.
While the bread is baking, check out this book — Way Too Much Challah Dough. It's such a cute story, and the kids love to hear it over and over again.
Trina O'Boyle is a Drexel Hill, PA mom of two boys. This post is adapted from her blog, O'Boy Organic.
