Heritage

I've long noted the similarities between Israel and Wales.  Both are small countries surrounded on all sides by enemies, everyone is related to everyone else, and each has a language that, if you don't know it, sounds like someone's spitting at you.  Israel has Moses and Jesus, but then Wales has Shane Williams and Neil Jenkins.

So when we were invited to Shauli and Anat's for Friday dinner (the start of the Jewish Sabbath), I thought I would indulge in a little cross-cultural heritage by baking some challah bread.  This is the bread that you traditionally make lots of before the Sabbath so that you don't have to do any work on the holy days.  As in modern Christianity I don't think shopping counts as work, but chores such as cooking and cleaning certainly do.

The result wasn't too bad.  You have to roll the dough out and braid it. My loaf looked great before it proved, but unfortunately the top braid slipped off the bottom one and left everything looking a bit lopsided.  Still, it tasted great and I used the leftovers for a sausage sandwich this morning, which breaks so many kosher laws I don't even want to think about it.  שבת שלום, as we say in Wales.

It's not what's on the outside but what's on the inside that counts.