Shlissel on my table

This picture is from last year.  It's the the final product on my shabbos table from the Sisterhood schlissel challah making event.

Good Shabbos y'all!!

Schlissel anyone???

It is the custom among some Jews to make a challah in the shape of a key or with an actual key baked inside it for the first shabbat after Passover. This is called a schlissel challah, literally "key" in Yiddish. The schlissel challah is supposed to be a good omen for livelihood.

Last year, the local synagogue's Sisterhood sponsored a huge community challah bake for women and girls. It was so much fun. We learned how to make challah from scratch, several braiding methods, and the spiritual meaning of the mitzvah of challah baking.  Afterwards we went home and baked the bread.

Below are a series of pictures from the event:

I make my family's challah in a breadmaker on the dough cycle, then take it out and braid it.  I'm not used to the manual method.  It's messier but you can make more or larger loaves.  It also seems more spiritual to make it by hand without a mixer or breadmaker.  I may have to do it on my own more often.

Here's the recipe we used...

BTW, NONE of the fancy braiding below is done by me.  I haven't been able to get the hang of it though I my tween daughter can.

The baked product.  My schlissel didn't come out that pretty this time around, but it sure tasted good.  Plus I had a really nice time making it.

The non-schlissel challahs came out much more attractive.  That's something, right?

Spice-er-rific

Believe it or not, I had a bunch of dried spices left over from the summer.  I've been using the spices consistently, but I had one last batch that never quite made it to the container.  Finally, I put the last batch of it in a re-used Italian seasonings jar to um, keep the Italian seasonings.  Yup.  I'm edgy like that.  :)

Update on the Plastic Bag Challenge

As you may recall, I gave myself the challenge to greatly reduce (or even stop entirely) the receipt of plastic bags when shopping.  What this means to me is that I will strive to not get more plastic bags via shopping.  I'd say it's been pretty successful.  While I use plastic bags, I TRY not to get new ones.  Though I have ended up getting new ones now and again, it's by far the exception. Typically, I rarely buy plastic bags--zip lock, garbage bags, etc.  Not that I would never buy or use a "new" zip lock bag, but I don't like single use products, especially when there are usually other options available.  So I haven't purchased any one-time use plastic bags since before the challenge began.

So, I've been carrying around currently owned plastic bags with me along with at least two cloth bags.  Let's face it, plastic bags are darn useful.  They keep stuff together, and often prevent liquids and other messy foodstuffs to spill all over the place when travelling.  I've been able to use the current storehouse of bags from my house or office.  (My dh likes to add to our stockpile, I can't seem to break him of the habit. Boo hoo.)

I'll continue to strive to greatly reduce even more my personal and family plastic bag footprint. 

Funny Story

Funny story.

I was in my garden this weekend planting a bunch of things.  It looked like it was going to rain, but nothing came of it and the sun came back out.  Okay, so I had to water the plants after all.

I hooked up two hoses so it would reach my newly seeded area and watered away.  I properly soaked the whole area with the peas, raspberries, blueberries, and other plantings. Then I drenched the main garden with my new seedlings and just seeded rows.  I then put away both hoses, gathered up my stuff, and began walking away.  And, wouldn't you know it...it started to pour.  Hard.  Oh well.  You win some, you lose some.  :)

My achin' shoulders...

Um, my shoulders hurt a bit from all the gardening.  But that's a good thing, right?  Right. 😃

Garden Day!!

Yesterday was a BEA-TI-FUL day.  Warm, but not too warm.  Sunny, but not too sunny.  Perfect!!  And, how did I take advantage of such a day?  I attacked my garden, AGAIN.  (And, I liked it!)

I planted my new seedlings (Brussel sprouts and strawberries).  Tilled and planted a new area for Alaska peas.  I've never had much success on planting from seeds, but I've heard that peas are pretty easy, so I gave it a try.  And, since I'm woefully short on plantings this year, I opted to plant from seed some cucumbers.  Four rows of cukes.  And, parsley seeds planted from a PJ Library promotion.  I also made fancy signs for many of my new plants (Duct tape, Sharpie, stick).  Really, the garden doesn't look that good yet.  I'd like to attach some photos, but I think they'll be blah.

I also intend to plant some flowers from seeds in the community part of the garden to pretty it up.

Oh, I keep finding small pieces of garbage, fruit stickers, shards of GLASS and various other unacceptable trash in and around the garden area.  The garden is in the communal backyard where lots of folks picnic, snack and play, so it's not surprising do find the errant wrapper. But, GLASS???  I know, I know, one bottle breaks an it leaves a million shards. But, yuck! It's not a lot, but enough to annoy me.

Stop me, please!

I'm addicted, and can't stop.  Someone please stop me.  I cannot stop from buying plants for my garden.

I've been wanting to plant raspberries and blueberries for as long as I can remember.  We had a big bush for years as a kid and it was great to just go back there and chow down.  I've been hesitant to buy them as an adult for lack of space.  However, last year a neighbor bought a raspberry bush and planted it in a corner area of the communal garden.  Ever since, I've been plotting to do the same thing!!! 

Being the cheapo that I am, I scoured Craigslist (my new favorite past-time) and the Internet for discounted berry bushes.  I decide not to go via a mail order site since shipping would jack up the price. The options were, big box stores, farmers market, various out of town farms, and the backyard gardener who had tons of overgrowth and wants to sell some to make a few bucks.  The latter is the route I went.  I found this guy on Craigslist who isn't that far from my dh's office in New Jersey.  At my request, my dh purchased two small blueberry bushes (they say you need two for them to properly produce), two small raspberry bushes, and three nice sized strawberry plants.  He bought the lot for $30.  I guess that's a good price.  Who knows???

(While I did see a place in Westchester that was cheaper, I have a thing for immediate gratification and I wanted them NOW!!!  Not sure when we'd be able to get to Westchester.  Maybe we'll take a road trip this summer for more berry bushes.)

That same day dh picked up at Walmart a bunch of $1.50 plants such a big boy and better boy tomatoes, spinach, and a few others.  At the farmers market, I bought a bunch of $1 lettuces.  Then I went back to the market the follow week for more a 4 pack of strawberries, and a 4 pack of Brussel sprouts.  They were $3.50 and $2.50 each, respectively (I think).

Still the garden is pretty empty.  Often, I get gifted plants from my mother for my birthday (which I LOVE), but I never know what plants I'll get and when I'll get them.  Considering it's a short growing season here in NYC, it can be a little problematic.

I'm greedy and want MORE plants!!!!

Recycling...

OMG, I am such a geek.  I love composting.  It's such a great way to make something fantastic (fabulous soil) out of something that is not only not wanted, but causes stress on the ecosystem.  Here's some shots I took at Union Square a while back when there was a little snow left on the ground.  You see how many bins there are (and there were many more that didn't get in the photo), I'm not the only freak-a-zoid that participates in this goodness.

Oh, today, I knocked on the door of several local establishments (one deli, one restaurant, and one coffee place--not Starbucks, but I would have asked them, if they were closer).  And, what pray-tell did I ask???  I requested their used coffee grounds, which would be otherwise be put in the trash.  But, my bad timing meant that only I got only one batch of coffee grounds.  I think it was enough though.  However, since I'm a compost-aholic, and just purchased blueberry bushes (which are acidic lovin') and thrive on coffee grounds, I sprinkled and buried the coffee grounds in and around the bushes.  More on my blueberry bushes later...