Throughout the Jewish fall holiday cycle we have a tradition of round Challah shapes to symbolize wholeness and return (Tshuvah). As we approach the climax of joy for the Jewish fall holiday cycle with the onset of Shmini Atzeret (8th day of Assembly) and Simchat Torah (rejoicing in the Torah), I am writing briefly to share simple round shapes that look great without stress.
I have three basic round Challah shapes based on the basic ‘snail’ made from a single coil. This is the easiest to master and looks great all by itself.
Here are single and two-strand snail shapes
The second is a twisted snail, made with two strands, and the third is a three-strand braid, also coiled into the snail shape.
Here is a two-strand snail.
The three-strand snail starts with a simple braid:
The three-strand braid makes a beautiful snail.
Here you can see the difference between the two and three-strand snail shapes.
Whatever shape you choose is the right one – there is no wrong answer.
Born February 21, 1961 in Detroit, Michigan; enjoying 2nd Middle Age in Zichron Yaakov, Israel.
After a misspent youth in the US Foreign Service (postings in London, Tel Aviv and Manila), I moved to the Semi-private Sector, working for a leading trade association in Washington DC before launching my own company Finston Consulting in 2005. Over the last 15+ years I have worked with innovative companies ranging from Fortune-100 to start up, as well as NGOs, and governments, including service as a cleared advisor (Secret level) to the Commerce Department and the U.S. Trade Representative (IPR, Tariff/Trade Facilitation).
As a graduate of the University of Michigan, my degrees include a Bachelors of Science (Philosophy, High Honors), Juris Doctor and Masters of Public Policy. After law school I clerked at the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit before joining the U.S. Foreign Service (TSI-CodeWord Clearance). I am a member of the Illinois and US Supreme Court Bar.
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