Search results for: ""Challa""

How To Cover the Challot
On Shabbat (and Jewish festivals), you should place a white cover above the challot and another below (unless you have a white tablecloth).
Reason To recall the layers of dew above and below the mun that the Israelites ate for 40 years in the desert.
Note If you have a fancy or beautiful cover for your challa that is not white underneath, you may put a white cloth or paper towel between the cover and the challa in order to have a white cover above the challa.
Introduction to Firsts (Reishit)
Jews thank God for His blessings by giving Him the “first” (reishit) of various products (as well as a tenth/ma'aser of agricultural and other wealth). 
“First” applies to:
  • First-Born/Petter Rechem
    • First-born male children/petter rechem (redeemed with money; see Introduction to Pidyon HaBein).
    • First-born male kosher domestic animals (calf, lamb, kid)/petter rechem (in Temple times: sacrificed on altar; now, permanent holy status--see Selling Mother Animal before Birth of Petter Rechem.
    • First-born male donkeys/petter rechem chamor (redeemed with sheep/goat; holiness of both the donkey and the sheep or goat then disappears).
  • Dough/Challa
In Temple times, given to cohen; now, see When To Separate Challa (Hafrashat Challa).
  • First Fruits/Bikurim
In Temple times, the Jew (man or woman) brought the bikurim fruits to the area between altar and Temple building; only the man said the
  • First Shearing/Reishit HaGeiz
Portion of sheep's wool (reishit ha'geiz) (given to cohen).
Note All of the above have holy status except for the wool and the human petter rechem.