Breadness Buzz - Hanukkah Challah, Gift Rush Week, Big Loaves Rule...

NOTE: If this is your first Breadness Buzz, or you've been part of our tribe but missed earlier posts, visit the Breadness Buzz Archive here and catch up on some Breaducation written especially for you. It's a great way to be part of this journey I started back in 2016. And now for this week's Buzz...

Hanukkah Challah...

In celebration of the start of Hanukkah, last weekend I made a few braided artisan sourdough bread loaves; a traditional Challah bread with 2 notable exceptions: no sugar or honey and no egg wash to give the bread a shiny, amber coating.

How did this "Challah" taste without those ingredients? Amazing! And I'm not just saying that. I went to an event last weekend and brought one of these 2-pound loaves with me. I happened to run into several friends who are from Israel and I tore off chunks of my challah for them to taste. They all said it was fantastic and wanted more! Mind you, this was just the bread; butter wasn't available. When I later had some challah with butter, it was off the charts!

Organic, lower glycemic than most breads and vegan-friendly. It's all good...

To make this challah, I took the dough of 2 batards (after overnight proofing in the refrigerator) and stretched them into 4 long stands for braiding. It's the same dough we bake our bread with but something happens when the dough is stretched and braided: it's prevented from springing up as much as it would have if it were not constrained by the braid, resulting in a dense crumb that tastes sweeter than usual.

Here's a close-up of what that looks like:

And the best part is pulling the bread apart, rather than slicing it! It takes some doing, but it's worth it!

I'm baking more of these this weekend so if you're looking to elevate one (or more) of your Hanukkah gatherings, this bread will definitely be the center of attention!

A Healthy Challah from Random Acts of Breadness... the 9th Wonder of the World?

Gift Rush Week...

(Note: This section is about creating and shipping Breadness Gifts across the country as time is running out for having shipments reach their destination by Christmas. However, if you will be coming to the bakery to pick up items to give to those you plan to see in the coming week, just reserve these items using our online shop which has descriptions and photos of every item, or call us to place your order. Of course, it's always fun to sample tastes of our exceptional baked goods and gourmet products which can only be done in person, so there's still time to do that today through Sunday. We will be open next Wednesday, Christmas Eve, to pick up orders for Christmas, but we may run out of items if they have not been reserved.)

The Gift Rush is happening at Random Acts of Breadness. Monday I packed and shipped 4 Breadness Custom Gift Boxes that were sent back east via UPS 2-Day Air. Tuesday I received a phone call requesting 8 Breadness Custom Gift Boxes for shipping to the Minnesota, Kansas, Arizona and So Cal.

The above photo shows 5 items packed to withstand the rigors of shipping. The photo below shows the topping and personalized message card that's included in each gift box.

And here are 8 Gift Boxes prelabeled and ready to take to the local UPS store for pickup.

At this point the only destinations we can ship to that would be able to receive our Breadness Gift Boxes before Christmas are Southern California from San Diego to Bakersfield; Palm Springs to Santa Barbara. These orders would have to be placed today by noon (Thursday) to ensure available bread stock, and to have time to pack whatever items you would like to include in the box(es). UPS Ground service is usually 1 day within this region, but being holiday season, it could take an extra day.

Call us at 818-562-7303 if you'd like to order over the phone. We can help you choose the best items that fit your budget.

Big Loaves Rule...

The second shelf on our bread rack is filled with 12 XL Batards. Originally made for restaurants, our customers have embraced them now as well! We have a limited supply of these so order on line to reserve your loaf/loaves. If we run out, there might be one or 2 presliced in our freezer and we provide instructions on how to thaw/ rehydrate this loaf for optimum results.

One Last Thing...

If time is short and it's too late to ship before Christmas, you can purchase one or more Random Acts of Breadness Gift Cards, either printed on special paper at the bakery or emailed as a PDF file to your intended recipients. These Gift Cards are as good as cash at the bakery and can also be used as payment for online orders (by entering the Gift Card number in the Gift Card field).

Here's what we have at the bakery for you this week...

— Organic Artisan Sourdough Country Loaf
(Batard, XL Batard (2 lbs), Boule, Petite, Bread Bowls, Slider Buns/Rolls, Challah)

— Organic Artisan Cinnamon Raisin Maple Pecan Sourdough
(Boule, Batard, Petite, Rolls/Buns)

— Organic Artisan Chocolate Sourdough (Boule, Petite)

— Organic Artisan GingerBreadness (Boule, Petite)

— Organic Artisan Sourdough Flatbread Crisps
(Naked, Tuscan Herb, Smoked, Chocolate)

— Organic/non-GMO Breadness Brûlée Muffin (Gluten-neutral, Sugar-free)

— Organic/non-GMO Blueberry Muffins (Grain-free, Sugar-free)

— Organic/non-GMO Choco-Chip Chookies (Grain-free, Sugar-free)

— Organic/non-GMO Sourdough Shortbread (Gluten-neutral, Sugar-free)

— Organic Strawberry Sorbet (Gluten-free, No Added Sugar, Vegan)

— Organic Pineapple Sorbet (Gluten-free, No Added Sugar, Vegan)

— Organic Strawberry-Coconut Popsicles (Gluten-free, No Added Sugar, Vegan)

— Amazing Fresh Coffee, Holland Process (Cup or Demitasse)

— Chocolate Chill (Gluten-free, Sugar-free, Keto, Vegan)

And our awesome lineup of Extra Virgin Olive Oils and Balsamic Vinegars, along with our Butters, Garlic Bread Spreadness, Cheese, Tapenades, Nut Butters, Fruit Spreads/Jams and Sourdough Pasta and Tomato Products from Italy!

Random Acts of Breadness is located at 2214 West Magnolia Blvd in Burbank, 2-1/2 blocks east of Buena Vista on the south side of the street. Order at breadness.com/#shop, or via DoorDash. We also ship locally and nationwide.

Holiday Hours Next Week...

Make a note on your calendar of the following changes to our operating hours for the last 2 weeks of December:

We will be OPEN on Wednesday Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve.

We will be CLOSED on Thursday Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

This week we're open Thursday, Friday & Saturday 12 to 6pm, and Sunday 11am to 4pm.

CYNDIE and CHEF RANDALL

Here's to Happy (and Healthy) Holidays!

Randall Michael Tobin
Artisan Baker/Chef
Breadness.com

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2214 West Magnolia Blvd.
Unit A
Burbank, CA 91506
USA

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