It’s hard to believe it’s already been over a year since we last celebrated Rosh Hashanah!
This year, instead of bringing in the New Year with good friends and a massive feast, I had two small celebrations:
#1) A quick bread breaking + L’Shana Tova exchange with Ben and the crew at Livity Café of Life, and then #2) a quiet celebration during my Chemical Dependency class [wop wop]. Don’t worry, two of us brought challah + honey, and we still found time to celebrate [during our break]. 
After teaching my kickboxing class yesterday, I got home and started working on my favorite whole wheat challah recipe. While the dough sat in the sun to rise, I worked on homework and research.
Since the recipe makes two huge loaves, this year I decided to step outside my box braid and try some different challah designs. Thank goodness for this girl’s mad braiding skills – she made it all seem so simple!
Because it’s Rosh Hashanah, I decided I’d finally make some round challah [circles represent the cycle of one year coming to a close and a new year beginning]. Since I can’t actually eat this bread comfortably anymore [the gluten kills me!], I knew I had to make the loaves easy for Ben to share with others and/or to store in the freezer. With all of that in mind, I settled on three designs: linked loops [the chain shape represents strength, unity, and togetherness], turban/spiral, and mini challah rolls [perfect for sharing with my classmates + Ben’s students!].
**Check out the the Shiksa’s page [linked above] to see how it’s done.**
I also filled half the challah with golden raisins this year [signifying a sweet year ahead], something I had never done before.
I’m happy to report that everything was a success!
Most of the bread has already been shared among friends and family, but the link loaf had a special purpose: it was cooled, sliced, and then frozen [Ben’s already salivating for challah french toast!].
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I have faith that this coming year will continue to bring light, love, and beauty. Ben + I have a feeling it will be a year that changes everything.
L’Shana Tova, friends! Love + light to you all. 
Do you have high hopes for this coming year?
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