Sugar Kichel

Lichvod Shabbat kodesh, I am finally posting this shul classic, sugar kichel. Upon receiving my copy of Inside the Jewish Bakery, I immediately wanted to put it to work. I chose the sugar kichel because I knew one of my sisters adores it and I thought it would be a nice throwback to the the times we actually went to the bakery and brought them home to enjoy (instead of me baking). This recipe hit the nail on the head, an exact replica of the cookies we used to munch on- eggy, crunchy and sweet. My father was extremely impressed. The cookies aren't hard to make, but between rolling, shaping and baking, it is a bit of a long process-I was up very late putting them together and baking them off, but just for that bit of nostalgia, the result was well worth it.

Sugar Kichel
slightly adapted from Inside the Jewish Bakery

43 grams sugar
5 grams kosher salt
170 grams eggs, beaten
170 grams egg yolks, beaten
170 grams vegetable oil
5 grams vanilla
455 grams all purpose flour
595 grams sugar, for coating

Place the sugar through flour in the bowl of your mixer.

Using your flat beater, beat at low to make a smooth dough with well developed gluten, about twenty minutes.

Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface,

and knead for two minutes until it is no longer sticky. Allow the dough to rest for half hour to relax the gluten. Do not omit this step! It makes rolling easier!! Preheat your oven to 350 and line baking sheets with parchment.

Spread half of the sugar on your work surface,

and roll the dough out to a thickness of about 1/4 inch, using the rest of the sugar for the top surface.

Use a sharp knife to cut into small rectangles.

Twist into bow ties and place on baking sheet.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown but do not underbake. Remove to a rack and let cool until thoroughly cooled and dried out. Store immediately in plastic.