ELISSA NADWORNY, HOST:
Last night marked the start of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. It's an occasion best celebrated with some classic holiday food. That's why I visited the home of chef Pati Jinich.
(SOUNDBITE OF KNOCKING ON DOOR)
NADWORNY: She's a successful cookbook writer and host of the PBS program "Pati's Mexican Table." Jinich is Jewish and Mexican. And when I caught up with her, she was preparing a Rosh Hashanah staple but with a twist.
PATI JINICH: Come on in.
NADWORNY: Challah bread, stuffed with Mexican marzipan and orange blossom filling. When we arrive at her kitchen, there's a delicious, nutty aroma emanating from a small bowl.
JINICH: It's just almonds that are ground and mixed with sugar 'cause we want to encase the marzipan inside of the pillowy dough. And I added the orange blossom water because, you know, in Mexico, we use agua de flor de azahar for Day of the Dead bread, and it makes it very fragrant. And by bringing the orange blossom water into my challah, I felt like I was combining, you know, the Mexican and the Jewish love for bread. And because I love being a Mexican and a Jew at the same time.
NADWORNY: Jinich then adds some tang.
(SOUNDBITE OF GRATING LEMON ZEST)
JINICH: OK, some lemon zest.
NADWORNY: And tells us of when her two cultures once clashed.
JINICH: When I was, like, in fifth or sixth grade, my grade chose me to play Virgin Mary, or la Guadalupe, for the school play.
NADWORNY: OK.
JINICH: Which, to me, was a dream. But my babi (ph), my Polish grandmother, came to the play. Oh, my gosh, she was almost dead. She was like, Pati, what are you doing to me? You know we're Jews.
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
JINICH: You can't be doing this. She was so disappointed.
NADWORNY: Aww.
Now she turns to the dough, gathering the ingredients in a stand mixer.
JINICH: OK, let me think. We did the yeast. We did the water. We did the flour.
(SOUNDBITE OF POURING WATER)
JINICH: We did the sugar. We did the salt. We did the eggs. And we need the butter.
NADWORNY: So it's definitely not melted, but it's very soft.
(SOUNDBITE OF MIXING)
JINICH: This is it, though. Like, touch how fluffy it is.
NADWORNY: Oh, wow.
We pull the dough into a long, flat strip and spread a layer of our marzipan filling.
And then I'm just pressing it with my fingers to...
JINICH: Yeah.
NADWORNY: ...Basically seal it down.
JINICH: Seal it down.
NADWORNY: OK.
JINICH: Exactly.
NADWORNY: Now, challah is normally braided, but on Rosh Hashanah, it's round.
JINICH: So how would you describe? I'm just, like, wrapping it around itself.
NADWORNY: Yeah, like a snake, kind of like.
JINICH: Like a snake.
NADWORNY: Or snail, maybe.
The gigantic spiral loaf then goes in the oven. While we wait, I ask Jinich why this bread is important to her.
JINICH: We're so forced to be one thing. We're so forced to choose in what box or label we belong. But we're all a kaleidoscope of things, and I think food is a window into letting us understand, you know, it's good to stand on that bridge and see all my different parts.
NADWORNY: A half hour later...
JINICH: Oh, it's beautiful.
NADWORNY: ...Jinich follows tradition and serves the challah with honey to ring in a sweet new year. Though hers is spiced with Sonoran chiles.
I feel like that is the theme...
JINICH: Yeah.
NADWORNY: ...Of your Rosh Hashanah this year. Sweet and spicy.
JINICH: Yeah. Sweet and spicy.
NADWORNY: Oh my goodness. I have to close my eyes to really get it. And then, almost before you finish the swallow, my brain is saying, I need another bite.
JINICH: I know (laughter).
NADWORNY: That was Chef Pati Jinich. You can find her full challah recipe on her website. Her latest cookbook is called "Foods Of La Frontera," and it's out next week.
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