Kichel

Kichel (Yiddish: קיכל, plural kichlach קיכלעך, the diminutive of קוכן kukhn "cake") is a slightly sweet cracker or cookie in Jewish cuisine. Made from eggs, flour, and sugar, the dough is rolled out flat and cut into bow-tie shapes.^[1][2]

Kichel

Type	Cookie or cracker
Place of origin	Eastern Europe
Main ingredients	Eggs, sugar

Commercially prepared kichel are dry, bow-tie shaped pastries sprinkled with sugar.^[3] They are traditionally served at the kiddush in synagogues after Shabbat services and are also a popular dessert at Rosh Hashanah.^[4][5]

Kichlach seem to have developed in central or eastern Europe in Ashkenazi Jewish communities by the nineteenth century and subsequently gained popularity around the world with the diaspora and migrations in the twentieth century.^[6][7] Kiddush in early twentieth-century Ashkenazi synagogues centered around kichlach, pickled herring, and schnapps.^[8] Jews in South Africa still serve kichel with chopped herring, also a common practice in American synagogues until the 1950s.^[8] Kichlach are sometimes eaten with another kind of savoury dip or topping.^[9]

Due to their light, airy texture, the cookies are sometimes called "nothings."^[10] Kichlach have a reputation for being a dry cookie and are often dipped in a hot beverage such as tea.^[11] When prepared with matzah meal rather than flour, kichlach can be consumed during the Passover holiday.

References

1. Nathan, Joan (2011-01-12). Joan Nathan's Jewish Holiday Cookbook. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-77785-0.
2. Levi, Yona (2019-12-15). "Is Kichel a Cracker or a Cookie?". aishcom. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
3. Kichels Recipe: Jewish Bow Tie Cookies
4. Kichel
5. Nathan, Joan (2002-09-04). "To the New Year, Southern Style". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-29.
6. "Folksongs. Patch, Patch, Kichelech! sung by Ruth Rubin". YIVO Archives. Retrieved 2022-05-29.
7. "Kichlach". Consulate of the General of Israel to the Mid-Atlantic. 1999. Retrieved 2022-05-29.
8. Koenig, Leah (2019). "Kichlach: History Lesson". The 100 most Jewish foods : a highly debatable list. Alana Newhouse, Stephanie Butnick, Noah Fecks, Joana Avillez, Gabriella Gershenson. New York: Artisan. p. 153. ISBN 978-1-57965-927-1. OCLC 1089264811.
9. Riklin, Matt (21 Jan 2021). "Go Eat Houston: Kichel, teiglach and marunchinos, oh my!". Jewish Herald-Voice. Retrieved 2022-05-29.
10. Mmm… kichelicious!
11. Hoffmann, Wayne (2019). "Kichlach". The 100 most Jewish foods : a highly debatable list. Alana Newhouse, Stephanie Butnick, Noah Fecks, Joana Avillez, Gabriella Gershenson. New York: Artisan. p. 152. ISBN 978-1-57965-927-1. OCLC 1089264811.