A new take on Friday night challah from kosher caterer Got Kosher?

June 9, 9:39 PMLA Cooking ExaminerErika Kerekes

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On Friday nights around the world for the Sabbath, Jews eat traditional challah, a sweet bread rich with eggs. But now, Los Angeles Jews have another choice: one of the new-wave challah varieties from kosher caterer Got Kosher? near Beverly Hills.

Alain Cohen, the Tunisian-born, Parisian-raised owner and chef of Got Kosher?, has added some modern local flavors to millenia of tradition. He started with his mother's recipe and went wild. Got Kosher? now sells challah with green olives; fennel and salt; chocolate chips; turmeric; and dried fruits and and nuts (apricots, cranberries, almonds and macadamias). He's even got a pretzel-dough challah, where the traditional eggs are replaced by water. 

Cohen worked as a bakery manager for La Brea Bakery under Nancy Silverton, which, he says, "may have had something to do with my interest in bread." Putting a new spin on challah is just one of the ways Cohen is striving to redefine and bring a gourmet slant to kosher cuisine.

The breads come in two and three pound sizes and sell for $7 to $10; large pretzel rolls are$2 for 3. Got Kosher? is at 8914 W. Pico Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90035, 310-858-1920 (closed Saturday).