When I was growing up in the 1980s and ’90s, the Saturday morning kiddush at my mainline Conservative synagogue in suburban Chicago was a delightfully elaborate affair: Manischewitz wine, gefilte fish, fruit platters, and plates of Hydrox chocolate sandwich cookies. Add a bar or bat mitzvah sponsor, and the selection swelled to include egg salad, bagels and cream cheese, and frosted pastel petit fours that got recycled the following week without ever growing stale.
Egg Kichel (Bowtie Cookies)
June 21, 2021
Ingredients
- 3Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1tsp table salt
- 4large eggs plus 9 large egg yolks
- ¾cup vegetable oil
- 1 ¼tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ¼tsp rum flavoring (optional)
- 3 ½cups unsifted all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 3cups granulated sugar, for coating
Preparation
Egg Kichel (Bowtie Cookies), reprinted with permission from Inside the Jewish Bakery: Recipes and Memories From the Golden Age of Jewish Baking, by Stanley Ginsberg and Norman Berg
- Step 1
Combine all the ingredients through the flour in the bowl of a standing mixer, and mix with the flat paddle beater set at low speed until dough is smooth and has a well-developed gluten, about 20 minutes.
- Step 2
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface and knead for 2–3 minutes, until it no longer sticks. Cover it with plastic wrap or a damp cloth, and let it rest for 20–30 minutes to relax the gluten.
- Step 3
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Step 4
Spread 1 1/2 cups of sugar evenly over your work surface, and roll out the dough to about 1/4-inch thick. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar over the top surface of the dough. Using a sharp knife or a pizza wheel, cut the dough into 1-inch by 2-inch rectangles. Give each strip a half twist to form the bowtie, and arrange on cookie sheets, about 1-inch apart.
- Step 5
Bake for 20–25 minutes, until the bowties are golden brown. It’s important that the cookies be fully baked, otherwise they’ll collapse as they cool. Remove to a rack, and let cool for 3–4 hours, until cold and thoroughly dried out. Store immediately in a Tupperware to retain freshness.