my first ever shlissel challah from last shabbat (5785)

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my first ever shlissel challah from last shabbat (5785)
Hopefully our challah comes out less… risqué
The Key in the Bread There is the tradition of baking a special type of challah for the first Shabbat after Passover. Made either in the shape of a key or with a key baked inside, the special bread is known as shlissel challah, with shlissel being the Yiddish word for "key." It is said to be a “remedy” for livelihood. A number of people just posted very negative opinions about this custom, even calling it “Idolatry!” Here is my brief reply to their comments: Whoa! Wait a minute. Stop accusing others’ customs just because you do not understand them. Really! The reason behind the key in the Challah this Shabbos is to remind us of the spiritual teaching behind Challah. On Shabbos we use two Challahs to remind us of the Manna, the miraculous food that Hashem sustained us with in the wilderness when we left Egypt. The two loaves remind us of the Challah as; if we would pick more than our needs any day the extra would rot. However, since we could not go out and pick up the Manna on Shabbos, Hashem miraculously doubled the Manna we picked on Friday. This teaches us that our livelihood is dependent on Hashem. Yes, we have to do what we can to bring in our livelihood, we have to go out and pick it up, but whether or not we will succeed is always dependent on Hashem. Even if we would go out into the wilderness, Hashem can and does provide us with our support. The point being, the KEY to our support (our bread) comes from Hashem’s miraculous kindness. Remembering this is the “remedy” for our livelihood. All of our customs come for a good reason. Thank G-d for them.
Gutman Locks
Shlissel challah is a centuries-old Jewish tradition.