Sweet Challah

Wow, Challah -  where to start? Challah is a huge topic, and there are entire blogs dedicated to challah making.  Challah is a sweet bread, that is a traditionally served on Shabbos. Many women make it fresh every Friday. Most of you know that homemade challah is delicious, especially fresh out of the oven. I'll tell you a little secret- in the past 7 years, I have never had bakery challah show it's face on our Shabbos table. Not that I am bragging, we just like home made challah so much better! Since it is a messy task to make challah fresh every Friday, I like to make a huge batch every month or so, and freeze it for the next few weeks. We warm it up in the oven on Friday, and it tastes practically fresh! Don't be scared to try making challah- anyone can do it. It just takes some practice. There are many different ways to shape challah, braiding being the most common. Six braids are especially pretty, and I found the following video very helpful in learning how to make a six braid.

If braiding seems too daunting, you can roll 6 even balls of dough and arrange them in a circle with one ball in the middle, in a 9 inch circle pan, and the result is very pretty. 

The following recipe is from my sister-in-law, and after trying a few different recipes, I have to say this one is the winner! 

Sweet Challah  makes 6 large braids

5 lbs all purpose flour ( approximately 12 cups)

1 3/4 cups sugar

2 tablespoons salt

2/3 cup oil

4 eggs

3 tablespoons dry instant yeast

3 1/2 cups lukewarm water

Notes before beginning:

1. The temperature of the water is very important for the dough to rise properly. If it is too hot, it will kill the yeast, and if it is too cool, the dough will not rise. The water should feel like bathwater- perfectly lukewarm.

2. Do not try to make the dough in a Kitchen Aid- it will break it! The best mixer to use is either a Magic Mill or a Bosch. If you do not have either of those mixers, you can mix the dough by hand ( I do!) and it will be fine. If you are mixing the dough by hand, be prepared to knead it for at least 10 minutes. The longer you knead the dough, the smoother it will be, producing beautiful challos. 

3. When braiding the challah, make sure to sprinkle the ropes generously with flour- it helps the challah keep it's shape better. I one time heard a challah expert (seriously, she gives classes) say that flour is like a challah's hairspray- it keeps the braid together.

Directions:
 Pour warm water into a large bowl or an 8 quart pot. Add yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let it sit for about 10 minutes, until there is a layer of foam on top from the yeast. Add the flour, sugar, salt, oil, and eggs. Knead for at least 10-15 minutes. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour -1/4 cup at a time. Cover with a damp towel, and put it in a warm place to rise. Let it rise for an hour or until it doubles in size. Form challos into braids, and place onto lined baking pan. Cover again with a damp towel, and allow to rise for another hour. Be careful not to move the pans around too much- they can lose their height if they are bumped around. In a small bowl, mix together 2 eggs and 1 tablespoon water. Mix well. This will be your egg wash, and gives the challos a nice shine. After the challos have risen, brush the egg wash on gently with a pastry brush. There are a few options for toppings. The most common are sesame seeds or poppy seeds. For a sweeter challah, the following crumb topping is delicious: 

Crumb Topping:

1 1/2 cup flour

1 1/4 cup sugar

6 tablespoons oil

1 teaspoon vanilla sugar (optional)

Mix together well until it forms a fine crumb. Sprink over challos after you have applied the egg wash. You can also sprinkle some crumbs on the pans before you put the braids down, and it gives the crust a nice sweet crunch. 

Bake the challah at 375° , 25 minutes for chewy challah, 30 minutes for crunchy challah.

If anyone has any specific questions on making challah, please feel free to leave a comment, and I will do my best to reply.