Davida's Healthy Challa (Bread Recipes)

Name: TheChocolateLady

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Product:	Bread Recipes
Date:	06/01/08 (162 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Delicious and kneading can help you get your agressions out

Disadvantages: A bit time consuming and a touch fiddly

Challa is a special type of bread that Jews eat on the Sabbath and holidays. It is often referred to as 'egg bread' since the recipe usually has a large amount of eggs (I use a total of 6 of the largest eggs I can buy).

Technically, the word 'challa' isn't the name of the bread at all. The 'challa' is a small olive sized piece of dough which is separated from the rest of the dough before baking. This is baked and then burnt (representing the distruction of the Temple) and thrown away after a special prayer is said.

There are as many recipes of Challa as there are Jewish cooks and cookbooks. Different ethnic traditions call for differences in the recipes. One distinct addition is sprinkling sesame seeds or poppy seeds on the top of the bread before baking (usually after an egg wash, to help the seeds stick). This is supposed to represent the manna which God gave the Israelites to eat while they wandered in the desert. Some people prefer very sweet bread and will even add raisins to the dough.

My recipe is as follows:

Take 50gr of fresh yeast and dissolve is slightly warm water with a tiny sprinkle of sugar to activate, and set aside (sorry, I've never used instant yeast so I don't know the equivalent for this).

In a very large bowl put:

4 tablespoons of dark brown sugar (or honey)
2 tablespoons salt
½ cup of oil (olive or canola)
1 cup of boiling water

Mix this together so that the salt and sugar are dissolved. Then add:

½ cup of wheat germ
¼ cup of oat bran

Mix this well and then add:

¼ cup cold water and
the yeast

Separate one of the 6 eggs and retain the yolk. Beat the rest into the above. Start adding:

Dark, whole wheat flour - about 2-3 cups - and then add light wheat flour until the mixture becomes too difficult to mix with a spoon and must be turned out onto a floured surface. Knead in more light flour until you have a soft, smooth dough that begins to become elastic and spring back when you push at it. Make this into a ball and the lightly oil it, and place it in a large covered bowl in a warm place to rise (somewhere warm, but not hot) until at least doubled in bulk for about an hour. Punch this down and knead again and then begin to shape it into loaves.

Traditionally, Challa is braided bread and at this point you'll want to make the braids. If you follow Jewish tradition, it is at this point that you'll take out of the dough the 'challa' described above. Then cut or tear your dough into as many loaves as you want to make (this recipe usually makes about 4 large loaves). Then cut those into as many pieces as you want strands for your braids. I usually do a four strand braid, but a three strand "hair" braid is also fine. Roll the pieces into what I call 'snakes' and then braid them. I sometimes begin the braid from the middle and work to the two ends, and then fold under the ends so that you get an even loaf.

If you want loaves that are easy to slice later for sandwiches, you might want to put these into loaf pans, but I usually place them onto baking sheets that have been covered with parchment papers. Put the 'challa' on one corner and then cover all this with a clean cloth and let raise another 30 minutes.

Take the saved egg yolk and add a bit of water to this, and then brush this on top of the challot (that's plural for challa), trying to avoid the crevices as best as possible. If you want to add sesame or poppy seeds, this is the time to do it.

Bake these at 180°C for about 25-30 minutes, or until they turn golden brown on top, and when you thump the bottoms, you hear a slightly hollow sound.

Enjoy!

Davida Chazan © January 2008
(I can't believe I never posted a recipe to this site before!)

PS: Funny that the picture they put up here for this category is actually of Challa!

Summary: A recipe for traditional Jewish bread which I've made healthy, as well!