My Favorite Challah
- 1 1/2 packages active dry yeast (1 1/2 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil, more for greasing bowl
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 8 to 8 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- Poppy or sesame seeds for sprinkling
- In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water.
- Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt.
- Gradually add flour.
- When dough holds together, it is ready for kneading.
- (You can also use a mixer with a dough hook for both mixing and kneading.)
- Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth.
- Clean out bowl and grease it, then return dough to bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until almost doubled in size.
- Dough may also rise in an oven that has been warmed to 150 degrees then turned off.
- Punch down dough, cover and let rise again in a warm place for another half-hour.
- To make a 6-braid challah, either straight or circular, take half the dough and form it into 6 balls.
- With your hands, roll each ball into a strand about 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide.
- Place the 6 in a row, parallel to one another.
- Pinch the tops of the strands together.
- Move the outside right strand over 2 strands.
- Then take the second strand from the left and move it to the far right.
- Take the outside left strand and move it over 2.
- Move second strand from the right over to the far left.
- Start over with the outside right strand.
- Continue this until all strands are braided.
- For a straight loaf, tuck ends underneath.
- For a circular loaf, twist into a circle, pinching ends together.
- Make a second loaf the same way.
- Place braided loaves on a greased cookie sheet with at least 2 inches in between.
- Beat remaining egg and brush it on loaves.
- Either freeze breads or let rise another hour.
- If baking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again.
- If freezing, remove from freezer 5 hours before baking.
- Then dip your index finger in the egg wash, then into poppy or sesame seeds and then onto a mound of bread.
- Continue until bread is decorated with seeds.
- Bake in middle of oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden.
- Cool loaves on a rack.
active dry yeast, sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, salt, flour, sprinkling
Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/7199 (may not work)