Speaking of sabbatical, here is a recipe for Challa, a traditional bread, eaten on the sabbath and Jewish holidays. Except Passover. Our neighbor and friend, the multi-talented and all-around-awesome Juliet Page, shared her own recipe with market day.
:Dough:
- 4 cups of flour (2 white; 2 whole wheat)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon dry yeast
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs (whole)
- vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- egg yolk (yellow)
- Poppy / sesame/ sunflower seeds
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl or a bread-maker (45 minutes)
- For an extra-rich dough, Juliet recommends using 3-4 egg yolks instead of whole eggs
- Punch, knead dough and put in bowl; cover with towel/wrap and rest overnight
- Preheat oven to 400*F
- Divide the dough to 2 halves, then divide each half in three. You should get six portions, each portion about the size of a softball
- Knead three balls of the six and shape each one to a long, ~3/4 inch thick snakes or ropes
- Braid the challa: take three snakes and work your way. If you've never braided dough or hair before, here is a mildly amusing yet informative demonstration video of a 3-braid challa; link: http://youtu.be/YR6aIAh2Vt8. Need a challenge? Here's a video for a 4-braid challa.
- Repeat to prepare the second challah
- Mix the egg, vanilla, and sugar for the glaze in a small bowl. Using a brush, glaze the two challa loaves. Sprinkle the top with poppy seeds, sesame, or sunflower seeds
- Bake in 400*F for 10 minutes, then 375*F for another 10-15 minutes
- It is recommended to bake on a baking stone /pizza stone, or on a pizza rack. If you don't have one, just use a regular oven pan
- Take out of oven and cool on a rack , 20 minutes
**Recipe by Juliet Page. For Juliet's blog, Doobie, click here. **
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