Homemade Challah Recipe

Ever since we went on our trip to Israel, we’ve enjoyed making Shabbat on Friday nights a “thing”. We like to make homemade challah and chicken soup, light the candles, have some wine (pre-pregnancy!), turn off our phones, and relax. For us, it’s not necessarily a religious thing, but more so a way to unwind from the week and enjoy some alone time together. We’re looking forward to incorporating this tradition with our daughter in the near future!

Okay, back to why you are here — homemade challah! Over quarantine, I joined a Honeymoon Israel Challah Baking class on Zoom, and they taught me how to make the most delicious homemade challah, so I’m sharing it with you here. The recipe is from Challah Hub and it’s so simple and easy to make.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Cup Warm Water

1 Packet of Rapid Rise Yeast

4 Cups All-Purpose Flour or Bread Flour (plus extra for kneading and braiding!)

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 ½ Teaspoons Salt

3 Extra Large Eggs

1/2 Cup Unsalted Melty/Room Temperature Butter

Egg White for Glaze

Poppy or Sesame Seeds (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

This is not a quick bake. There are many steps (which include hours of proofing/wait time). Likely it will take about 5 hours start to finish, but it’s so fun to make and even better to eat. So, lets get into it…

Step 1: Empty yeast packet into small bowl, pour 1 cup warm water over top. Set aside so the yeast can proof. You’ll know it’s working when you start to see little bubbles form.

Step 2: In a big bowl, whisk together 4 cups of flour, 1 ½ teaspoons salt and ½ cup sugar.

Step 3: In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together 3 eggs.

Step 4: Add your soft butter to your small bowl of eggs. Mix.

Step 5: Pour your yeasty water bowl and your egg and butter mixture into your big bowl with dry ingredients. Stir as you pour. 

Step 6: Mix dough with a spatula or spoon (I use my kitchen-aid mixer with the bread hook). Once it easily leaves the sides of the bowl, you can drop onto your counter and knead with your hands until smooth. If you have trouble getting your mixture out of the bowl, add more flour.

Step 7: Coat the inside of a big bowl lightly with butter and drop your ball of dough inside. Cover with a warm damp cloth, and let rise for 2-3 hours. I usually put the bowl inside our oven (turned off) for proofing.

Set alarm for 2-3 hours…

Step 8: After your dough has doubled in size, dump it out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently knead the dough to get out any big air bubbles, then braid as desired. This recipe makes a very large challah, so I usually split the dough in half and braid one round and braid one long.

Step 9: Place your braided dough onto a lightly greased and foil - lined baking sheet. Cover with damp cloth and let rise 1 more hour.

Set alarm 1 hour…

Step 10: Pre-heat your oven to 325 degrees. Using a pastry brush, coat your challah with a thin layer of egg white. Sprinkle with poppy or sesame seeds if desired. Put your beautifully braided challah in the oven for 26-32 minutes. 

Step 11: Once it is evenly golden brown on top, take your challah out of the oven, place on a cooling rack. Do not cover. Allow to cool, then eat and enjoy!!