We’re celebrating Homemade Bread Day on 17th November with a couple of unique challah recipes that put a creative spin on the classic loaf!
Somewhere over the rainbow
It might taste like regular bread, but a rainbow challah is a feast for the eyes and is sure to get guests talking!
Ingredients
- 1 packet active dry yeast
- 300ml warm water (about 38°C)
- 105g granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs and 1 yolk
- 60ml vegetable oil
- 470 to 570g bread flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- Gel food colouring
Method
1. Prepare the yeast in a large mixing bowl by whisking it with warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar. Let stand until it foams and puffs up, about 10 minutes. If it doesn’t foam, your yeast is bad or the water was the wrong temperature. Try again!
2. Add the remaining sugar, 2 eggs, and oil, then whisk. Gradually add 360g of flour and salt and mix until the dough begins to pull away from the sides. Add more flour as needed if the dough is sticky.
3. Divide your dough into six even pieces, flatten them, put some gel food colouring in the middle of each one, and knead until they’re dyed. Add more colour as needed – wear gloves if you don’t want rainbow hands!
4. Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover. Let it rise in a warm place until it’s at least doubled in size, about two to three hours.
5. Now it’s time to braid! Take one of each colour and make six even strands. Line them up in rainbow order and pinch at the top to secure the end. Take the strand on the right and weave over two strands, under one strand, and over two strands.
6. Repeat step five until you reach the bottom, secure the ends together, and tuck them under the challah.
7. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C then let your dough proof again on a parchment lined baking sheet, lightly covered, until doubled in size, about 45 minutes to an hour.
8. Whisk the egg yolk with ½ tablespoon water, generously brush over the challah, and bake for 30 minutes.
Deli-cious twist
Why bother building a sandwich when your challah can do it for you? This recipe packs all the pastrami goodness straight into the bread.
Ingredients
- 625g plain flour
- 60 ml vegetable oil
- ½ tbsp salt
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 100g granulated sugar
- 360ml lukewarm water
- 1 packet active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 eggs and 1 egg yolk
- Up to 115g thinly sliced pastrami
- 3 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp mayo
Method
- Follow steps one and two from the rainbow recipe, adding the onion powder in step two.
- Knead the dough on a floured surface for around 10 minutes.
- Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with damp towel. Allow around three hours to proof.
- Once risen, roll out dough using a rolling pin until it’s about ½ inch thick. Mix ketchup and mayo in a small bowl and spread a thin layer all over the dough – make it too thick and you could have a leaky challah!
- Lay pastrami down in a single layer overlapping pieces only slightly.
- Working quickly, start rolling up the dough towards you. Try and keep the roll relatively tight as you go. Pinch the end when you finish.
- Create a pinwheel shaped challah by snaking the dough around in a circle around itself. When finished, tuck the end under the challah neatly and pinch lightly.
- Allow another hour to rise further.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Brush the challah with beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with poppy seeds, dried onion, and a touch of thick sea salt (optional). Bake for 27 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
