Everybody Challah! Challah Bread

6 cups unbleached flour (or use wheat, or both)
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1/3 cup honey (raw, local, or whatever you have)
3 cups of really warm water
2 Tablespoons yeast
1 Tablespoon salt (sea or Himalayan)

In a large bowl, combine the warm water and yeast,
and let it sit for about 5 minutes.
Stir in melted coconut oil, followed by honey. Mix well.
Add 4 cups of flour, stir, and then add salt.
Add the rest of flour (and more, if needed),
until dough clears the sides of the bowl.
Knead for a few minutes (I do all of this in my Bosch mixer).

Put dough in a greased large bowl (grease with olive or coconut oil)
and turn dough until it is greased. Cover with thin cloth and set aside to rise.
(I put mine in the cool oven with the light on).
Rise time will vary – approximately 30 minutes. It should be poofy. 😉

When risen, split dough in half. Put one of the halves on a floured surface
(I just use my kitchen counter) and cut into 6 equal-ish parts.
Roll dough into six strands (a.k.a. “snakes”, according to our girls).

Line them next to each other and braid.  Over two, under one.
(click here for a helpful tutorial video on how to braid a six strand challah)
Brush with egg wash (a beaten egg and a Tablespoon of olive oil), if desired,
to give the bread a shine when baked.

Place on cookie sheet and let rise for about 30 minutes or until risen well.
Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, until golden brown.

Variations:

For an herb challah, knead a teaspoon of
basil, rosemary, oregano, and thyme into the dough.
Or just before baking, sprinkle a little Himalayan salt and basil on top.

Enjoy! Yum! Yum!
And share with others. 🙂

Sometimes they may not be ‘perfectly’ shaped…
like the above loaves. But that’s okay!

So… What is Challah and why two loaves?

Here’s a portion from wikipedia:
According to Jewish tradition, the three Sabbath meals
(Friday night, Saturday lunch, and Saturday late afternoon)
and two holiday meals (one at night and lunch the following day)
each begin with two complete loaves of bread.
This “double loaf” (in Hebrew: lechem mishneh)
commemorates the manna that fell from the heavens
when the Israelites wandered in the desert
for forty years after the Exodus from Egypt.
The manna did not fall on the Sabbath or holidays;
instead, a double portion would fall the day before the holiday or Sabbath.
It is these hunks of bread, recognizable by their traditional braided style
(although some more modern recipes are not braided)
that are commonly referred to as challah.

Want to know how YHVH commanded His people?
See Exodus 16

Shalom!

Baruch ata YHVH (Adonai, HaShem) Eloheinu Melech ha-olam
ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz. Amein.

Blessed are You, YHVH, our Elohim, King of the universe,
Who brings forth bread from the earth. Amein.