Challah Recipe

You can't have Shabbat dinner without one.  But we do most of the time anyways.  So when we bake challah, it's quite an event.  Sarah likes to help knead.  She keads with her whole forearm.  Lizbeth likes to help do everthing.  As a result we end up with flour all over including her.  Now that whe turned she figured out by herself how to braid.  She now braids her own little challah.   We bake it and they eat it righ away.  We save the two big loaves for Shabbat dinner.  It's always a special time to host the Lord's Supper Friday nights and share with friends.  

Baking challah on Fridays is also exciting because we all anticipate a blessed evening as we share the love of God with friends and family.   We like to always bake two because we all take a quick walk to our neighbors and share a loaf with them. 

Here is a simple easy challah recipe

Ingredients:

2 Cups of warm water or milk

2 packets of active dry yeast. I've always used fresh yeast

6-7 cups of bread flour

1/2 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

1/4 cup of oil

1 egg

1 egg for brushing and sesame seeds

1)  Dissolve yeast in warn water, stir in sugar and salt.  Add 3 cups of flour and mix well.  Add oil, egg and mix well.  Add remaining flour.

2) spread a wet towel over it and let it in warm place until it doubles in size, 1-2 hours

3) Divide in two  and braid each half

4) Let it rise again in warm place for about 25 minutes. 

5) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Brush an egg over the two loaves and sprinkle sesame seeds

5) Bake for about 35 minutes or until done

ENJOY!  Don't forget the Hebrew blessing.  "Blessed are You, God of the Universe, who makes bread come forth from the earth and who brought Yeshua forth from the grave".  We say it in Hebrew first.  Then the blessing of the wine (grape juice for us or apple juice, or water if we forget the grape juice).