Easy Challah
An adaptation and amalgamation of a number of recipes I found.
This recipe makes 3 loaves or rounds, and is sized for a 5.5-quart stand mixer – if your mixer motor is under 350W, you may want to scale this down a bit. The key is to have a liquid:flour ratio of about 3:5 (by weight)
- Mix the following wet ingredients together in a bowl or other large measuring vessel:
- 1 lb warm water (2 cups)
- 4 oz. honey (1/2 cup)
- 1.5 Tablespoons dry yeast
- 1 Tablespoon salt
- 3 eggs (beat into mixture)
- 4 oz. oil (canola or olive)
- In the stand mixer bowl, put in:
- 2.6 pounds bread flour (approx. 8 cups)
- Liquid mixture
- Mix on low speed with a dough hook until ingredients are combined, and then let knead for about 10 minutes.
- Let the dough rise in the mixer bowl, covered with a cloth, for about 2 hours.
- punch down the dough and knead by hand for about 3-4 minutes, adding flour as needed.
- Divide the dough and knead each piece for another minute or so and form into rounds or loaves.
- Let rise for another 45 minutes.
- If you wish, brush on an egg wash (beat 1 egg with a tablespoon of water) for a golden brown crust.
- Bake at 325F for 30 minutes.