Ken Druckenmiller has so many talents, he's like a fictional character: A former Marine who is also a talented botanist who raises orchids, a farmer with his own chickens, a gardener, a carpenter and a clock repairman. When he joined Beth Israel Congregation, we made leaps forward, with a new roof, HVAC system and security system. Plus he finally got rid of the mold in the basement community room we'd battled for years.
He is also the grandson of a baker, and has literally invented challah recipes, including a combination challah/chocolate babka recipe to die for.
This is his wheat-honey challah. It's one of my favorites - a bit healthier than the sweeter version, and very tasty.
Ingredients
2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast (or regular yeast, just allow more time)
2 ⅛ cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 cup bread flour
⅓ cup vegetable oil
⅓ cup honey, or more to taste
You can add other spices for a different flavor, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, malepi etc
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups bread flour, or more if needed
3 cups whole wheat flour, or more if needed
See note if you want to add raisins or currants
1 egg
1 teaspoon water
1 teaspoon honey
¼ cup sesame seeds, or poppy, or oats, or bulgur wheat soaked or any topping you want
Directions
In a large bowl, mix yeast, warm water and 1 cup of bread flour into a thin batter, and let stand until the mixture shows frothy bubbles, about 10 minutes. Stir in vegetable oil, honey, 3 eggs, and salt until well combined. Beat in 2 more cups of bread flour and the whole wheat flour, alternating flours by cupfuls, until the dough is too stiff to stir in more flour. Add raisins now if using.
Note: If you want to add raisins or any other dried fruit, soak them in boiling water for 15-30 minutes first, then drain well and dust them in flour. It will keep them from sticking together.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, adding more flour if needed to form a slightly sticky dough. Form the dough into a round shape. Lightly oil a bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn the dough over a few times to oil the surface. Cover the bowl with a plastic bag, and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, 1 to 2 hours.
Punch down the dough, knead it a few times to remove some of the bubbles, and cut it into 3 equal-sized pieces. Cut the first piece into 3 equal parts. Set the rest of the dough aside under a cloth to prevent drying out while you braid the first loaf.
Working on a floured surface, roll the small dough pieces into ropes about the thickness of your thumb and about 12 inches long. Ropes should be fatter in the middle and thinner at the ends. Pinch 3 ropes together at the top and braid them. Starting with the strand to the right, move it to the left over the middle strand (that strand becomes the new middle strand.) Take the strand farthest to the left, and move it over the new middle strand. Continue braiding, alternating sides each time, until the loaf is braided, and pinch the ends together and fold them underneath for a neat look. Repeat for the other 2 loaves, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and let rise until doubled, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Beat 1 egg with 1 teaspoon of water and 1 teaspoon of honey in a small bowl, and brush the egg mixture over the braided challah loaves. Do not throw it away, see next note. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Check the bread at 15-20 minutes and brush the white seams that appear while the bread expands, you can add more of your topping to make the finished product look better,
Bake in the preheated oven until the tops are a deep golden brown and the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom, about 30-40 minutes until the internal temp hits 185-195, do not let them get over 200, they will be very dry if that happens.
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