Hafrashas Challah | Imamother

myname1

Thu, Dec 10 2015, 8:06 am

I want to make a whole lot of challah and babka, and I want to take challah with a bracha. Here is my plan- maybe someone who has a little more experience and/or knowledge can tell me if it is halachically sound.
I want to use 3+ kilos of flour total, so I know that is definitely enough for a bracha. I plan on using 2 kilos, 1 at a time, to make 2 batches of challah dough. Then I want to use the third kilo to make a batch of babka dough. So I'll have 3 doughs that together are enough flour. I will then put them all on the counter, touching, under a towel, and then separate from one with a bracha. Then I want to use some of the challah dough to actually bake challahs and I want to use the babka dough to bake babkas. I will freeze the rest of the challah dough before rising/shaping, and freeze the other challahs and babkas after baking.
Does that work? I'm wondering if the separate doughs are an issue (but I think I read that's the way to do it), and if some of it being frozen before baking is an issue. Any ideas? Thanks!

cbg

Thu, Dec 10 2015, 8:14 am

[quote="myname1"]I want to make a whole lot of challah and babka, and I want to take challah with a bracha. Here is my plan- maybe someone who has a little more experience and/or knowledge can tell me if it is halachically sound.
I want to use 3+ kilos of flour total, so I know that is definitely enough for a bracha. I plan on using 2 kilos, 1 at a time, to make 2 batches of challah dough. Then I want to use the third kilo to make a batch of babka dough. So I'll have 3 doughs that together are enough flour. I will then put them all on the counter, touching, under a towel, and then separate from one with a bracha. Then I want to use some of the challah dough to actually bake challahs and I want to use the babka dough to bake babkas. I will freeze the rest of the challah dough before rising/shaping, and freeze the other challahs and babkas after baking.
Does that work? I'm wondering if the separate doughs are an issue (but I think I read that's the way to do it), and if some of it being frozen before baking is an issue. Any ideas? Thanks![/quote

For some it is an issue of saying a beracha, for others it's not. I've heard both opinions, so for this you need to ask your LOR.
My LOR says to make a beracha, but others hold to take challah without a beracha.

goodmorning

Thu, Dec 10 2015, 8:42 am

The separate batches of dough are not a problem (as long as you join them for the hafrasha), but you have two potential problems in your scenario:

1. Freezing the dough and/or the challos and not baking them all together
2. Using dough for two different purposes (challah and babka)

Both of those are problematic in terms of a bracha according to two different shitos. You should probably ask your LOR what he holds in terms of both.

myname1

Thu, Dec 10 2015, 9:21 am

Thank you both. My husband looked it up in a sefer he has, and it said basically the same thing- if not being baked together and 2 separate kinds, both things make it a shaila if you say a bracha. So I'll be taking without a bracha this time. Thanks again!