What's the "Secret Ingredient" in your Challah??

celestial

Thu, Feb 23 2012, 2:18 am

curlgirl wrote:

celestial wrote:

I really enjoy the grainy, oaty type of challah, so I use oatmeal.
.

Yum! Would you be able to post your recipe?

Can I use white whole wheat flour?

Thanks!

Sure! Here's my recipe:

3.5 cups of warm water
2.5 Tablespoons of dry yeast
3 Tablespoons of honey
1 Tablespoon of salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup of olive oil
2.2 pounds of whole wheat or spelt flour (I usually combine the two depending on what I have)
1/2 cup of wheat germ
1/2 cup of oatmeal
1/2 cup of honey
A sprinkling of orange rinds (optional)

What to do:
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and honey. Add half the flour with one one of the eggs, the salt, and the oil - stir well and let sit for a half an hour.

Add the rest of the flour, along with the wheat germ, oatmeal, honey, and orange rinds. Feel free to go crazy with the honey, even if it changes the texture entirely - I've noticed the more I put in, the absolutely tastier it is. Also, if you don't put enough honey in, then this bread can get very dry and it's no fun anymore. So use your judgment. (Have you noticed yet I'm obsessed with honey?)

Let the dough rise in an oiled bowl for about an hour or so.
Separate challah, then shape into rolls (the texture is usually too weird for me to braid it, alas) and coat it with a mixture of egg yellows and honey, then top with oatmeal for decoration.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.

You can sprinkle honey and oatmeal on top of any challah for a unique look.

Raisin

Thu, Feb 23 2012, 5:09 am

I put cinnomn and sugar on for rosh hashana. Yum, but too sweet for everyday. My dd puts sprinkles on hers. Smile

I bake mine on friday so they are super fresh and yummy. It's just not the same the next day. Frozen (soon after baking) and then reheated is also ok.

TranquilityAndPeace

Thu, Mar 01 2012, 9:20 pm

I really do have a 'secret ingredient'. It's called KM7, and I get it from someone who has connections with the bakery industry.

It is the preservative that bakeries use to keep their baked goods from becoming stale. You know how homemade challah tastes stale in a day or two while bakery challah is still soft and moist a few days later? That's their secret, KM7.

I make challah on Fridays, and we even taste the difference on Friday night, but especially on Shabbos lunch and beyond. I put about a Tablespoon into 2 lbs of dough. It's mostly natural - made of palm oil, so it's not too healthy, probably on par with margarine. However, there's only 1/32nd of a teaspoon in each slice, I figure!

Merrymom

Thu, Mar 01 2012, 10:16 pm

I don't have a secret ingredient but I do have a secret technique. When my challos are almost done I remove them from their pans and then put them straight on the racks. I then raise the oven temperature for about 10 minutes. This makes a fantastic crust on the outside while keeping it soft and delicious inside. Make sure you don't do this too early or your challos will fall and be flat (They shouldn't be soft at all, not on top or bottom when moving them).

Merrymom

Thu, Mar 01 2012, 10:19 pm

TranquilityAndPeace wrote:

I'm pretty sure that this is a chemical preservative. I think it's healthier just to freeze the ones that you're going to use by day and take them out early in the morning.

TranquilityAndPeace

Thu, Mar 01 2012, 11:42 pm

Levtov wrote:

Where can I buy KM7????

I know, I googled it too when I was running low!

I'll try to find out tomorrow morning. Mine is from a commercial bakery in Brooklyn, and it has the CRC on it and says 'not for individual resale'. It looks like crisco.

Merrymom, I'm sure it's not the healthiest thing, but it's in all commercial baked goods in some form, so I personally don't worry about it.

And since I started using it, the kids don't complain when I give them leftover challah for lunch on Sundays.

flowerpower

Fri, Mar 02 2012, 12:30 am

I add "love" and it comes out very good. I bake it first on 400 for fifteen minutes so it gets crispy on the outside then lower it to 350. I also brown the sesame seeds for the added crisp. Dh loves it that way. I warm it up before shabbos so its crispy on the outside and warm on the inside.

Shopmiami49

Fri, Mar 02 2012, 3:10 am

bananasplit wrote:

Sorry idk if my q went thru but...if u put vanilla sugar in eggwash do u sprinkle w sesam seeds too? if u use spices & oil do u eggwash it 1st? if u put vanilla sugar in dough do u sub for reg sugar or put half & half? thanks

I add vanilla sugar in addition to whatever sugar is already in the recipe. I only add a few Tbsp. I think more than that would be overkill.

I skip the sesame seeds if the challah is extra sweet.

No clue about the spices and oil - I would assume to skip the eggwash if you are oiling and spicing the top of the challahs.

medola

Fri, Mar 02 2012, 11:21 am

Tease wrote:

after you finish kneading the dough, continue kneading it for another 5-10 minutes
(ok, I never do it that long), the extra kneading makes it so fluffy and heavenly!

ps. got this secret from my Zaidy, who told me thats what his mother would do.

Thanks, Tease! I didn't know the extra kneading made it fluffy. Tho that does sound like more work!

You know how the dough rises and you have to punch it down after an hour? Well if it's filled with so much air that it needed to be punched down, if you don't punch it down so much, would it come out fluffier? (does that make sense?) What if you don't punch it down at all?

How do bakeries get their challah sooo fluffy that it almost feels like you're eating challah-cotton-candy? (ok not quite that fluffy!)

Also last time I made challah I placed the bowl with the dough over a big bowl of hot hot tap water. The warmth during the dough rising stage definitely made a difference!

shnitzel

Fri, Mar 02 2012, 11:36 am

medola wrote:

Tease wrote:

They probably add gluten. Gluten is the protein in flour that gives it structure. The more you knead the more gluten is released. Bread flour also has a higher gluten content so that Challah will also be fluffier.

Tease

Fri, Mar 02 2012, 11:47 am

shnitzel wrote:

medola wrote:

Tease wrote:

didnt know that kneading had any connection to gluten. and why is gluten such a scary word these days?
anyway, I never use bread flour, only all-purpose.
medola, I only punch it down when I'm about to shape it. even an extra 2-3 minutes of kneading can make it super fluffy-its really worth the extra effort!!

TranquilityAndPeace

Fri, Mar 02 2012, 12:39 pm

I found out where to buy KM7! It's made by VIP Foods in Ridgewood, NY (near Queens, I'm told). Here's their site: http://www.vipfoodsinc.com/

They only sell it in 50lb boxes. However, when they do a production, they take off a few small containers for my relative, who gives me some of them.

I'm smelling a great business opportunity here for anyone in a large frum community! Buy the 50lb boxes, divide them up, and resell them. Although your smaller boxes won't have a hashgachah, unless you arrange for that to happen. Or you can just show people the hashgachah on the huge box and assume most people will trust that you've simply divided up that box.

My DH and kids can taste whether or not I've remembered to put KM7 into my challah each week; I'm a real fan of this stuff! I use it in cakes and cookies too, if I plan to freeze them or give them as gifts.