Pour 1/4 cup of warm water (about 110 degrees) into a large mixing bowl. Add 1 packet of active dry yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar to the bowl, whisk to dissolve. Wait 10 minutes. The yeast should have activated, meaning it will look expanded and foamy. If it hasn't, your yeast may have expired, meaning your bread won't rise. Go buy fresh yeast!
Once the yeast has activated, add the remaining 1 1/4 cups of warm water to the bowl along with the egg, egg yolks, honey, canola oil, vanilla, and salt. Use a whisk to mix the ingredients well.
Begin adding the flour to the bowl by the half-cupful, stirring with a large spoon each time you add flour. When the mixture becomes too thick to stir, use your hands to knead it.
Continue adding flour and knead the dough until it's smooth, elastic, and not sticky. The amount of flour you'll need to achieve this texture varies; just add flour until the dough feels pliable and just right. Turn the dough out onto a flat surface and knead a few more times.
Place a saucepan full of water to a boil.
Wash the bowl you used to mix the challah dough. Grease the bowl with canola oil. Push the dough to the bottom of the bowl, then turn it over so both sides are slightly moistened with the oil.
Cover the bowl with a clean, damp kitchen towel. Place the bowl of dough on the middle rack of your oven. Take the saucepan filled with boiling water and place it under the rack where the dough is resting. Close the oven, but do not turn it on. The pot of hot water will create a warm, humid environment for the dough to rise. Let the dough rise for 1 hour.
Remove the bowl of dough and tap it several times to eliminate any air pockets. Return it to the oven and let it rise for another hour.
During this final rise, fill a mixing bowl with cold water and dissolve ½ teaspoon of salt in it.
Peel the apples and cut them into very small pieces, about 1/4 inch long. Place the diced apples in the bowl of lightly salted water. Set aside.
When you're ready to begin braiding the dough, drain the apple pieces and pat them dry with paper towels. Toss the apple pieces with 1/4 cup of sugar. If you like, you can add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon to the sugar to give the apples an apple-cinnamon flavor.
Remove the dough from the oven; it should have doubled in size during this final rise. If it hasn't risen completely, return it to the oven until it has had a chance to rise properly. When the dough is ready, flour a smooth surface like a cutting board. Punch the dough down in the bowl a few times, then turn the dough out onto the floured surface. Knead the dough lightly, adding flour as needed to prevent it from feeling sticky. You'll have enough dough for two medium-sized challahs.
Divide the dough into two equal halves. Place half of the dough on a smooth, lightly floured surface. Leave the other half in the bowl, covered with a damp cloth. Cut the dough on the floured surface into four equal portions. Take one of the four portions and stretch it with your fingers into a rough rectangle, about 1 foot long and 3-4 inches wide. Use a rolling pin to smooth the dough, if it helps. The rectangle doesn't need to look perfect, and it shouldn't be too thin; the dough should be thick enough to support an apple filling.
Sprinkle some of the sugared apple pieces in the center of the rectangle. You should use about 1/8 of the apple pieces in each rectangle. The liquid will collect in the bowl of apples as you go; don't transfer it to the dough, or it will weaken and become mushy. Do your best to shake off any excess liquid before placing the apples on the dough. Leave at least a 1/2-inch border along the outer edge of the dough, clean and free of apples.
Gently roll the top edge of the rectangle toward the bottom edge and pinch to seal, creating a snake-shaped roll of dough filled with apples. This is the beginning of your strand.
Gently and carefully roll the stuffed tuft until smooth, applying gentle pressure with your hands in the center of the tuft, pulling it outward as you roll. If any apples begin to poke through the dough, patch the hole with your fingers before continuing. Re-flour the surface as needed to prevent the dough from sticking.
Reduce the ends of the strand by clasping it between both palms and rolling it. At the end of the rolling process, your strand should be between 16 and 18 inches long with tapered ends. Once you've rolled the apple strand, repeat the process with the remaining 3 pieces of dough, making sure they're the same length as the first strand. In the end, you'll have 4 apple-filled strands.
Now your filled strands are ready to braid. There are several different ways to braid four strands into a challah. This recipe will guide you through one method for braiding a four-strand round challah.
Place two strands in the center of a smooth surface, parallel from top to bottom. Place the third strand through the two strands, passing under the left strand and over the right. Place the fourth strand directly under the third strand, passing over the left strand and under the right. You will have something similar to a tic-tac-toe board pattern, with the center of the board being a very small square and 8 "legs" protruding from that center. Keep the center as tight as possible... you will be braiding from the center. I have numbered the ends of the strands in the diagram below to make the braiding process easier.
Take strand 1 and cross it over strand 2. Take strand 3 and cross it over strand 4. Take strand 5 and cross it over strand 6. Take strand 7 and cross it over strand 8. Take strand 2 and cross it the other way, over strand 7. Take strand 8 and cross it over strand 5. Take strand 6 and cross it over strand 3. Take strand 4 and cross it over strand 1. Take strand 7 and wrap it around strand 4. Tuck the twisted ends under the challah. Repeat this process with the remaining loose ends: twist and tuck 1 through 6, then 3 and 8, then 5 and 2.
When all the loose ends are twisted, gently fill the challah until it has a nice round shape.
After braiding the round, place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Let the braid rise for 30 to 45 more minutes. You'll know the dough is ready to bake when you press your finger into the dough and the indentation stays put, rather than bouncing back. While this challah rises, you can braid the other half of the dough the same way, or you can choose a different braid for your second challah. No matter which way you braid, you can hide the apple pieces within the strands using the same method described above. Your second challah will rise when the first one bakes.
Prepare your egg wash by whisking the egg, salt, and water until smooth. Use a pastry brush to brush a thin layer of the mixture over the visible surface of your challah. Reserve the remaining beaten egg. Sprinkle the top of the challah with 1 tablespoon of turbinado sugar, if desired.
Each challah should bake for about 45 minutes total, but for the best result, bake in stages. First, set your timer for 20 minutes and place your challah in the oven. After 20 minutes, remove the challah from the oven and coat the grooves of the braid with another thin layer of beaten egg. These areas tend to expand during baking, exposing the dough, which will turn white unless coated with beaten egg. Flip the challah over so the opposite side is facing the front and place it back in the oven. Turning it will help the challah brown evenly—the back of the oven is usually warmer than the front. The challah will need to bake for about 20 more minutes. For this last part of the baking process, keep an eye on your challah; it may be browning faster than it's baking. Once the challah is browned to your liking, remove it and cover it with foil, then return it to the oven. Remove the foil for the last 2 minutes of baking time.
Remove the challah from the oven. By now, your house should smell delicious. Test the bread for doneness by flipping it over and tapping the bottom of the loaf; if it makes a hollow sound and is golden brown throughout, it's done. Because of the apples in this challah, it may take a little longer to bake than your regular challah recipe. You can also place an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part of the challah: when it reads 190°C, it's fully baked.
Let the challah cool completely on a wire rack before serving. Bake the second challah in the same way.
Comments