READY IN ABOUT 4 hrs

Bread Machine Challah for Shabbat and Festivals

Read Reviews (18)

"A perfect recipe for arthritic hands that can't knead dough easily anymore! Recipe is written for a bread machine that makes 1.5 pound (700 gram) loaves. NOTE: Do NOT bake this dough in the machine. Use only the dough/pasta setting. There is too much fully-risen dough for the machine to accommodate. " — Tzelish

Directions

Place the warm water, salt, sugar, margarine, egg, bread flour, and yeast in the pan of a bread machine in that order, set the machine to the dough setting, and start the machine.
When the dough cycle of the machine is finished, place the dough on a floured surface. Divide the dough into 3 pieces, and roll them 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.
Grease a baking sheet, or line with parchment paper, and place the braided challah on the prepared sheet. Cover the loaf with a plastic bag to prevent drying out, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Whisk together 1 egg, 1 tablespoon of water, and vanilla in a small bowl, and brush the glaze on the challah. Sprinkle with optional toppings (see footnote).
Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped, 35 to 40 minutes.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 15 mins
COOK 35 mins
READY IN 3 hrs 50 mins

Footnotes

Cook's Notes
Toppings: Sesame or poppy seeds for Shabbat
Sugar for Rosh Hashanah
Chocolate or rainbow sprinkles for Simchas Torah

Reviews More Reviews

Most Helpful Positive Review

Feb 24, 2010

Best Challah I have ever made in 20 years... The only thing I changed was adding 6 tbsp of sugar not 2. From the second I touched the dough in the bread maker I knew that I had Challah gold on my hands... will never use another recipe again. BEST EVER!

—RancherMomma

See full review »

Most Helpful Critical Review

Mar 09, 2010

It was okay, a pretty loaf, but kind of plain tasting. Not bad, but have had better with less work. I used more surgar.

—DDRay

See full review »

19 Ratings

Dec 08, 2009

This recipe just came out on the site today & I decided to try it & I am so glad I did. Wonderful flavor with a chewy texture that was exactly what I was looking for. The dough is very easy to work with & I turned out a beautiful, shiny, delicious work of art. Thank You for the recipe, I will be sure to share with friends!

—JAN

See full review »

Jul 01, 2010

I gave this recipe to my 10 year old daughter so she could bake challah for the family every Shabbat and have a recipe to call her own. This is the best tasting challah. She has followed the recipe exactly and it comes out great every time. She recently made this challah for another family and they were asking for the recipe. Thanks for sharing!

—Momo-milk

See full review »

Sep 15, 2010

Came out very good. I topped the challah with poppy seeds (my fave, over sesame). I had to add almost 2 cups more flour than is written, I have no clue why.

—Chef4Him

See full review »

Feb 09, 2010

I thought this bread came out very well. I have never had Challah bread before this, so I don't really know how it should taste. It was delicious though. It was simple and I had no issues with the dough at all. It was very nice and easy to work with.

—myfoursonsks

See full review »

Mar 31, 2010

This was a delicious bread and very simple to make. I would suggest increasing the sugar if you would like your bread a little sweeter. I sprinkled the braided loaf with a sugar and flour topping before baking. It came out delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe.

—amyskitchen

See full review »

Mar 09, 2011

I made this and another challah recipe. I didn't find this bread had as much flavor as the one that required all honey instead of sugar. This loaf had good texture however. I need to revisit this recipe again as I now realize my mistake: I made two loaves instead of one. Doh!

—laurainhouston

See full review »

Edit

Glad you liked it! Your friends will, too:

Did you tweak the recipe? Edit and save your own version of it!

Edit this recipe

More Recipes Like This See all

Bread Machine Challah II

Bread Machine Challah I

Easy Challah Bread

Most Amazing Challah

Hanukkah Star Challah

Honey Whole Wheat Challah

Best Bread Machine Bread

Spelt Flour Bread Machine Challah

White Bread For The Bread Machine

Bread Machine Rolls

Nutrition

Calories
215 kcal
11%

Carbohydrates
32.8 g
11%

Cholesterol
42 mg
14%

Fat
6.2 g
10%

Fiber
1.2 g
5%

Protein
6.6 g
13%

Sodium
417 mg
17%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Bread Machine Challah for Shabbat and Festivals

Serving Size: 1/10 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 10
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 215
Calories from Fat: 56

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 6.2g 10 %
Saturated Fat 1.2g 6 %
Cholesterol 42mg 14 %
Sodium 417mg 17 %
Potassium 75mg 2 %
Total Carbohydrates 32.8g 11 %
Dietary Fiber 1.2g 5 %
Protein 6.6g 13 %
Sugars 2.8g
Vitamin A 5 %
Vitamin C < 1 %
Calcium 2 %
Iron 21 %
** Thiamin 34 %
Niacin 37 %
Vitamin B6 3 %
Magnesium 5 %
Folate 56 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.