Miriam's Not-So-Secret Challah Recipe

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Most Helpful Positive Review

Feb 08, 2010

I've made challah almost every week for years and this is the best one yet! I put the ingredients in in a different order, as I've learned they should be added. Here's what I did: 1. Mix the yeast with 100 degree water and the white sugar and allow to bloom for 5 minutes, or until VERY foamy. 2. Mix in brown sugar, eggs and margarine. 3. Mix in flour and salt From there, I followed the recipe as normal. The challah was done after 30 minutes, so make sure you watch it closely. Cooking it for the 45 minutes the recipe suggest would ruin it in my oven! I added sesame seeds on top instead of poppies. It was just great!

—CMDMD

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Most Helpful Critical Review

Feb 21, 2012

Followed the instruction and I have a few comments. It took more than 7 cups of flower to get the dough elastic enough but not sticky. Secondly while it has risen to twice its size the first and the second time (after braiding it), it came out flat like in the picture. I am used to a bigger challah so I am not sure if baking powder or different type of yeasts were needed. Baking time was and should be less than 45 minutes or the temp recommendations here are incorrect. The bread came out slightly darker than the picture after 38 minutes. Lastly, while the house filled with wonderful scent of baking, the flavor was not that great. Somewhat sweet but nothing else. I would stick to white sugar only and probably more than a 1/2 cup to give it a slightly sweeter note.

—gedit58

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70 Ratings

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Oct 05, 2009

An outstanding recipe by itself. After experimenting, I tweaked it a bit for a presentation-quality crown challah with the following: 1. As others, used half milk and half water 2. Increased both sugars to 1/3 cups 3. Increased salt to 1.5 TBS 4. Added 4 yolks to the 4 whole eggs (color and taste) 5. Added 1/4 Cup honey 6. Added 1 cup golden raisins (soak and drain if dry) 7. Lastly, to ensure height for the crown, last rise and baking was in a 12" round flat bottom pan with a 1" or higher side. Also found that by stretching the braids to long ropes gave an excellent stringy texture when pulled apart for eating

—spence3787

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Apr 04, 2004

I think this is a very good challah--it turns out light and feathery, but I can't give it 5 stars because it too isn't as good as Challah I in my opinion. Challah I is more dense, but it's soft and has terrific mouth feel. If you want a lighter challah though, this is certainly one to try and it's very good. I sprinkled poppy seeds on top--very pretty.

—MACKALLEN

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Jan 22, 2009

Our family bakes bread twice weekly, and I'm fairly versed in both egg and yeast-only breads. This bread is as light as cotton candy, and yet tastes rich on your tongue. It makes great french toast once it has gone stale. Just perfect. The only downfall is that it takes 3 packets of yeast. However, yeast comes in a 3 pack, and yeast is cheap, so I guess that's not a big deal either.

—abbycadabby

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Jan 18, 2011

Oh sooo good!! There is nothing like the feeling you get when a recipe makes you feel like a pro!! This is fool proof. I did add a little honey to mine and halved the brown sugar.(it was still sweet) I did everything in my kitchen Aid with the dough hook, (kneaded for 6-7 minutes) it couldnt have been easier. The dough was really sticky like others said but I just used a couple tablespoons extra of flour and a floured surface to form the braided loaves, dont worry about the sticky texture. It turns out beautifully.

—SUSIEQ203

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Mar 29, 2011

One of the best challah recipes I've used-- the loaf was 6x the dough height and had a great sweet but not too sweet texture. It also worked very well in density for the day after french toast. I did change the order I added the ingredients as another reviewer suggested (e.g., yeast + 1 c. warm water + white sugar, wait 5 min, then add brown sugar, 1 c. water, eggs, and slowly add in flour and salt.).

—KIRSTIN243

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Mar 20, 2003

OY is this a wonderful and different way to make a challah

—Eric

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Nutrition

Calories
253 kcal
13%

Carbohydrates
39.7 g
13%

Cholesterol
53 mg
18%

Fat
6.8 g
10%

Fiber
1.4 g
6%

Protein
7.8 g
16%

Sodium
422 mg
17%

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

Nutritional Information

Miriam's Not-So-Secret Challah

Serving Size: 1/20 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 20
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 253
Calories from Fat: 61

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 6.8g 10 %
Saturated Fat 1.3g 7 %
Cholesterol 53mg 18 %
Sodium 422mg 17 %
Potassium 94mg 3 %
Total Carbohydrates 39.7g 13 %
Dietary Fiber 1.4g 6 %
Protein 7.8g 16 %
Sugars 4.6g
Vitamin A 5 %
Vitamin C < 1 %
Calcium 3 %
Iron 26 %
Thiamin 43 %
Niacin 43 %
Vitamin B6 3 %
Magnesium 6 %
Folate 66 %

* 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.