Photos by: Reuven and Tamar Ansh
Even those people who do not normally make challah all year long usually do find that they want homemade challahs for Rosh Hashana. Round challahs are most traditionally used for this time of year, as a reminder of the cycle of life. Many people also have the custom to serve sweetened foods as a harbinger to usher in a sweet ad delectable judgement and challah is no exception to this custom! For this reason, Rosh HaShanah challahs are often sweeter than those served the rest of the year. Some add more sugar, others add raisins, still others do both. I enjoy adding all this to my challahs, but with a twist: after they are egg-glazed and ready to be baked, I sprinkle each with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. The smell they emit while baking is absolutely heavenly and the taste is out of this world. Truly a holiday treat!
Delicious Egg Challahs
This is quite a nice recipe, but as challah recipes abound at this time of year, the shaping I would like to demonstrate can be done with any good dough. However, this recipe is quite good, so it’s worthwhile to try it out
Makes: 5 large loaves or about 20-25 small individual sized rolls
Remember, that if you have a small family or don’t want to use so much challah at once, either halve the recipe or freeze the extra challah.
2 ounces/50 gram cube of fresh yeast or 2 Tablespoons of dry yeast
3-4 cups very warm water, divided
