![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chestnut_pod posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
bakeitupI made this as a combination Shabbat challah-birthday cake for myself, and my god, it was good. Adapted from this Molly Yeh recipe; changes marked below. Truly delicious.
To make this challah you need to be able to accurately measure things in spoons and cups, knead dough or operate a food processor or stand mixer to do the same, mix and fold a thick batter with wire whisk and spatula, lift a heavy dough, and move the dough in and out of the oven.
:
This recipe contains wheat, gluten, and eggs.
Ingredients:
3/4 c warm water
1 tbsp dry yeast
1 1/4 c + 2 tsp brown sugar
3.5 c all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting*
1 tsp kosher salt
A pinch of cinnamon
A light sprinkle of cloves**
1/3 c olive oil***
3 eggs, 2 for dough and 1 for egg wash
2 c powdered sugar
2-3 tbsp pomegranate juice, or 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses thinned with 1 tbsp of water****
Directions
1. In a measuring cup or small bowl, combine the water, yeast, and 2 teaspoons of brown sugar. Let sit for a few minutes until it gets foamy on top.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together 1/4 cup of brown sugar, the 3 cups of flour, salt, and cardamom. In a separate bowl, mix together the oil and 2 of the eggs.
3. When the yeast has proofed, add it to the dry ingredients, immediately followed by the egg mixture. Mix to combine and knead, either on a floured surface, or with the dough hook for 7-10 minutes, or in a food processor for 1 minute, adding more flour as needed, until smooth.
4. Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
5. Turn onto a lightly floured surface, and roll the dough out into a large (approximately 10-inch by 14-inch) rectangle. Sprinkle the remaining cup of brown sugar evenly over the whole surface, and roll it up from one of the long sides. Pinch the ends and the seam to seal them shut and then coil into a snail-shell shape with the seam side down. Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Beat together the remaining egg with a splash of water and brush it lightly onto the challah. Let it rise for 30 more minutes while you preheat the oven to 375˚F.
6. Bake the challah until it’s golden brown and cooked through, about 35-40 minutes. Because this challah is round, it will take slightly longer to bake than a typical loaf. It may look done on the outside after about 20 minutes, but it will still be raw on the inside. If you’d like, you can tent the loaf with foil after 20 minutes to prevent it from getting too done on top.
7. When it’s done baking, let it cool and make the glaze.
8. To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons of pomegranate juice. Add more until you reach your desired consistency. Drizzle or pour it on your loaf and enjoy!
* Notes: this was a very sticky dough for me -- it might have been my kitchen conditions or it might have been that the original recipe said it was designed to work for possible whole wheat substitutions, but I've added that half-cup extra all-purpose flour in to try to mitigate that. As ever, start with less and add as needed.
**The original recipe called for a pinch of cardamom. Cardamom is one of the two things I categorically will not eat, so I substituted with other common pomegranate-friendly Iranian advieh spices. The point is not to make the dough taste of the specific spices, exactly, but rather to give it that wonderful spiced warmth.
***Originally called for unflavored oil. Just use the olive oil if you can; it is 100% tastier.
****To be completely honest, I thought the glaze was gilding the lily a little. The original recipe calls for juice, which I did not have on hand. When made with pomegranate molasses, the color is more brown than pink, but I imagine with the pomegranate juice it would be quite bright and aesthetically pleasing.
To make this challah you need to be able to accurately measure things in spoons and cups, knead dough or operate a food processor or stand mixer to do the same, mix and fold a thick batter with wire whisk and spatula, lift a heavy dough, and move the dough in and out of the oven.
:
This recipe contains wheat, gluten, and eggs.
Ingredients:
3/4 c warm water
1 tbsp dry yeast
1 1/4 c + 2 tsp brown sugar
3.5 c all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting*
1 tsp kosher salt
A pinch of cinnamon
A light sprinkle of cloves**
1/3 c olive oil***
3 eggs, 2 for dough and 1 for egg wash
2 c powdered sugar
2-3 tbsp pomegranate juice, or 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses thinned with 1 tbsp of water****
Directions
1. In a measuring cup or small bowl, combine the water, yeast, and 2 teaspoons of brown sugar. Let sit for a few minutes until it gets foamy on top.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together 1/4 cup of brown sugar, the 3 cups of flour, salt, and cardamom. In a separate bowl, mix together the oil and 2 of the eggs.
3. When the yeast has proofed, add it to the dry ingredients, immediately followed by the egg mixture. Mix to combine and knead, either on a floured surface, or with the dough hook for 7-10 minutes, or in a food processor for 1 minute, adding more flour as needed, until smooth.
4. Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
5. Turn onto a lightly floured surface, and roll the dough out into a large (approximately 10-inch by 14-inch) rectangle. Sprinkle the remaining cup of brown sugar evenly over the whole surface, and roll it up from one of the long sides. Pinch the ends and the seam to seal them shut and then coil into a snail-shell shape with the seam side down. Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Beat together the remaining egg with a splash of water and brush it lightly onto the challah. Let it rise for 30 more minutes while you preheat the oven to 375˚F.
6. Bake the challah until it’s golden brown and cooked through, about 35-40 minutes. Because this challah is round, it will take slightly longer to bake than a typical loaf. It may look done on the outside after about 20 minutes, but it will still be raw on the inside. If you’d like, you can tent the loaf with foil after 20 minutes to prevent it from getting too done on top.
7. When it’s done baking, let it cool and make the glaze.
8. To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons of pomegranate juice. Add more until you reach your desired consistency. Drizzle or pour it on your loaf and enjoy!
* Notes: this was a very sticky dough for me -- it might have been my kitchen conditions or it might have been that the original recipe said it was designed to work for possible whole wheat substitutions, but I've added that half-cup extra all-purpose flour in to try to mitigate that. As ever, start with less and add as needed.
**The original recipe called for a pinch of cardamom. Cardamom is one of the two things I categorically will not eat, so I substituted with other common pomegranate-friendly Iranian advieh spices. The point is not to make the dough taste of the specific spices, exactly, but rather to give it that wonderful spiced warmth.
***Originally called for unflavored oil. Just use the olive oil if you can; it is 100% tastier.
****To be completely honest, I thought the glaze was gilding the lily a little. The original recipe calls for juice, which I did not have on hand. When made with pomegranate molasses, the color is more brown than pink, but I imagine with the pomegranate juice it would be quite bright and aesthetically pleasing.
