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By: Miriam Szokovski
When it comes to cooking in advance and freezing, some things fare better than others. Baked goods—challah, cakes, cookies—wrapped tightly come out perfectly. As do most meat dishes. Chicken doesn’t do as well, so I recommend preparing it raw and freezing it (in a marinade or sauce) so you can just slide it into the oven when you’re ready to cook it. Most veggie dishes and kugel are better fresh, but I’ve included a couple below that should be OK. The main key to reheating frozen food well is to cover tightly and make sure it gets fully heated through when you warm it up.
Round Raisin Challah with Sweet Crumb Topping
Believe it or not, Rosh Hashanah will be here in few short weeks, so from this point on I’ll be sharing holiday recipes, starting with this round raisin challah with sweet crumb topping.
It’s traditional to use round challahs for Rosh Hashanah, to represent the cycle of life. It’s also customary to eat sweet foods at this time, to symbolize our desire for a sweet year ahead, hence the raisins and sweet crumb topping.
Make the dough according to the directions below. Use a large bowl, because this yields six loaves, and the dough needs enough space to double in size.
When the dough has risen, punch it down and let it rest for 10 minutes before doing the mitzvah of separating challah. Say the blessing, separate a small piece of dough, and set it aside to burn after the challah has finished baking. For more about this mitzvah, and a step-by-step guide, watch this quick do-it-yourself clip.
Now divide the dough into six relatively equal pieces. Each of the six pieces will make one challah. Roll each piece into one long “snake” (pictured). Press the raisins along the dough, then roll it up from one end, until you have a circle. Tuck the end underneath. Alternatively, you can first make each of the six pieces into a braided challah, and then roll the braid into a circle. If you’re feeling particularly brave and experimental, you can try this fancy circle braid!
Put the challahs on greased baking trays, brush with egg and sprinkle with the crumb topping. Let them rise another 40 minutes and then bake at 375° F until golden brown, approximately 45 minutes.
Traditionally, at Shabbat and holiday meals, we dip the challah into salt. But from Rosh Hashanah until the end of Sukkot, we dip it in honey instead. Enjoy!
If you are new to baking challah, I outlined the process in greater detail (with step-by-step pictures) here. It may help you to read that first.
Dough Ingredients:
- 4 tbsp. dry yeast
- 5 cups very warm water
- 5 large eggs
- 1¼ cup honey
- 1 cup oil (canola or light olive oil)
- 2 tbsp. salt
- Approximately 18 cups flour
- 1 cup raisins
For the egg wash:
- 1 egg
- For the crumb topping
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 5 tbsp. oil
Directions:
In a very large bowl, dissolve yeast in 2 cups warm water and let sit about 15–20 minutes until slightly frothy.
Add the rest of the ingredients and half the flour. Mix until a loose batter forms. Add the rest of the flour a couple of cups at a time, until the dough is soft but not sticky. Knead.
Cover the dough with a wet towel or plastic wrap and put it in a warm place to rise for about 1½ hours. Dough should double in size.
Punch the dough down and let it rest for 10 minutes. Divide into 6 equal pieces.
Roll according to pictures and directions above. Place loaves on lightly greased cookie sheets and let rise for another 40 minutes.
Make the sweet crumb topping by putting the flour and sugar into a bowl. Slowly add the vanilla and oil, mixing with a spoon, or your fingertips until you it reaches crumb consistency.
Egg wash the loaves and sprinkle with crumb topping. Bake at 375° F for approximately 45 minutes. Loaves should be golden brown and firm on the bottom.
Do you have a special topping or ingredient that you add to your Rosh Hashanah challah?
Round (Spelt & Vegan) Cinnamon-Sugar Challah for Rosh Hashanah
It’s traditional to use round challahs for Rosh Hashanah, to represent the cycle of life. It’s also customary to eat sweet foods at this time, to symbolize our desire for a sweet year ahead, hence the sweet cinnamon-sugar topping.
The thing to be aware of with spelt is that the dough is much softer, and it doesn’t hold the shape as well. Here’s I’ve used some white bread flour in addition, to give it more body, but you can definitely use all spelt. Just bake it in a round pan, which holds the shape well. You can also braid it and put it in a loaf pan. I’ve done one of each here, so you can see the outcome.
Keep in mind that to do the mitzvah of separating challah, you need to use a significant amount of flour. This recipe only makes two loaves, so it is not enough. You can multiply this recipe by three, and then you will be able to make the blessing and do the mitzvah.
Step 1:
- 2 tbsp. (18 grams) dry yeast
- 1 tbsp. (12 grams) sugar
- 1 cup (200 grams) warm water
Place the yeast, sugar, and warm water in a small bowl. Set aside for 10 minutes. Mixture should swell and thicken. If it does not, try again with new yeast.
Step 2:
- ½ cup (110 grams) sugar
- ½ cup (85 grams) oil
- ½ tbsp. (5 grams) kosher salt
- 1 cup (200 grams) warm water
- 3 cups (360 grams) whole spelt flour
- 2 cups (290 grams) bread flour
Note: For whole spelt challah, replace the bread flour with more spelt flour. The dough will be softer and slightly harder to braid, but the taste and texture will be good.
Pour the oil, sugar, salt, and warm water into a large bowl. Add the yeast mixture and whisk gently. Add the first three cups of flour. Mix until a loose batter forms. Add the remaining flour one cup at a time until dough comes together in a soft, but not too sticky ball.
Tip the dough out onto a tabletop or kitchen counter and knead for 5-10 minutes. Return to bowl, cover with a damp cloth or saran wrap, and put in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.
[If you want to do the mitzvah of separating challah, you will need to multiply this recipe by three. This would be the point at which you would separate a piece and say the blessing.]Step 3:
- ⅓ cup white sugar
- 1 tbsp. cinnamon
- 2 tbsp. maple syrup
- 2 tbsp. vanilla extract
Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Each piece will become one challah.
You can braid the challah, but dough made with spelt is quite soft and doesn’t hold the shape as well, and for Rosh Hashanah round challahs are traditional anyway.
Roll each piece of challah into a long “snake” shape.
In a small bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon. Generously coat the rolled piece of dough in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, then roll up from one end, into a round challah.
Place in a round pan and brush with a mixture of maple syrup and vanilla extract. Let rise 20-30 minutes.
Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 30 minutes. Cool fully before cutting. Freezes well.
Yields: 2 loaves]
Cinnamon Raisin Challah
By: Rachel Grossbaum
Ingredients:
- 4 cups warm water
- 7 tsps. yeast
- 3 tbsp. sugar
- 5 lb. flour
- 3 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tbsp. salt
- 1½ cups sugar
- 1 cup oil
- 1½ cups raisins
- 1½ cups golden raisins
Egg Wash:
- 2 eggs, beaten
- Cinnamon-Sugar Topping:
- 1½ cups sugar
- ¼ cup cinnamon
Directions:
Pour the warm water, yeast and 3 tbsp. sugar into a medium-sized bowl. Set aside for 10 minutes.
Place the rest of the ingredients and half the flour into a large bowl and mix.
Add in the yeast mixture once it has become thick and frothy. Mix.
Add the rest of the flour slowly, while mixing, until dough comes together and is no longer sticky.
Mix the raisins into the dough. Make sure they are evenly distributed.
Cover with cling film or a damp towel and set dough aside to rise for 2-3 hours.
When the dough has finished rising, do the mitzvah of separating challah.
Divide dough into six equal parts. Each part will become one challah. Roll the dough into strands for braiding. Dip half the strands into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Braid the challahs and place them on parchment paper lined baking sheets (2 per pan). Let the braided challahs rise for 10 minutes and then brush with egg wash.
Bake on 350°F for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Switch racks halfway through the baking for more even cooking. Cool completely before slicing.
Yields: 6 large challahs.
