Chocolate Challah Recipes

CHOCOLATE CHIP CHALLAH BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Mix the yeast, a pinch of sugar and 1 cup warm water in a small bowl. Set aside while you measure out the other dry ingredients, or until frothy.
• Whisk 3 1/2 cups flour, the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the salt in a large bowl. Pour in the yeast mixture and stir with a wooden spoon. Add 1 egg, the vegetable oil and 1 cup warm water; stir until combined. Gradually stir in the remaining 3 1/2 cups flour until the dough starts to come together. Mix in the chocolate chips.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a large oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1 hour to 1 hour, 30 minutes.
• Divide the dough into 3 equal portions. On a floured surface, roll each portion into a ball, then roll each ball into a 1 1/2-to-2-inch-wide strand, about 16 inches long. Lay the strands side by side on a sheet of parchment paper and pinch them together at one end.
• Braid the 3 strands: Cross the right strand over the middle strand. Then cross the left strand over the middle strand. Repeat, crossing the right strand over the middle strand, then the left over the middle, until all of the dough is braided. Pinch the dough together at the end.
• Slide the loaf (with the parchment paper) onto a baking sheet. Beat the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl, then brush the egg wash all over the loaf. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

CHOCOLATE CHALLAH

Steps:

• Mix the warm water, 1/3 cup canola oil, honey, 2 eggs and salt in a large mixing bowl until thoroughly combined.
• Add the bread flour and cocoa powder and mix until dough is a shaggy mess.
• Add the instant yeast and mix well.
• Now add the all-purpose flour one cup at a time, until too thick to stir.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and continue to add flour while kneading for about 10-15 minutes.
• When you are done kneading the dough will bounce back at you when you press on it. The surface will no longer be sticky or come off on your fingers, but will be tacky to the touch, like a post-it note.
• Pour the 2 Tbsp canola into a mixing bowl, and coat the bottom and sides with oil.
• Put the dough in the oiled bowl, and flip the dough around to uniformly coat with oil.
• Cover the bowl and set in a warm spot to rise until doubled. (For me this was about 2 hours.).
• Punch down dough and separate into loaves. Loaves can be braided like traditional challah, or baked in a bread loaf pan, or formed into any shape you like.
• Put formed loaves aside to rise a second time, covered, until doubled in size. (This took about 2 1/2 hours for me.).
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Just prior to baking, mix one remaining egg with a bit of water (about a teaspoon or so) and a small pinch of salt. Use this mixture to glaze the loaves.
• Bake loaves for 30 minutes, rotating once midway to keep browning even.
• Cool on racks.
• Freezes well.

CHOCOLATE CHALLAH

Steps:

• Heat the water to 110°F.
• Mix about one cup of the flour, the yeast, and the heated water until smooth.
• Add brown sugar, cocoa, butter, salt, egg and mix.
• Add enough of the remaining bread flour to make a soft dough.
• Knead about four minutes with a mixer at medium speed or by hand (may take a little longer) until dough is elastic and smooth.
• Set the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let it stand in a warm place until doubled, about one hour.
• Filling:.
• Beat the cream cheese until soft and smooth Add the melted chocolate while it is still hot and mix until smooth.
• Add the sugar, flour, egg yolk and vanilla.
• Mix until smooth.
• Once the dough has risen, punch out the air and knead it for a couple of minutes until smooth.
• Use a knife to divide the dough into three equal pieces.
• Roll the dough pieces with a rolling pin to rectangles 15 inches by 5 inches.
• Spread 1/3 of the filling down the center of each, leaving a one-inch border with no filling.
• Roll the rectangle into fifteen-inch long ropes with the filling inside.
• Pinch any seams together and roll the ropes with your hands until smooth.
• Braid the three ropes.
• When you get to the ends, wet them, pinch them together, and tuck them under.
• Prepare a large baking sheet by greasing and sprinkling with cornmeal.
• Place the loaf on the pan, cover the loaf, and let it rise until doubled, about one hour
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Bake the bread for 20 minutes then cover the bread with a large sheet of aluminum foil and bake for another ten to fifteen minutes or until done.
• While the bread is cooling, make the glaze.
• With a mixer, beat cream cheese with vanilla.
• Add powdered sugar and cocoa with enough warm water to make a glaze of drizzling consistency.
• Drizzle the chocolate glaze generously over the bread.

MY FAVORITE CHALLAH

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water.
• Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Gradually add flour. When dough holds together, it is ready for kneading. (You can also use a mixer with a dough hook for both mixing and kneading.)
• Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Clean out bowl and grease it, then return dough to bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until almost doubled in size. Dough may also rise in an oven that has been warmed to 150 degrees then turned off. Punch down dough, cover and let rise again in a warm place for another half-hour.
• To make a 6-braid challah, either straight or circular, take half the dough and form it into 6 balls. With your hands, roll each ball into a strand about 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place the 6 in a row, parallel to one another. Pinch the tops of the strands together. Move the outside right strand over 2 strands. Then take the second strand from the left and move it to the far right. Take the outside left strand and move it over 2. Move second strand from the right over to the far left. Start over with the outside right strand. Continue this until all strands are braided. For a straight loaf, tuck ends underneath. For a circular loaf, twist into a circle, pinching ends together. Make a second loaf the same way. Place braided loaves on a greased cookie sheet with at least 2 inches in between.
• Beat remaining egg and brush it on loaves. Either freeze breads or let rise another hour.
• If baking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again. If freezing, remove from freezer 5 hours before baking. Then dip your index finger in the egg wash, then into poppy or sesame seeds and then onto a mound of bread. Continue until bread is decorated with seeds.
• Bake in middle of oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden. Cool loaves on a rack.

MY FAVORITE CHALLAH

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water.
• Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Gradually add flour. When dough holds together, it is ready for kneading. (You can also use a mixer with a dough hook for both mixing and kneading.)
• Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Clean out bowl and grease it, then return dough to bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until almost doubled in size. Dough may also rise in an oven that has been warmed to 150 degrees then turned off. Punch down dough, cover and let rise again in a warm place for another half-hour.
• To make a 6-braid challah, either straight or circular, take half the dough and form it into 6 balls. With your hands, roll each ball into a strand about 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place the 6 in a row, parallel to one another. Pinch the tops of the strands together. Move the outside right strand over 2 strands. Then take the second strand from the left and move it to the far right. Take the outside left strand and move it over 2. Move second strand from the right over to the far left. Start over with what is now the outside right strand. Continue this until all strands are braided. For a straight loaf, tuck ends underneath. For a circular loaf, twist into a circle, pinching ends together. Make a second loaf the same way. Place braided loaves on a greased cookie sheet with at least 2 inches in between.
• Beat remaining egg and brush it on loaves. Either freeze breads or let rise another hour in refrigerator if preferred.
• To bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again. (If freezing, remove from freezer 5 hours before baking.) Then dip your index finger in the egg wash, then into poppy or sesame seeds and then onto a mound of bread. Continue until bread is decorated with seeds.
• Bake in middle of oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden. Cool loaves on a rack.