Has anyone made either of the wholewheat challah recipes from Reinhart's wholegrain (epoxy) cookbook? I'm interested in making some dough up today for tomorrow. My husband is very resistant to the idea of wholewheat challah - I made the recipe a year ago from the King Arthur whole grain cookbook.  I'll probably start with the transitional recipe, but I'd love to hear from anyone who has experience with whole grain challah.  Thanks!

Hi all,

I'm a long-time lurker, long-time bread baker.  I live in Ottawa Canada and really enjoy reading/devouring all the posts.  I guess you could say I am passionate/obsessed with bread and bake frequently, at least 2-3 times a week.  Mostly straight doughs, but do indulge in the occasional sourdough - only problem is my family doesn't like sourdough so I end up eating it all (not a good thing for the waist).

 So, my question, out of all the Challah recipes I've tried, including Glezer's and Berenbaum's, I like Hamelman's the best.  But the problem is that he uses sugar and I really like the traditional honey taste better.  So, how do I substitute honey for the sugar.  In case this helps, the recipe calls for 1.8 oz (5.5%) sugar and 10.2 oz (32%) water.  There is additional liquid in the eggs, but I don't see how I could swap that out.

 Thanks!!!!

Janice

When baking a challah, the braids are not staying together. They spread and split apart on top (see below).

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

c1

Hello to one and all, and thank you for your truly informative, helpful, encouraging and inspirational website.

I am a competent baker who learned to bake many years ago and just never have enough time to practice enough. At the moment I have a short interlude of R&R in which to immerse myself in TFL and try and rectify an ongoing issue that has been plaguing me for what seems like FOREVER.

The recipes that I use to make both my Brioche and my Challah come from my grandmother. They make completely yummy bread the only problem (in my mind) is my crumb. It comes out like, well, cake. Now I realise this is what Marie-Antoinette was on about ... but ... I would like my crumb to be more like the doughy, chewy, cotton-wool-style interior that I remember from my childhood (just like my grandmother used to make) that also the commercially produced challah and brioche seem to manage. Unfortunately my grandmother is no longer around to ask about how she did it.

So I would be sooo happy if any of you MARVELOUS bakers out there on this excellent site have any good advice for me.

Thanking you in advance.

Aunty Sharm (takes constructive criticism well) 

Since my husband is out of town, I fished for a Shabbos invitation at a close friend's house. He was going to be out all day, so I volunteered to bake the challah. I haven't made one for them before, and I always do a six-strand loaf for my debut. It has about 1/3 King Arthur white whole wheat, and 1/4 c dark flax seed meal.

 my standard challah for company.  1/3 King Arthur white whole wheat, 1/4 c dark flax seed meal.

Recipe: http://www.bakingandbooks.com/2007/04/09/t-minus-20-hours/

This site has a photo tutorial for how to weave a round challah: http://www.ou.org/shabbat_shalom/article/woven_round_challah/

Adapted from http://steamykitchen.com/blog/2008/01/13/challah/ (I did not top the bread with roasted hazelnuts. Also, I used 1/2 KA whole wheat flour and 1/2 KA bread flour)

Another challah that I baked (same recipe: http://www.bakingandbooks.com/2007/04/09/t-minus-20-hours/).

The recipe is from http://www.bakingandbooks.com/2007/04/09/t-minus-20-hours/ - this is the challah recipe that I use most often!