Heavenly Challah Bread

There's nothing like eating a meal, making toast or a eating a sandwich with freshly baked bread.  Bread machines make it incredibly easy to make a fresh loaf of bread in 3 hours or less.  Through a lot of experimentation, I came up with the perfect bread machine recipe for Challah bread.  Making the bread is simple: just add the ingredients in the order presented in this recipe and voila! you have a delicious loaf of Challah bread!  I hope you enjoy this recipe.

Step 1: Ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make a one and a half pound loaf of Heavenly Challah Bread in a bread machine:

6 ounces of warm water
3 medium or large eggs
3 tablespoons of unsalted sweet cream butter
3 tablespoons of honey
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
3 cups of bread flour
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of poppy seeds
1 teaspoon of active dry yeast

You'll need some measuring cups, measuring spoons, and of course a bread machine.

Step 2: Add Water

Remove the bread machine's bread pan from the machine.  Measure out six ounces of warm water and pour it into the bread pan.

Step 3: Add Eggs

Remove three medium or large eggs from your refrigerator and allow them to warm to room temperature.
Crack open the eggs and add to the bread pan.

Step 4: Add Butter

Measure out three tablespoons of unsalted sweet cream butter.  Cut the butter into smaller slices and allow the butter to warm to room temperature.  Add the butter to the bread pan.

Since the recipe calls for salt to be added at a later step, I use unsalted butter so the bread won't come out too salty.

Step 5: Add Honey

Measure three tablespoons of honey and add it to the bread pan.

Step 6: Add Salt

Measure one and a half teaspoons of salt and add it to the bread pan.

Step 7: Add Flour

Measure and add three cups of bread flour to the bread pan.

Step 8: Add Sugar

Add one tablespoon of sugar to the bread pan.

Step 9: Add Poppy Seeds

Add one and a half teaspoons of Poppy Seeds to the baking pan.

Step 10: Add the Yeast

Measure and add one teaspoon of active dry yeast to the bread pan.  Don't use more than one teaspoon because this bread rises quite a bit and if you use more yeast, the bread will rise and come into contact with the lid on the bread machine (this is the voice of experience).  It'll still taste good but won't have a nice curved top crust.

Step 11: Setup Bread Machine

Put the bread pan into the bread machine and close the lid.

Set your bread machine to:

• 1.5 pound loaf
• Medium crust
• Basic (or white) bread.

Press Start.  In about three hours, you'll have a delicious Challah bread!

Step 12: Beautiful Dough

As the bread machine mixes the ingredients and starts the kneading process, you'll get a beautiful dough like the ones in the photos below.

Step 13: Voila! Heavenly Challah Bread!

Carefully remove the very hot bread pan from the bread machine and remove the bread according to the instructions that came with your bread machine.  Voila! - a beautiful and delicious loaf of Challah Bread!

Comments

[chgoliz]

This is not challah bread (butter instead of oil, too batter-like to form a braid) nor brioche (no milk), but it is a simple egg bread recipe that works in the bread machine. You can pour (yes, pour) the batter into a greased bread pan to rise and then bake in the oven at 350ºF for 40 minutes instead of baking in the bread machine if you prefer. Do not expect this 'dough' to be able to bake on a flat baking sheet the way challah does, and you'll be fine. It's tasty and perfectly fine for French toast or sandwiches.

[Jm2frish]

Real challah is made with oil. No dairy.

[debbylm567]

If I wanted to make this non-dairy (parve), could i use margarine, or should I use oil?

Will i be able to braid the dough and bake it in the oven as a traditional Challah?

Thanks.

[Jm2frish]

Use oil. By definition, Challah can not contain butter as it needs to be parve.

[ErnestL14]

Made this today for french toast in the morning. It looked too soupy. DON'T TOUCH IT, IT'S FINE. Came out perfect!

[kmckirkle]

What setting do you use on the machine. Mine is a panasonic and goes by numbers for different kinds of bread but no challah! For instance 8 for french bread or 9? for a sandwich loaf. I think the settings take different amounts of time as the french bread is 5 hours. Thankyou.

[allisonbates]

Is there a way to make it without a bread machine?

[o.d]

what makes the crust of bread so hard ?, even when you follow the recipe exactly ?

have set the machine on LIGHT crust and dif. loaf size and still comes out hard as a rock .. does veg. oil cause this ?

have used dif. recipes with same results !

[GaryA30]

I'm in the process of making this as my first loaf of bread in my new bread machine. I had a bread machine 10 years ago. But it is long gone. So I'm like a beginner again. My first mistake so far-I put all the ingredients in the bread pan and forgot to put on the kneading blade. I'm sure the rotor is going to be fun to clean later. So far what I noticed is that after the first kneading period there was a moderate amount of flour to one side not mixed in. I don't know if it's because I didn't spread the flour somewhat even in the machine. I'm also wondering if the small cart I have the machine on is not perfectly level. Or maybe that flour would have been incorporated on the next knead. But I didn't take the chance. After the 1st knead, I used a spoon to mix the leftover flour into the main flour ball. Right now I'm waiting anxiously for my 1st loaf to finish and staring at the mess I made of the kitchen. Wish me luck on this 1st loaf!!!

[GaryA30]

Came out great if anyone is interested!!

[talk2bruce]

Glad to hear it worked out well for you!

[GaryA30]

I did use salted butter. I know real bakers and cooks will say not to. But I think that in most of the things I bake/cook the added salt is not really going to matter. Plus as regards my bread machine, the main thing I remember from my previous machine years ago is that the breads smelled good but were tasteless. To my mind more salt can only help. :-)

[1EGORE]

IS THE WATER 6 OZ WEIGHT 0R 6OZ LIQUID?

[talk2bruce]

The water is six ounces liquid.

[Traceyls]

I have been making this recipe exactly like it says for about 2 years now. It comes out perfect every time. I have given it as gifts too. Thank you for making all your fails to give us the perfection. :)

[brian.k.frederick.5]

I make this all the time, but I only use the dough cycle of the bread machine and then after that cycle is done, I put it in a slightly oiled bowl, flip it over and cover it with plastic wrap till it doubles. Then I put it in an oblong 6x9x2 inch casserole dish that I coat with shortening..;..into the oven at 350 for 20 minutes and then tent foil over it for another 20 minutes. I love using this in 2" wide slices, as I make a slit down the middle from the top, without going thru the sides and bottom and stuff it with flavored cream cheese and then dip it in my French toast batter.....sprinkle some powdered sugar on it and a couple of dollops of whipped cream....oh so good

[eoniverse]

Make this bread.You will not regret it. Like others I thought the dough a lot too wet. It barely held a dough ball kneading. In fact even reading all comments before making it...i was sure it was wrong. I added approx 2/3 cup more flour and an 1/8 extra teaspoon of yeast.It was still VERY sticky and dough still accumulated slightly under the kneading blades. I wanted to add more flour but resisted and i'm glad i did. It turned out amazing. Light and flavorful and easy to slice. I find it slightly on the sweet side and the texture is in the Challah family but its not quite. Still this egg bread is excellent. One of the best recipes i have found and made.

[boogiewu]

[sherry.heim.3]

This dough appears more like a heavy batter in your machine. Do not be disappointed or concerned, it will make a beautiful loaf of tender and delicious bread. It makes a great sandwich if you can keep yourself from eating it all before there is time to make a sandwich. I scraped down the sides of the pan after the first mixing.

[SherylL1]

Just made your bread this evening, and it came out great! I wanted to experiment before Friday, but I think I'll set the crust to light for Friday's bread instead of medium. Thanks again for the great recipe!