Amazing Apple Challah

Now that I’ve overcome my fear of yeast, I really wanted to have some fun with sweet bread.

There’s nothing better than a great piece of sweet bread, typically with fruit, toasted and buttered in the morning. I decided to make my own. I found a beautiful recipe for challah bread, and couldn’t wait to adapt it to my own preferences.

This bread is light. It’s fluffy. The crust captures all of the delicious and makes you smack your lips. Enjoy!

Apple Challah

Bread ingredients

2 tablespoons dry yeast

1 tablespoon plus ¾ cup granulated sugar

5 large eggs

¾ cup vegetable oil

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

6 cups flour

Filling ingredients

1 large firm-tart apple, peeled, cored, and cut into small cubes½ cup raisins (I opted not to use these)

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons honey

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 egg yolk

• Combine ½ cup of warm water, the yeast, and 1 tablespoon of sugar in a small bowl. Stir until the yeast dissolves. You need to wait for the mixture to activate, which should take approximately 10 minutes.
• Take your hand mixer or (if you’re lucky) standing mixer, and beat the eggs at medium speed until blended. Add the oil, salt, and remaining ¾ cup sugar. Beat until pale in color. Add 2/3 cup of water and yeast mixture. Once this has been well blended, add your flour, one cup at a time.

 

Your dough will be slightly dry.

• Place your dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes (This can also be achieved with the use of a dough hook on your mixer for 1 minute at low speed). Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and coat the entire batter. Cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and put in a warm corner of your kitchen to rise. Allow for the dough to double in size, which takes just about an hour.
• Punch down the dough, rewrap with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel, and let the dough rise for another 30 minutes. It should puff up slightly, but it won’t get doubled in size.

I used all spice instead of cinnamon; stupid allergies.

• As you wait for this final rise, you can begin to make your filling. Take your apple, and toss it with lemon juice, honey, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Let sit for 20 minutes, and then drain any liquid. 

• Take your dough, place it on a lightly floured surface and divide it in half. Divide each half into three equal parts. Roll out each of the three pieces to form a 12-inch strand, then try to pat each strand down into a flat rectangle. Spoon your apple mixture down the center of each rectangle. Fold over the dough to tuck your filling into place, and roll each rectangle, pinching the ends tight. You’ll end up with a 15-inch strand.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F before you begin braiding the dough. Once the bread has risen, set the rack to the middle position.

• Now to make the bread. Put three of the ropes on a baking sheet. Braid the ropes together, and pinch at the top and bottom. Repeat with the other three strands on a separate baking sheet. Cover the loaves with kitchen towels, and let them rise for 45 minutes.

• Whisk an egg yolk with 1 tablespoon water and brush over the tops of the loaves.

• Finally, bake your loaves for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350°F and bake until the crusts are browned and the bread is puffed and light, which should take another 30 minutes.

 

Look at how pretty!

• Transfer the loaves to a rack and let cool for 30 minutes before serving.