Ever since skeptically trying out
Piña Colada Challah, I've had a lot of fun experimenting with coconut flavors in my challot. It's funny... maybe it's a grown up thing, but as an adult I'm way more excited about coconut than as a kid. (Don't get me wrong; I'm hard-core against those AWFUL little canned Kosher-for-Passover macaroons. YUCK!) I don't cringe in anguish if I get the coconut creme in a box of chocolates. I love cooking with coconut milk in savory dishes. So, we figured... why not coconut in a sweet challah with chocolate.... which turned into a Mounds Bar Challah.
So what do you think... should we try Almond Joy next? Perhaps with a bit of almond flour in the mix?
This is a great challah to try, because you can use your own challah recipe or try out something new as far as the dough goes. Here's what you'll need...
A challah recipe of your choice -- for these proportions, I used one half of our half batch recipe... about 1 1/2 cups of flour. You'll want to adjust proportions accordingly.
For the 1 1/2 c flour dough, you'll need...
1/4 c plus about 2 Tbs sweetened flaked coconut (from the baking aisle)
1/4 to 1/2 c chocolate chips... I used the LAST of my Parve Trader Joe's chocolate chips, so sad they're OU-D now.
After your dough is risen and ready to be braided, plop the
chocolate chips and 1/4 c coconut on your dough and knead by hand. Have extra flour on hand in case its sticky (it will be).
Using a sharp knife, divide your dough into the number of strands you'd like to use. Braid as normal.
After the egg wash, top your challah with shredded coconut. When baking, you'll probably want to foil the top of the loaf near the end (last five minutes) to prevent over-browning.
We're calling this challah a sweet success!
Shabbat Shalom from our bayit to yours!
