This past weekend, I attended a wedding of a friend's younger sister. One of her bridesmaid, it turned out, is a reader of The Challah Blog (hi, Lizzie!). She has been making the challah recipe of my friend Hannah (mom of
these cute challah helpers) and started talking about a challah blog she enjoys -- mine! My first non-hometown fan that I got to meet in real life!
Anyway, Lizzie suggested I make a Lemon Poppyseed Challah. So, I complied. Here it is! Just for you, Lizzie. Tell me what you think!
I've used lemon twice before in my challah, and one thing I've struggled with is the balance of enough lemon flavor and enough sweetness. I think this is my best balance yet of sweet and tangy.
1/2 c water
1 1/2 tsp active dry or instant yeast
1/2 tsp plus 1 tbsp sugar
1 egg plus 1 more for egg wash (you can also reserve a bit and just use one)
2 tbsp neutral oil such as canola or vegetable
2 c bread flour
1/2 tsp salt
zest of about 3/4 of a lemon, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp poppyseeds
For the frosting...
1/2 c powdered sugar
2-3 tbsp milk, unflavored soy milk, or non-dairy substitute
1/4 - 1/2 tsp vanilla, to your taste
This is a low yield recipe, because it's really different. I figure, you'll probably want to pair it with something more traditional or bake it as special morning treat. Yield is 2 quite small loaves or 1 smallish loaf with a few rolls.
Proof your the
yeast in warm but not hot
water with
1/2 tsp sugar. While the yeast is proofing, zest your
lemon and squeeze out the
lemon juice. When the yeast is foamy (about 10 minutes), mix in the
egg, oil, zest, and
juice. Mix with a wooden spoon. Add the
flour, salt, and
poppy seeds.
Mix by hand or on a stand mixer until a the ball holds together. Knead as normal. This dough is a bit wetter than most of your doughs and may feel heavier, but it should not feel sticky. Place in an oiled bowl and let rest until doubled in size, about an hour and a half.
When the dough has doubled, punch down and braid as normal. I chose to make one
six-stranded braid and four
rolls (so we could do some sampling).
Let rest an additional thirty minutes. Egg wash and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, turning halfway. While your challah bakes, you can make the
drizzle frosting if you like. Since these were just for noshing, I made the frosting dairy, however non-dairy milk will work just fine. (This will probably make you too much frosting, but you can always use on cookies! Yum!)
Drizzle the frosting over your challah with a teaspoon and admire your handy work!
Thanks so much to Lizzie for not only reading my blog, but making a request and inspiring me to make this delicious treat! It's definitely a keeper. Shabbat Shalom from our bayit to yours!
