Carly Zimmerman stopped by COOK this Saturday, March 19th to whip up some fresh challah for us and to talk about Challah for Hunger – an organization fighting to end hunger through funds raised by selling challah. 

The three varieties of challah demonstrated were the Everything Bagel, Jalapeño-Cheddar (more like Challah-peño!), and sweet Chocolate-Babka.

Feel like giving it a go? Carly was kind enough to provide us with the basic recipe for challah dough and encouraged everyone to try their own variation. If you need suggestions for your perfect loaf, head over to the Challah for Hunger site to find some of their favorite go-to recipes including gluten-free and vegan options. To get started, find Carly’s basic Challah recipe below:

Basic Challah Dough

6-8 Cups Flour
2 1/2 Cups Water
3/4 Cups Sugar
1/2 Cup Oil
1 Tbsp Instant Yeast
1/2 Tbsp Salt

1. Mix the sugar, oil, salt, and water in a large bowl until everything is dissolved.

2.  Add 3 cups flour and mix. You will not necessarily be able to get rid of all the clumps of flour yet;  that’s OK. Just keep going.

3. In a separate, small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon  INSTANT yeast with one cup of flour. After the yeast has been thoroughly mixed into the cup of flour, add the mixture to the dough.

4. Continue adding flour, between 2 and 4 more cups. As your mixture becomes more solid, add the flour more and more slowly. Add flour until you reach the point when, if you press the dough gently with clean fingers, no dough sticks to your hands. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Take a break! Then knead, using the heel of your hand, (not your fingers) for 6 minutes. You may have to add some flour while kneading, but be conservative.

5. Put the dough back in the bowl, cover with oil and then drape a towel over the bowl and let it rise for at least one hour. But monitor it to make sure it doesn’t overflow the bowl. You can let the dough rise overnight in the fridge. (The rising process slows down in cooler temperatures).

6. Braid and, if desired, egg wash. If you have time, let the loaf rise before you bake it. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown. (30-40 minutes).

To learn more about Challah for Hunger, visit their website.