“Are you a ripper, or a cutter?” Sarah Klegman asked me in my kitchen in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles last spring.
We were talking about challah, of course. Klegman, 27, and her baking partner, Elina Tilipman, 30, are the forces behind Challah Hub, a Jewish holy bread and social media project. They’d come over at my behest to spend an afternoon making the traditional Sabbath plaited loaves and brought with them fresh batches of challah dough and salted caramel for the braid.
DISSOLVE: Empty your packet of yeast into a cereal bowl, then pour 1/2 cup of lukewarm water over it.
DUMP: In a big bowl, put in your 3 1/2 cups of flour, 1/2 tsp salt, half a cup of sugar, your crushed Andes mints, and your chocolate chips. Whisk it all together.
SCRAMBLE: Put your 3 egg yolks in a cereal sized bowl and mix ’em up. Add your melted ½ cup of butter to the bowl. BUT make sure your butter isn’t hot, or else it’ll cook your eggs and that’s gross and bad.
DROP IT: Pour ½ cup of soda water in a cereal-sized bowl, then drop in 10 drops of liquid green food coloring, followed by 1/2 tsp mint extract (you can also add a teeny bit more if you want it super minty).
MIX: Take your big bowl of dry ingredients, and stir in all your cereal bowls of liquids, your yeasty water, your mint green soda water, and your eggy butter. Mix it all up until the dough starts to leave the side of the bowl, and then roll up your sleeves and use your hands! Get in there. You want your dough to feel smooth-ish, a little elastic, but don’t worry if it’s kinda sticky and gooey – that’s cool. Feel free to add up to 1 additional cup of flour as you’re mixing, if you feel like it’s TOO runny.
TOSS: Butter the inside of a big bowl, and drop your big ball of dough (at this point, it should look like a massive scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream). Cover it with a damp cloth, and leave it alone for 2-3 hours. DON’T PUT IT IN THE FRIDGE YOU GUYS. Just let it hang out.
BRAID: After your magical ball of ice cream challah has risen for 2-3 hours, dump it out on a floured surface, push it down and fold it a few times to get any big air bubbles out, then divide it into three even sections. Roll those sections out to long strands, then braid it. Place your braided dough on a lightly greased foil covered cookie sheet.
THE FINAL RISE: Almost there, guys. Cover your braided dough with a damp cloth again, and let it rise another hour.
GLAZE N’ BAKE: After your braid has risen for an hour, uncover it, and take your egg whites, and paint your challah. Glaze it!
GET HOT: Pre-Heat your oven to 325 degrees, then toss that puppy in for 28-35 minutes. Keep your eye on it, if you aren’t sure if it’s done or not, and the top is browning nicely, take it out, and lift it up (carefully) and tap the bottom. If it sounds hollow, you’re probably done.
CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE: After your challah is mostly cooled, melt the reserved chocolate chips, and drizzle it over the top.