Delightful Challah Bread

I made some Challah bread for the first time about a month ago.  It turned out to be one of my favorite white bread recipes!  I enjoy  making homemade bread where you know the ingredients that go into each loaf and the smell of freshly made bread is intoxicating!  I share this recipe in the hopes that you will try it and enjoy it as I do.

One of the things that I suggest is to weight your ingredients to get a more uniform loaf.  I have posted not only the weight but the imperial units as well.  You can use whichever you prefer.

Challah Bread
​Yields:  2 loaves Challah Bread
600 g (2.5 C) warm water - about 105-110 degrees F
20 g (2 T) Active dry yeast
170 g (1/2 C) honey
4 large eggs
120 g (1/2 C) Oilve Oil
1360-1500 g (11-12 C) flour
16 g (1 T) salt
Cinnamon-sugar mixture added to dough for a touch of added flavor (*optional)
1 beaten egg for egg wash
In a large bowl, combine the warm water, yeast and honey.  Allow the mixture to sit for about 10 minutes to activate the yeast.  Add the eggs and oil to the yeast mixture.  Gradually add the flour, salt an dcinnamon sugar mixture while mixing.  Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 mniutes.  Place the dough in a greased bowl.  Cover and let rise utnil doubled in size, about 1.5-2 hours.  Punch down the dough, divide into 3 strands and shape in braide loafs.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet (or you can braid this and place it into a bread pan).  Brush the loaf with the beaten egg, cover and let rise for another hour.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Bake the bread for 30 minutes until golden brown in color.  Allow it to cool and enjoy with fresh butter and honey.