Along with working to end hunger on college campuses by making and selling challah, community-based organization Challah for Hunger encourages student volunteers to grow their entrepreneurial skills by developing new challah recipes. Volunteers learn to tailor their recipes to meet local demand — and have some fun while they’re at it.
Try a twist on traditional challah with this pretzel-inspired recipe, created by Challah for Hunger college volunteers and sure to capture all Philadelphians’ hearts. The only question: hot or honey mustard? B’te-avon (bon appétit)!
Courtesy of Challah for Hunger
Ingredients:
¾ cup sugar
½ cup oil
½ tbsp. salt
18 ½ cups of water
2 ½ tsp. yeast
4 cups flour
½ cup baking soda
sprinkle of sea salt
Directions (Makes 4-5 challot):
Mix ¾ cup sugar, ½ cup oil, ½ tbsp. salt, and 2 ½ cups of water in a large bowl. Add 3 cups of flour and mix in.
In a separate bowl, mix 2 ½ tsp. yeast and 1 cup of flour. Add this to the dough mixture. Slowly mix in 3 more cups of flour. Then coat with about 1 tbsp. of oil and cover tightly with foil or a cloth.
Let dough rise for at least an hour.
Bring 16 cups of water and ½ cup baking soda to a boil in a large pot. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Cut dough into balls of 200 grams. Flatten balls and add in a pinch of salt. Knead and fold to incorporate the salt into the dough. Then, roll dough into “snakes” and twist two together to form a round challah.
Next, submerge in the boiling water, one loaf at a time, for 1 minute. Remove and dab dry with a clean cloth.
Sprinkle with sea salt and bake for 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees. The challot should turn a dark brown color on the outside.