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donutsweeper) wrote2018-02-19 04:53 pm
donutsweeper) wrote2018-02-19 04:53 pm
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Chubby Bubby's Challah
(I posted this on LJ's vintage-recipes back in 2010 but wanted to have it here in case that journal ever gets deleted. I haven't made it recently since it's a lot of work, but it makes the best challah I've ever eaten.)
Chubby Bubby was my grandmother's mother. She considered having a fresh challah for the Sabbath table one of the utmost important things for a person to have so, every Friday morning (other than during Passover and the Friday she was in labor with my grandmother- a fact she NEVER let my grandmother forget) from when she got married in 1904 until she was admitted into a care facility in 1973 she got up early to start the dough.
She passed on the tradition, teaching her daughters and daughters-in-law the 'proper' way to make challah, although most wound up buying their bread instead, much to her dismay. 20 someodd years ago I called my grandmother, who luckily still had the notecard where she'd jotted down the recipe, and asked her to walk me though preparing Chubby Bubby's challah.
Getting a recipe that worked and I could understand was a little more difficult. This is how the conversation went:
G: First whisk two yeast cakes into lightly heated water
Me: How much water?
G: Oh, enough
Me: What temp?
G: Warmer than for regular bread
Me: Umm.. okay
G: Then add 3 cups fresh flour and 1 of sugar, put it in the stove to rise. While that's rising combine 5 cups flour, about a half cup of sugar and a pinch or two of salt. Then, using your fingers rub in a pound of good schmaltz until it resembles a coarse meal.
Me: Schmaltz?
G: Use butter, I'm sure you can't find schmaltz where you live. When that's done set it aside and take out the yeast mixture and beat into it five eggs and a bissel of honey to sweeten your week.
Me: A bissel?
G: More than a smidge, less than a splash, you know, a bissel.
Me: Oh right... a bissel (still had no clue)
G: Work the flour mixture into the yeast and adding extra flour if needed, but not too much. Knead and put it in an oiled bowl to rise until midmorning.
Me: How long is that?
G: Until it's risen enough. Then, when it's ready punch it down; divide and braid up three challahs as a four braid.
Me: A four braid?
G: Bubbleh always said six braids for the barimer, three for the pisher, four for the baleboose. {As near as I can tell Chubby Bubby altered a Yiddish phrase about a braggart, a fool/simpleton and a clever housewife for this} Let them rise until the afternoon, brush with a beaten egg and put in a hot oven for a bit before letting the temperature drop to a moderate oven.
Needless to say it took a bit of trial and error to turn that recipe into something that worked. After a number of attempts what I came up with was:
2 c lukewarm water (120-125 degrees)
3 pkgs yeast
5-7 C all purpose flour
3 C bread flour (if you don't have bread flour just use regular all purpose)
1 1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 sticks butter or margarine
6 eggs (divided, 5 for loaves, one for glaze)
small drizzle of honey
1) Combine water and yeast in a very large bowl.
2) Add in 3C bread flour and 1C of sugar, combine with fork or whisk.
3) Let rise for 30 min in warm place (an oven you turned on to lowest setting for 5 minutes and then shut off works well.) It should look bubbly when you pull it out.
4) In another bowl combine 5C flour, salt and 1/2C sugar.
5) Cut butter into the flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal.
6) Beat five of the eggs into yeast mixture one at a time.
7) Stir a drizzle of honey (I've never measured this- not too much, maybe a tablespoon?) into the yeast mixture.
8) Add the flour mix to yeast mix in stages, stirring. Add up to 2C more flour if needed.
9) Turn the dough out onto a floured surface (you might need to sprinkle a bit more flour on now and again as you knead)
10) Knead till smooth and elastic.
11) Put in oiled bowl, cover with towel, let rise 2 hours or so (to test to see if it has rising enough stick your finger in the center, if the divot remains it is ready, if it springs back right away it needs to rise more)
12) Punch dough down, knead 1 min or so to remove air bubbles
13) Divide dough into three parts, one for each loaf.
14) Divide each segment into 4 pieces, roll into ropes and braid (yes, I always do a four braid)
15) Move loaves to parchment paper lined cookie sheets and cover with towels, let rise warm place 2-5 hours (longer is better)
16) Brush with the beaten egg.
17) Bake one at a time in the oven at 400 for 4-5 minutes, then lower to 325 for another 20-25 min (adjust the second temp according to your oven, it might need to be closer to 350)
To make a four braid challah:
Roll out four "ropes" of dough and lay them side by side.
Working from left to right do an over-under-over weave - rope 1 goes over rope 2 then under rope 3 then over rope 4 to be in the furthest right place.
Repeat (taking the leftmost rope, 2, and bringing it over 3, under 4 then over 1; followed by 3 over 4, under 1 and over 2) until done.
Pinch bottoms and tops shut, folding any extra dough under the loaf.
Chubby Bubby was my grandmother's mother. She considered having a fresh challah for the Sabbath table one of the utmost important things for a person to have so, every Friday morning (other than during Passover and the Friday she was in labor with my grandmother- a fact she NEVER let my grandmother forget) from when she got married in 1904 until she was admitted into a care facility in 1973 she got up early to start the dough.
She passed on the tradition, teaching her daughters and daughters-in-law the 'proper' way to make challah, although most wound up buying their bread instead, much to her dismay. 20 someodd years ago I called my grandmother, who luckily still had the notecard where she'd jotted down the recipe, and asked her to walk me though preparing Chubby Bubby's challah.
Getting a recipe that worked and I could understand was a little more difficult. This is how the conversation went:
G: First whisk two yeast cakes into lightly heated water
Me: How much water?
G: Oh, enough
Me: What temp?
G: Warmer than for regular bread
Me: Umm.. okay
G: Then add 3 cups fresh flour and 1 of sugar, put it in the stove to rise. While that's rising combine 5 cups flour, about a half cup of sugar and a pinch or two of salt. Then, using your fingers rub in a pound of good schmaltz until it resembles a coarse meal.
Me: Schmaltz?
G: Use butter, I'm sure you can't find schmaltz where you live. When that's done set it aside and take out the yeast mixture and beat into it five eggs and a bissel of honey to sweeten your week.
Me: A bissel?
G: More than a smidge, less than a splash, you know, a bissel.
Me: Oh right... a bissel (still had no clue)
G: Work the flour mixture into the yeast and adding extra flour if needed, but not too much. Knead and put it in an oiled bowl to rise until midmorning.
Me: How long is that?
G: Until it's risen enough. Then, when it's ready punch it down; divide and braid up three challahs as a four braid.
Me: A four braid?
G: Bubbleh always said six braids for the barimer, three for the pisher, four for the baleboose. {As near as I can tell Chubby Bubby altered a Yiddish phrase about a braggart, a fool/simpleton and a clever housewife for this} Let them rise until the afternoon, brush with a beaten egg and put in a hot oven for a bit before letting the temperature drop to a moderate oven.
Needless to say it took a bit of trial and error to turn that recipe into something that worked. After a number of attempts what I came up with was:
2 c lukewarm water (120-125 degrees)
3 pkgs yeast
5-7 C all purpose flour
3 C bread flour (if you don't have bread flour just use regular all purpose)
1 1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 sticks butter or margarine
6 eggs (divided, 5 for loaves, one for glaze)
small drizzle of honey
1) Combine water and yeast in a very large bowl.
2) Add in 3C bread flour and 1C of sugar, combine with fork or whisk.
3) Let rise for 30 min in warm place (an oven you turned on to lowest setting for 5 minutes and then shut off works well.) It should look bubbly when you pull it out.
4) In another bowl combine 5C flour, salt and 1/2C sugar.
5) Cut butter into the flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal.
6) Beat five of the eggs into yeast mixture one at a time.
7) Stir a drizzle of honey (I've never measured this- not too much, maybe a tablespoon?) into the yeast mixture.
8) Add the flour mix to yeast mix in stages, stirring. Add up to 2C more flour if needed.
9) Turn the dough out onto a floured surface (you might need to sprinkle a bit more flour on now and again as you knead)
10) Knead till smooth and elastic.
11) Put in oiled bowl, cover with towel, let rise 2 hours or so (to test to see if it has rising enough stick your finger in the center, if the divot remains it is ready, if it springs back right away it needs to rise more)
12) Punch dough down, knead 1 min or so to remove air bubbles
13) Divide dough into three parts, one for each loaf.
14) Divide each segment into 4 pieces, roll into ropes and braid (yes, I always do a four braid)
15) Move loaves to parchment paper lined cookie sheets and cover with towels, let rise warm place 2-5 hours (longer is better)
16) Brush with the beaten egg.
17) Bake one at a time in the oven at 400 for 4-5 minutes, then lower to 325 for another 20-25 min (adjust the second temp according to your oven, it might need to be closer to 350)
To make a four braid challah:
Roll out four "ropes" of dough and lay them side by side.
Working from left to right do an over-under-over weave - rope 1 goes over rope 2 then under rope 3 then over rope 4 to be in the furthest right place.
Repeat (taking the leftmost rope, 2, and bringing it over 3, under 4 then over 1; followed by 3 over 4, under 1 and over 2) until done.
Pinch bottoms and tops shut, folding any extra dough under the loaf.