1/4 pound of butter (1 stick)

1 scant Tablespoon active dry yeast (1/4 ounce envelope)

1 1/2 cups warm water, separated

pinch of sugar

3 extra large eggs

1/2 cup of honey

5-7 cups of flour (I use a combination of bread flour and whole wheat flour)

1 Tablespoon salt

corn meal

1 egg, lightly beaten with a little water to make an egg wash

raisins or other dried fruit

sesame or poppy seeds, optional

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat.  Pour a tablespoon of melted butter into a large mixing bowl, swirl to coat the inside of the bowl and set aside.  Set remaining butter aside to cool a bit.
2. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup of warm water, with a pinch of sugar.  Set aside to proof.  (You are looking for it to become foamy, so you know the yeast is good.)
3. In a large bowl, beat the eggs until all one color.  Add the honey and mix well.  Add the melted, cooled butter and mix well.  Add yeast mixture and mix well.  Add remaining cup of warm water and mix well.  Add the first cup of flour and the salt and mix well.  Continue to add flour, 1 cup at a time until your mixture is thick enough to work by hand.  In other words, it has gone from batter to dough.  I do this whole process with a Kitchen-Aid stand mixer, but you will have equally good results with a hand mixer or even a combination of whisk and spoon.
4. Spoon dough onto a flour surface and knead, adding more flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, elastic dough.  This is where you would add raisins, if using.
5. Get your buttered bowl, from step one and plop your dough into it.  Flip the dough over (thus coating both sides with butter) and cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel.  Place in a warm spot in your kitchen and let rise for several hours or until doubled in size.
6. When ready to bake, sprinkle a baking sheet with cornmeal and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7. Divide the dough into 3 equal parts and roll each into a long rope.  Braid the ropes and then curl the braid into a circle, pinching the ends to close and transfer to baking sheet.
8. Cover the loaf with that clean kitchen towel and let rise for 40 minutes, back in that warm spot.
9. Brush top and sides of the loaf with egg wash and sprinkle with seeds, if using.  Bake 45 minutes, or until golden brown.

For apple challah at Rosh Hashanah, I knead about 1 1/2 cups sliced apples into the dough before I separate it to braid.  In the final step, I sprinkle it with coarse sugar.

For pumpkin challah in October, I substitute 1 cup of pumpkin puree for the eggs and add 1 Tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice with the salt in step 3.  In the final step, I sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar.

Now, some challah tips and tricks.

Challah is best warm from the oven and that is why I bake it at the JCC for our Fourth Friday Services every month.

I have heard wonderful stories from other challah lovers of adding dried cherries or cranberries with much success.  I like dried blueberries and lemon zest, sometimes.

It is a wonderful practice to divide the dough in half and make 2 smaller braids, so you have one to eat and one to give away to a friend.  Baking time will be a bit shorter.

Just for fun, make up a batch of dough and invite friends over to shape their own loaves, any way they like.  This is especially popular with the younger set. 

Leftover challah makes the best french toast.  The problem seems to be in having enough leftover...

And finally, it has been my experience that this recipe always behaves; it is not fussy and doesn’t mind a bit when the baker plays around a little.  I really believe that, on Fridays, flour, butter, eggs and honey simply want to be challah.