In this short video, I share how to braid a challah using two strands. I got the idea from Ted at “There’s a Fire in My Kitchen,” a blog that is now inactive. Unfortunately he didn’t show exactly how to do the braiding, so I improvised a little. You can find the recipe for the […]
May 31, 2010
How I Cut My Baking Time in Half
There’s a reason bread is traditionally made in loaves. Loaf pans keep the bread from spreading, and slices are even and easy to use in sandwiches. They also save baking time.
May 3, 2010
Meet Mirjam Weiss and Her Foolproof Challah
Please welcome Recipezaar personality Mirjam Weiss for today’s reader interview. Mirjam with Her Best Cooking Tip Name: Mirjam Weiss Location: Ra’anana, Israel Family: 1 husband, 4 daughters (one married), 3 stepsons (one married with a son), one stepdaughter Website: MiriYummy What do you remember about family meals when you were growing up? Every night at […]
March 3, 2010
Recipe: Challah Bread with Sponge Method
Bread making is an art as well as a science, and may take a while until you get the kind of challah you want. It takes more time than most recipes on this site.
My friend Miriam Kresh of Israeli Kitchen suggests using less yeast in baking, leading to a lighter, airier bread with less yeasty taste. But it involves a longer rising time. She helped me work out the recipe below.
A sponge contains all of the yeast and liquids, and about two-thirds of the flour called for in the recipe. It allows you to use less yeast, compensated for by a longer rising time. This means that you end up with an airier dough with more flour taste than yeast. Sometimes it consists of only the water, yeast, and the majority of the flour.
February 2, 2010
Converting Commercial Yeast Recipes to Sourdough
Laurie Ashton is a Twitter friend who caught my attention with her recipe for sourdough challah. When Aleeza asked how to convert regular yeast recipes to sourdough I thought of Laurie, and sure enough, she came through with a clear and thorough explanation. Her guest post is below.
Convert Standard Yeast Recipes to Sourdough
Guest post by Laurie Ashton
I’m not a long-time sourdough baker – I’ve only been baking sourdough (wild yeast) bread for the last couple of years. Since I don’t digest commercial-yeasted bread well, I use sourdough exclusively, which also means trial and error in converting recipes to sourdough.
