Orange Challah Bread

This Orange Challah is a fresh look at your favorite grandma's loaf. Bright and sunny from the orange juice, this bread is both hearty and light. We chose to replace most of the sugar with honey – we feel that this makes for a more flavorful crumb and really brings out the Trailblazer's sweetness. Whether you're celebrating Hanukkah or Christmas, this is a wonderfully festive holiday bread!

BY: ELLE COWAN

Prep Time

30 minutes

Bake Time

45 minutes

Total Time

4 hours 30 minutes

Yield

1 large loaf or 2 mini loaves

Varietal

Trailblazer Bread Flour

Ingredients

 
 

1 tablespoon (14g) sugar

2 tablespoons (42g) honey

1 ⅓ teaspoon (5g) instant yeast

¾ cup + 2 tablespoon (225g) freshly-squeezed orange juice, warmed to 105-115°F

2 tablespoon (29g) olive oil (or any vegetable oil of your choice) + extra to oil the bowl, hands, and the work surface

2 (100g) whole large eggs

4 (60g) large egg yolks

4 ⅓ cup (550g) Trailblazer bread flour

1 teaspoon (7.1g) sea salt

Optional - orange zest, to taste

Egg wash: 1 egg + ½ teaspoon of water + pinch salt, lightly whisked

Baker's Notes

Some people use orange juice, some people use water or even milk. This version, with the orange juice and honey, allows for more depth in flavor and works well with the Trailblazer flour. For more orange flavor, consider adding the orange zest, it really brightens up the bread. In this recipe, it is vital that you use fresh orange juice as the store-bought orange juice may contain preservatives that will kill the yeast. Juicing the oranges is just one small extra step, but it really makes a big difference.

The egg wash can be prepared well in advice and kept covered at room temperature. To make the egg wash, just lightly whisk the egg with a little water and salt. You may then want to pass it through a strainer to remove the stringy white lump that always seems to remain unbroken: you don’t want it on your bread.

Mixing this dough in a stand mixer makes the job much, much easier. It’s a very sticky dough and it’s a little on the difficult side to mix by hand.

Instructions

  1. Combine sugar, honey, and yeast in a large mixing bowl. Add orange juice and whisk to combine to dissolve sugars and yeast. If using active dry rather than instant yeast, let the contents of the bowl sit for a few minutes until the yeast starts to foam.
  2. Add oil, eggs, and egg yolks to the liquid. Whisk to combine and break up the eggs.
  3. Add flour and start to mix the dough with a dough hook using an electric stand mixer. If you are adding orange zest, you may add it to the dough at this time.
  4. Once the liquid has mostly been absorbed, add the salt and continue to mix for roughly 5 minutes or until dough has come together. It will be very sticky.
  5. Prepare a large bowl with enough olive oil to thoroughly coat the bottom and sides (about 1-2 tablespoons).
  6. Lightly oil your table and with oiled hands, remove the dough from the mixing bowl and put it on the table. Shape the dough into a ball and place it into the bowl. Loosely cover with a towel.
  7. Let proof for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
  8. Lightly oil the table once more and remove the dough from the bowl. Punch down and knead for 1 minute to reform into a ball and place it back into the bowl.
  9. Let proof for about 1 more hour or until it has reached 1.5x its size.
  10. Remove from bowl and portion into 6 equal pieces (170g/piece). Let rest uncovered on your table for 15 minutes, to allow the gluten to relax.
  11. Shape into long equal length strands, then roll the center strand a little more to make it slightly longer and tapering at the ends. Braid into one 6-strand or two smaller 3-strand challahs.
  12. Place the final shaped loaves onto a silicone baking mat or parchment-lined sheet pan.
  13. Preheat the oven to 350°F and brush your loaf with the egg wash. Lightly spray plastic wrap with spray oil and loosely cover the challah.
  14. Allow to proof a final time for roughly 1 hour or until it has reached 1.5x its size.
  15. Egg wash one final time and bake for 25 minutes in the middle wrack of the oven, turning the sheet around halfway and baking for another 20 minutes or until dark golden brown.
  16. Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack, and cool completely for 1 hour before cutting or serving.

Baker's Notes

Some people use orange juice, some people use water or even milk. This version, with the orange juice and honey, allows for more depth in flavor and works well with the Trailblazer flour. For more orange flavor, consider adding the orange zest, it really brightens up the bread. In this recipe, it is vital that you use fresh orange juice as the store-bought orange juice may contain preservatives that will kill the yeast. Juicing the oranges is just one small extra step, but it really makes a big difference.

The egg wash can be prepared well in advice and kept covered at room temperature. To make the egg wash, just lightly whisk the egg with a little water and salt. You may then want to pass it through a strainer to remove the stringy white lump that always seems to remain unbroken: you don’t want it on your bread.

Mixing this dough in a stand mixer makes the job much, much easier. It’s a very sticky dough and it’s a little on the difficult side to mix by hand.

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