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My Challahs Don’t Rise After Shaping

Here’s a common query I get from many of you out there and this time, instead of only responding to the person writing to me, I would like to share it with all of you. The answer to this dough and rising issue is one that I know so many challah bakers need to know:…

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Challah Tip: When Challahs get Brown too Quickly

My challahs brown too fast. What should I do? Tamar’s answer: If your challahs look like they may burn or are browning too early there are a few things you can do. First of all, check that your oven is on the right setting and temperature. If the temperature of your oven is set too…

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Challah Troubleshooting: Challah too Doughy in the Middle

How to Bake Your Challahs Evenly No more doughy middles! Question: “My challahs rise okay and seem to bake fine but when we slice them open they are too doughy or not done enough in the middle. Other times they seem to sag in the center or fall inwards. How do I take care of…

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Help- My Challah Dough Doesn’t Rise Enough

Help- My Challah Dough Doesn’t Rise Enough Today’s question is from a Challah Bytes member, Malki. She asks: Lately I have problems that the dough doesn’t rise enough but maybe this problem can be solved to buy a new package of dry yeast. For how long do you think can dry yeast stay usable it…

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Substituting Whole Wheat Flour Instead of White Flour

Substituting Whole Wheat Flour Instead of White Flour A frequent question I receive is about replacing white flour in a recipe with whole wheat flour. Here is today’s question from Suri: I have made your challah (from A Taste of Challah cookbook) many times and it’s delicious. How can I tweak it by making whole…

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Help! Why is my challah crumbly and sticky?

My challah crumbles when we cut it. I don’t know why. This is what I do. I never had any issues with it till now but I changed a few things. I started to use distilled water and self rising flour, maybe one of these is the problem. Not sure. But the challah is so…

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Can I freeze challah dough?

One of the most frequent questions I receive is about freezing challah dough. Can I freeze challah dough? How do I freeze challah dough? People all over the world freeze their challah dough. However, I have found that the dough does not bake the same way once it has been frozen as dough, so I…

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Explaining Shlissel Challahs

Explaining Shlissel Challahs This article first appeared in Hamodia’s Inyan Magazine, 2014 Question: I know that the first Shabbos immediately following Pesach is what is known as Key Challah week, aka, shlissel challahs. What is this minhag all about? Doesn’t Hashem decree what we will make for the whole year on Rosh Hashana? Question: I…

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Yeast to Flour Ratio

Yeast to Flour Ratio I have read all your info on yeast, but am still confused!! – I have just bought individual 11g sachets of Instant Dry Yeast (manufacturer Dagan) – how do I use it in my challas????- I look forward to your reply – many thanks, An 11 gram packet is about 2…

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Whole Wheat Flour, Egg Substitution and Kneading

Hello again! I was about to begin baking my challah using whole wheat flour and without eggs. Your recipe says to put the ingredients into a mixer bowl and knead for ten minutes with a mixer. Do you mean a hand held mixer like I use for cakes? Or only the heavy duty bread machine…

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