Challah, Multicolor

Total Time: 2 hrs 15 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 1 hr 15 mins

Ingredients

• 2 -3 beets
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach
• 3 -4 large carrots
• water
• 12 eggs
• 2 cups canola oil, divided plus some extra for bowls
• 2 cups honey, divided
• 12 teaspoons salt, divided
• 28 -32 cups flour (i use a mix of part bread flour and part all-purpose)
• 8 tablespoons instant yeast
• 3 egg whites

Recipe

• 1 for the vegetable-colored loaves: peel and dice beets and carrot.
• 2 put beets, carrots, and spinach in separate saucepans with enough water to cover by 1/2 inch, and cook each until soft, adding water as needed to keep just under cover.
• 3 in turns, puree each vegetable and its cooking water, adding water as needed to get 2 cups of liquid puree from each vegetable.
• 4 you should now have 2 cups each of spinach, carrot and beet puree. let each cool to just barely warm.
• 5 pour each puree into separate large mixing bowls, and put 1 2/3 cup water into a fourth mixing bowl for standard challah. these will be the 4 separate batches of dough.
• 6 to each liquid add 1/2 cup oil, then 1/2 cup honey.
• 7 hint: pour the oil just before the honey, and the honey will slip right out of the measuring cup.
• 8 mix well, then add 3 eggs to each batch, and mix again.
• 9 to each mix add 3 tsp salt, mix well.
• 10 add 3 cups bread flour to each batch, mix until sloppy.
• 11 add 2 scant tablespoons instant dry yeast to each batch, mix well.
• 12 continue adding flour (this is where i switch to all-purpose) to each batch until thick enough to turn out and knead.
• 13 one at a time, knead each batch on a floured surface, adding more bread flour as needed.
• 14 the dough has enough flour when it is feeling rather firm, bounces back when you press on it, and feels tacky but not sticky.
• 15 when each batch is done being kneaded, put it back in its mixing bowl, coating the mixing bowl first with a little oil. flip the dough around in the oil to cover entirely with a thin film of oil.
• 16 cover each batch with a large plate, or with heavy plastic wrap, and let sit 45-50 minutes in a warm spot to rise until approximately doubled in size.
• 17 one at a time, flip each batch of dough onto floured surface, knead briefly, and cut and form 12 long strips for braiding. flour each lightly to keep from sticking.
• 18 keep strands in a pile of each color, until all doughs are done being made into strips.
• 19 you now have 4 piles of 12 strips each to braid.
• 20 make 4-strand braids using one strip of each color. (to see a demo of this, go to-->).
• 21 http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/tiptechniqueview.cfm?objectid=11754dcc-e8fc-4498-a0f52dd050659a71.
• 22 put loaves on parchment-covered baking sheets, cover well with plastic wrap or with a large plastic tablecloth, and let rise 30-45 minutes in a warm spot, until doubled in size.
• 23 add about 1/3 - 1/2 cup water to 3 egg whites and mix well.
• 24 use egg mixture to glaze loaves after rising is done, using a soft bristle pastry brush.
• 25 bake at 350 f for 25-30 minutes, or until nicely browned and sounding hollow when you knock on the bottom of the loaf.
• 26 cool on racks.
• 27 freezes well.