I've happily been making this one for many years:
https://thesolitarycook.wordpress.com/2012/04/07/challah-with-herbs/
And please don't think you're limited in terms of flavor combinations. Citrus zests are wonderful in challah, and a combination of saffron and a few drops of rose oil lend it a heady fragrance.
ok...so if I'm guessing, easy might mean reliable, not fussy, maybe not too many ingredients. My (slightly unusual) go-to recipe for challah is James Beard Refrigerator Potato Bread (from Beard on Bread). Though it's not a tradtuonal recipe, it has eggs (and maybe a little sugar), so it meets defition of a "rich bread" in Jewish tradtion, one of the requirements to make challah. More to our points, outs dead easy, not fussy, has a refrigerator rise which can adjust to the convenience of your schedule, makes a beautiful braid or 12-bump loaf (one trad shape, one each for the 12tribed of Israel), and - like chocolate cake make with some mashed potato - bakes and says moist. Top with an egg wash and your choice of seed abd you'Ee ready to go. And Btw cant endorse boulangere suggestions too much...play with the seasoning and see which combos you prefer.
Here is a link to a challah recipe that is in Amanda's New York Times Cookbook. It is amazing. Challah isn't difficult to make but it does take time. Worth every minute though. The recipe makes one giant loaf however I divide the dough into three loaves each having three strands. I do a double egg wash and sprinkle it with coarse sugar. My family goes crazy when I make it!
At the risk of sounding like I inevitably will...I think the question itself moves away from cuisine and into theology and epistemology. The idea and motivation of challah is about meditation, faith, family, community...and all these things are by their nature difficult and time-consuming. I've heard women complain that no quick or rushed challah turns out well, which kind of goes back to what challah exists to do: To take time, to make us stop, and wait, and be...until Saturday night, when rushed, regular life starts again. My answer is that there should not BE an easy challah!
7 Comments
https://thesolitarycook.wordpress.com/2012/04/07/challah-with-herbs/
And please don't think you're limited in terms of flavor combinations. Citrus zests are wonderful in challah, and a combination of saffron and a few drops of rose oil lend it a heady fragrance.
Ok here is the link....
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/magazine/28Food-recipes.html