Scallion Pancake Challah

The filling makes this a nicely savory challah. I had to use a lot more than 3 cups of flour in this recipe - possibly verging on 4.5 to 5 cups. You want the dough to at least not stick to the counter.

VEG DF

Ingredients

Bread dough:

1 tablespoon instant yeast
3/4 cups warm water, divided
2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sugar
4-5 cups flour, plus more for dusting
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons honey
1/3 cups vegetable or canola oil
2 eggs

Filling:

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2-3 stalks scallions or green onions, minced
salt, pepper, and red chili flakes to taste

Egg wash:

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
A few pinches of toasted sesame seeds and black sesame seeds

Directions

In a stand mixer bowl, proof the yeast with 1/2 cup warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar.
When proofed, add 1/2 cup water, oil, honey and eggs. Mix in salt and 2 tbsp sugar.
Using the dough hook, add 4 to 5ish cups flour to the liquid until a soft supple dough forms that is not too sticky.
Transfer to an oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel. Let rise for about two hours, or until doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 375.
Divide dough into three equal parts and then roll each part into a 1-foot log. Gently flatten each log so that it is about 3 inches wide.
Brush each with toasted sesame oil and then sprinkle with salt, pepper, chili flakes, and scallions. Roll them up length wise like a jellyroll, and then braid.
Place the loaf on a parchment lined baking sheet and then brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds and black pepper.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is golden brown and the challah is cooked through.

Notes

It’s a bit unusual to have only a single 2 hour rise.
The dough had many large bubbles; next time I might try punching down the dough halfway through the rise, and perhaps also adding a third rise after the braiding.

Source: myjewishlearning.com