Roasted Garlic Challah Bread

Just when I was writing another post, a thought came to my mind... If I am so self-absorbed creating and making my own recipes and posting them for others to read... then who actually tries the sea of recipes that others write or so painstakingly make? I am sure this has crossed many of your minds.
A lot of recipes are just brilliant, and so unique. It would be a shame not to make and taste them myself.
So, from now on I am making a point to try out some of the recipes that others have tried and tested.
And obviously, since I write mostly about healthy food. I am trying to find the same genre recipes.

This is one such recipe by Vaishali of "Holycow", who is a vegan cook and and made this bread with an egg substitute. Flax seeds is something I use very regularly, and so didn't think twice about making it. They are about one of the most healthful stuff you can find with high levels of Omega-3 fatty acids.

And needless to say, knowing me... I did make some changes here and there, adjusted it according to my taste and came up with a flavored Challah bread infused with roasted garlic. I did not have much time to make the bread since I started later in the day, so I had to use a slightly different method. It turned out to be the most comforting thing I had in a long time.
Bliss...

Roasted Garlic Challah Bread

Ingredients:

Highly active Rapid rise yeast (Dry) - 1 package
Whole wheat pastry flour - 2.5 cups
All purpose flour - 1/2 cup
Flax seeds - 4 tbsp (ground and mixed with water)
Olive oil - 3 tbsp
Roasted Garlic - 3 tbsp (chopped finely)
Sugar - 2 tbsp
Salt - To taste (about 1 tsp)
Skim Milk - A little to knead

Method:

Mix the yeast, flour, olive oil, sugar and salt with bare hands.

Add the flax seeds paste and roasted garlic and form a ball adding a splash of milk as and when needed.

Knead for about 20-25 minutes by hand (a good workout!) pushing and pulling the dough. The more you knead the better it is.

Once the kneading process is done and the dough is smooth, transfer the dough ball into a large container and toss it with a teaspoon of oil just to coat.

Cover with plastic wrap and leave it in a warm place for about 2 hrs or till the the dough doubles in size. You will know when it is done.



Punch the dough with your fists slightly and knead it for another 5 minutes or so.

Divide the dough into 3 equally sized balls and let it rest for another 30 minutes. Covered with a plastic wrap or kitchen towel.

At this point, pre-heat your oven to 375F.

Take each ball and roll with your hands to form ropes about 12-14 inches in length.



Place the ropes on a baking sheet sprayed with oil spray (or dust with cornmeal which I did not have) and press the top end together.
Start plaiting/braiding it as you would style your hair.
Seal the bottom edges together.





Spray with olive oil and sprinkle with some black sesame seeds.

Bake the bread for about 30 min or until golden brown on top.

Let rest for about 20 min. Slice and serve with warm seasoned olive oil.



This is wrapped and sent to Ruth's Bookmarked Recipes event



And to Aparna's WBB: Grains in my Breakfast event