I’m trying to convert our food ingredients into a healthier version of the same ingredient, and so many times (where it works well with eh flavor) I would switch the regular vegetable oil with coconut oil.
If you haven’t tried working with coconut oil, you should. It’s not only so much better for you; it also has this amazing flavor that adds so much to your food. It is solid in room and cold temperatures, but melts pretty easily. Sometimes it’s enough to rub it in your hands and it melts (don’t ask how I know…let’s just say we had a lice-full start of summer).
Anyways, almost every time I want to use the coconut oil I melt it beforehand and it’s a really fast process, faster than melting butter.
When using with this oil you get food that smells amazing and tastes amazing. It’s like your taste buds are telling you you’re eating something a bit sweet and tropical but you’re not…it’s not really sweet, and that’s the beauty of it. Not to mention the wonderful smell you’ll have in the house while cooking or baking with it.
Last Friday I decided to add a twist to our Challah Bread and made it with coconut oil. It came out even softer, even better and even tastier than ever. This is definitely a must keep (and make) recipe.
- 500gr All Purpose Flour
- 2 Tbsp Yeast
- ¼ Cup White Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 1 Cup Lukewarm Water (you may need less)
- ¼ Cup Melted Coconut Oil
- ¼ Tbsp Table Salt
- 1 Beaten Egg for brushing (optional)
- In a stand Mixer Bowl place the flour, yeast and sugar.
- Add in the egg and ¾ cup of the water, the oil and the salt and start mixing slowly (Using the kneading attachment). If you see that the dough is too dry and stiff, add a bit more water at a time until what you get is a soft, even dough.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and the dough aside for about 45 minutes or until it doubles in size.
- After the dough doubled in size, punch it to get rid of the air inside the dough.
- Divide the dough into 3 even pieces, roll them into long snakes (1 ½ inch or 4cm in diameter) and braid your challah.
- Place the braided challah on a parchment paper covered baking pan and cover with clean kitchen towel and let it stand for about 30-40 minutes.
- In the meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375F (180C)
- After 30-40 minutes you can brush some beaten egg on top of the challah and sprinkle with sesame.
- Place inside the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes or until top and bottom browned nicely.
I have made this challah several times and it’s absolutely amazing! My family loves it! I have added raisins and also done a mixed wheat/white flour combination. The wheat didn’t work out that well, but the white flour challah is out of this world. No need to even butter it. The coconut oil adds a nice sweet flavour to it! Love, love it! Thank you so much!
Isn’t it amazing? I LOVE it! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback, I’m so happy you like it.