Scallion Pancake Challah Bread
 
 
Makes 1 large loaf
Ingredients
Dough:
  • 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
  • ¾ cup lukewarm water, divided
  • 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sugar, divided
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • ⅓ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs
Filling:
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (see notes)
  • salt, freshly ground black pepper and dried chili flakes, to taste
  • 3 stalks scallions, thinly sliced
  • 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
  • sesame seeds and freshly ground black pepper, for topping
Instructions
Make the dough:
  1. In a small bowl, combine the yeast, ½ cup water and 1 teaspoon sugar and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine the remaining ¼ cup water, honey, oil and eggs.
  4. Once yeast has finished proofing, add it to the flour mixture, followed by the liquid mixture. Stir everything until it comes together to form a shaggy ball. Then knead the dough by hand on a well-floured work surface until it's smooth and no longer sticky, adding flour as needed, about 10 minutes. Transfer dough to an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
Shape and bake the loaf:
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Divide dough into four equal parts and roll each part into a 12" log.
  3. Gently flatten each log so that it is about 3 inches wide. Brush each piece of dough with toasted sesame oil and then sprinkle with salt, pepper, dried chili flakes and scallions. Roll each piece of dough up lengthwise into a long log and pinch seams to seal.
  4. Braid logs and place the loaf on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
  5. Brush loaf with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds and pepper.
  6. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the top is golden brown and the challah is cooked through.
Notes
If you don't have sesame oil on hand, you can use vegetable or olive oil.
Recipe by Two of a Kind at http://www.twoofakindcooks.com/scallion-pancake-challah-bread/