Pumpkin Challah

For the first time in this century, Thanksgiving and the first day of Channukkah will fall on the same day this year, on November 28th. The last time this happened was in 1888, and it will not happen again for over seventy thousand years. The cause for this special overlap is that Thanksgiving happens to be oddly late this year, and Channukkah is unusually early. For this unique junction of events, Americans have already made up an adorable portmanteau: Thanksgivukkah. How cute is that?

Pumpkin challah

I’m pretty excited about this weird celebration: I’ve always loved the spirit of Thanksgiving and wished we had something like it in Italy, where this holiday is only celebrated by American expats; now I have an official reason to join the celebrations!

Family get-togethers, good food, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade… isn’t it incredibly exciting? Plus, there’s no need to feel guilty if you’re Jewish and celebrating, like for instance on Christmas, because this holiday is for everyone and every American is involved in it, no matter their background, culture, or religion.

Macy's Parade

The primary focus is on enjoying each other’s company while sharing a magnificent meal with a grateful heart.
Perhaps I like it so much because it commemorates how newcomers were first welcomed to America, a tradition of inclusiveness that is particularly dear to the Jewish people, who have often been immigrants to foreign countries.

But how might Jews and gentiles celebrate this “twin” holiday? Well, I thought about it and came up with a recipe that I think brings together the best of both worlds: a delicious pumpkin challah!

I’ve used, with minor tweaking, a pumpkin challah recipe by Tori from the blog “The Shiksa in the Kitchen”.

Challah alla zucca - Pumpkin challah

Pumpkin challah

No ratings yet
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Course Pane
Cuisine Ebraica
Servings 4 challot

Ingredients
  

  • 2 of packages active dry yeast
  • 1 cup lukewarm water
  • 5 tbsp white sugar
  • 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tbsp sunflower or peanut oil
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1/3 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
  • 1 pinch nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 2 cups homemade pumpkin puree
  • 7-9 cups bread flour

Instructions
 

  • Pour ½ cup of the lukewarm water into a large mixing bowl, add 2 packets of active dry yeast and 1 tablespoon of sugar to the bowl, stir to dissolve, and wait 5 minutes until the yeast is foamy.
    2 of packages active dry yeast, 1 cup lukewarm water, 5 tbsp white sugar
  • Add the remaining ½ cup lukewarm water to the bowl along with the rest of the white sugar, egg, egg yolk, honey, vegetable oil, salt, and spices, and stir. Pour in the brown sugar and pumpkin puree to form a thick liquid.
    1 egg + 1 egg yolk, 1/4 cup honey, 2 tbsp sunflower or peanut oil, 2 tsp salt, 1/3 teaspoon cinnamon (optional), 1 pinch nutmeg, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 cups homemade pumpkin puree
  • Begin adding the flour to the bowl by half-cupfuls, stirring with a spoon. Continue to add flour and knead the dough with your hands until it’s smooth, elastic, and not sticky. The amount of flour listed is meant mostly for guidance but trust your senses.
    7-9 cups bread flour
  • Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a kitchen towel.
  • Let the dough rise for 1 hour, then punch it down, fold in thirds like an envelope, and let rise another hour under the towel.
  • On a lightly floured surface, form the dough into rolls and then braid the rolls into loaves.
  • After you’ve braided your challah loaves, place them on two separate oven trays lined with parchment paper and brush them with egg wash.
  • Preheat the oven to 350°F, and let the braids rise for the time it takes the oven to get to temperature.
  • Bake the challah for about 30 minutes, or until the dough at the bottom of the loaf appears fully cooked.
  • Let challah cool on a wire cooling rack before serving. Challah freezes very well. It should be thawed for two hours on the counter, and reheated briefly for a few minutes in a hot oven before serving.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Have you missed Thanksgivukkah? Don’t worry! This recipe would be fabulous for any fall celebration – I might bring it back next year for either Rosh Hashanah or Sukkot! When you notice that the season of “pumpkin spice” everything has begun at Starbucks and in every other store nationwide, that’s your sign to bake the pumpkin challah!

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15 Comments

  1. Stento a credere a tutta la bontà presente su un tavolo che celebra entrambe festività! Già il solo Thanksgiving è un overload di cibo! L’idea del Thanksgivukkah è bellissima.
    E come dici tu, è la festa per tutti
    Happy Thanksgiving and Channukkah 2013!
    Cheers
    Isabel
    PS love your pumpkin challah!

  2. Ciao carissima, forse te l’ho già chiesto: ma é kasher per fare Hamotzì questa challà? Non diventa per caso Mezonot?
    Grazie :)

  3. @Anna non mi sono dimenticata, ma mi stavo documentando. Leggo che the distinction drawn by the Mechaber is that it becomes mezonot when
    the taste is noticible. There is another similar rule with mei peirot (which includes eggs), and there too the bread becomes mezonot if the taste is noticible. On this point, the Rema rules that the bread only becomes mezonot if the majority of the liquid ingredients are mei peirot
    .
    Premesso che non sono un’autorità in materia, la norma mi pare molto opinabile e relativa. A questa norma si deve tra l’altro aggiungere che è ritenuto genericamente mezonot ciò che viene mangiato come “snack”, mentre ciò che si mangia in quantità maggiori e accompagna il pasto è comunque hamotzi (leggasi qui). Per questo direi che mi impegno comunque a verificare, ma sono abbastanza ottimista.

  4. Jasmine,
    Your pumpkin challah looks wonderful, and now you’ve got the wheels turning in my brain.
    I make a Finnish braided bread spiced with cardamom, called ‘pulla’.
    I used cardamom with pumpkin in my kugel.
    What if I were to use cardamom in your pumpkin challah?
    It would be a Thanksgiving-Hanukkah-Finnish bread, and may just cause the universe to explode.

    Thanks!

  5. ero passata appena pubblicato il post, ma evidentemente non ho inviato correttamente il commento!
    Comunque.. non sai la gioia nel leggerti (lo faccio sempre.. sempre.. amo la “vostra” cucina, tanto da essere protagonista più della tipica italiana in casa mia.. le tue ricette ormai le ho copiate tutte ;-)!).. aggiungi pathos ed entusiasmo ad un viaggio che sto per fare.. il 26 parto proprio per Israele, ed il 28 sarò a Gerusalemme.. potrò vedere da vicino questa festa, assaporarne tutti i profumi spandersi in città.. viverne le emozioni che, so già, saranno valanghe a travolgermi..
    non vedo l’ora..
    ps.. questo pane? finisce subito nel “to do.. as soon as possible”.. la zucca c’è!
    bacio e … complimenti sempre!
    ps. se hai qualche dritta su posticini dove andar a scoprire le meraviglie della cucina, fammi sapere ;-) (vedrò Gerusalemme, Tel Aviv, Nazareth.. come principali città ;-)!
    Luisa

  6. davvero complimenti!!
    tutte le ricette sono davvero superlative!!

  7. bella, bravi! proverò di certo e seguirò il consiglio di bloglettura. il mio mestoloecalamaio.it (parlar di cucina e cucinare parole) è appena nato e ha ancora tanto da imparare!

  8. Grazie per la ricetta e grazie, come sempre, per le tue belle e interessanti riflessioni su Thanksgiving, inclusività e cultura ebraica. Queste pagine sono molto più che un blog di cucina.