no knead challah

Large Batch Spelt No Knead Challah Recipe. All Variations

No knead Challah I have been endlessly tinkering with.

Ever since I had the good fortune of coming across Zoe François and Dr Jeff Hertzberg’s latest beautiful book, The New Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day, I have been baking bread more often. My whole story is in this link. The purpose of this post is to share the results of my tinkering with a large batch no-knead Challah and other breads made with spelt, a batch made with a 5 pound bag of whole grain spelt flour.

Spelt: Less Gluten. High Protein. High Fiber. Wonderful flavor!

I have adapted their no knead Challah recipe to my own personal preferences (less eggs and less honey), which you might welcome as well. The  loaves freeze beautifully.

Please follow the instructions for shaping and baking the Challah included in my link above, using the following amounts. I love the anise and sesame seeds, the way we Sephardis make our bread, which always comes out fragrant and delicious, but feel free to skip these seasonings.

Read about my secrets of good whole grain bread, and you too will become a pro!

Ingredients

  • 5 1/3 cups warm water
  • 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon dry yeast
  • 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 6 eggs
  • 1 cup honey or agave syrup
  • 1 cup olive oil
  • 5 pound bag whole grain spelt flour
  • 1/3 cup anise or fennel seeds
  • 1 cup sesame seeds

Instructions

Follow instructions given in the linked post above

12 replies
  1. Lévana
    Lévana says:

    Joyce, unless you are making an onion bread, please don’t substitute onions for honey. Same goes for fruit. If you are making an egg challah, you need a sweetener, very little so it won’t add too much sweetness. If you are making water challah, you need no sweetener at all.

    Reply
  2. Joyce
    Joyce says:

    Thank you. I read the directions for the five minute no knead challah. It referred me to a youtube video on how to make the five minute bread. I couldn’t find where it said what to do a out leaving out the eggs. Do you add more water instead? Thank you.

    Reply
  3. Joyce
    Joyce says:

    Thank you. I read the directions for the five minute no knead challah. It referred me to a youtube video on how to make the five minute bread. I couldn’t find where it said what to do a out leaving out the eggs. Could you leave out the honey also? Thank you.

    Reply
  4. Jean
    Jean says:

    Thank you Levana! I have all 4 of Zoe and Jeff’s books (not the newest gluten-free book yet). My husband LOVES the deli rye and I can’t keep enough of it around. I’ve started mixing double batches of it. My kids love the whole wheat sandwich bread made in a Pullman loaf pan. I’m going to try your spelt challah next with their method.

    Where can i buy 5-pound bags of spelt flour. Should I just buy it in bulk at Whole Foods? My son had spelt challah made with dark beer as the liquid and loved it. Do you think that would work with your recipe?

    Thanks for your time!

    Reply
  5. Jean
    Jean says:

    I’m so sorry, but it says to follow the instructions on the “link above” and I don’t seen that link anywhere. I don’t see where to click to get the instructions for the no knead version. I’m obviously missing something. The only link I see is the link to the main recipe that is made the conventional way.

    Reply
  6. Jean
    Jean says:

    Hi Levana, I have a question about your no-knead spelt challah. I have all of Zoe Francois’s and Jeff Hertzberg’s no-knead cookbooks. Your no knead recipe states to follow the directions in the previous link (which is for the kneaded version of your challah). If I don’t want to knead the dough, can I let it sit out for 2 hours, chill, and shape like the other recipes in their cookbooks? The previous directions refer to kneading the dough either by hand or with a mixer. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Lévana
      Lévana says:

      Jean, so one option is to knead the dough with the amounts and instructions given the traditional way. And the other option (no-knead) is to follow the instructions and amounts for no-knead dough.

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