Seeded Potato Challah #BreadBakers

With just a few twists, this 2-Seed Potato Challah turns into a stunning centerpiece for the table.

While its no secret that I love making bread, I don't usually get the opportunity to "play" with egg-rich recipes. This is mostly because I simply don't buy eggs to eat normally, so can't justify buying a dozen just to use three or so. However, when I found myself gifted with a carton of eggs out of the blue, with only a single request to make a batch of lemon curd (recipe coming), I knew something good and Challah-y would be in order.

Ironically, at the same time I found myself with a lot of leftover potatoes in the pantry that were starting to sprout. I had purchased them for gnocchi making lessons in Home Ec, and while most of the bag was used, a few just couldn't fit into the recipe. I began scouting around to see if I could find a potato and egg-rich bread, and found a few that suited my purposes with a bit of tweaking. I'm no stranger to Challah, with three of my recipes on the site (my favourite is still the Figgy Olive Oil and Sesame Challah), so I couldn't wait to get going!

Since I had extra whites left over from the curd, I used those in place of one of the eggs in the dough. I also used warm soy milk for the liquid, both for the added moisture and for it's insane ability to nurture yeast doughs. I added butter to make up for the moisture of the lost egg yolk (not that it needed it, but it helped the richness too) and to offset the whole wheat, which can be drier to work with. Lastly, I wanted to add a somewhat sourdough tang to the bread, just to cut the richness, and a pinch of citric acid worked wonders! In retrospect, this loaf is closer to brioche than Challah, but who lets semantics get in the way?

With all the tenderizing and moisture-giving properties that were in the dough, the baked loaf also kept fresh for longer. However, should any go stale, they make for excellent toasted sandwiches or bread puddings!

This month is all about creative braiding of breads with the #BreadBakers. From the basic two stranded twists to complicated 12 stranded braid, attempt any bread around the world either with a filling or without, studded with nuts and dried fruits or plain. Create an art with your bread dough this month. Gayathri's Cook Spot http://gayathriscookspot.com/ is our host this month - thanks
Gayathri!

Here is the collection of all the beautiful braided breads from our team.

• Artisan Herb Bread Braid by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Basic Challah Bread by Cook's Hideout
• Braided Bread with Candied Papaya Chunks by Sara's Tasty Buds
• Braided Garlic Bread by Sizzling Tastebuds
• Braided Herbed Breadsticks by Ambrosia
• Braided Rum & Raisin Buns by All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Challah Bread by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Cherry Cheese Braid by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Chicken Cheese Braided Bread by Sneha’s Recipe
• Nutella Braided Bread by Veena’s Vegnation
• Orange Saffron Braided Brioche by Food Lust People Love
• Scali Bread by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Spice and Herb French Braid by The Schizo Chef
• Two-Seed Potato Challah by What Smells So Good?
• Whole Wheat Challah Bread by Spill the Spices
• Whole Wheat Pizza Braid by Herbivore Cucina
• Whole Wheat Zopf Bread by I camp in my Kitchen
• Winston Knot Bread by Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Zucchini Yeast Bread by Baking Sense

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send Stacy an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.

Seeded Potato Challah

Makes one large loaf, 30 slices

1 ½ cups plain mashed potatoes
¾ cup warm, plain soy milk
⅓ cup warm water
¼ cup melted salted butter
2 tbsp honey
Pinch citric acid
1 tsp kosher salt
4 egg whites
4 eggs
2 cups flour
3-4 cups whole wheat bread flour
2 tbsp instant yeast

Poppy seeds
Sesame seeds

1. Line a large baking sheet with parchment or silicone.
2. In a bowl, beat together the potatoes through salt until smooth. 
3. Beat in egg whites along with 3 whole eggs and set aside. 
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the flour, 3 cups of the whole wheat flour and yeast. 
5. Add potato mixture and knead until smooth, adding flour if necessary to form a slightly sticky dough, about 10 minutes. 
6. Place dough in oiled bowl, cover loosely with a clean towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
7. Divide dough in half and roll each into a long, thick rope. 
8. Brush each rope with remaining egg. 
9. Coat one roll in poppy seeds, the other in sesame seeds. 
10. Place ropes of dough on the baking sheet and loosely twist together. Tuck ends under. 
11. Cover dough with a towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes - 1 hour. 
12. Heat the oven to 400 F. 
13. Bake for 10 minutes. 
14. Reduce heat to 350 F and bake an additional 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown and 190F on a thermometer. 
15. Cool 10 minutes on the sheet, then move to a wire rack and cool completely.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 120.5
Total Fat: 2.8 g
Cholesterol: 29.1 mg
Sodium: 63.0 mg
Total Carbs: 20.1 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.2 g
Protein: 4.7 g