Vegan challah is a pastry that you will eventually need to bake if you are hosting for Shabbat. More and more people, especially in January, have started a vegan diet so it’s a perfect fit. With a sweet fluffy bite, this recipe is delicious fit for everyone!
This recipe of vegan challah is pretty easy if you already bake challah regularly. It's not a quick recipe since you need to let the dough rise but the outcome is so yummy that the long process is totally worth it.
The difference from a regular sweet challah recipe is that vegans avoids eggs and in this recipe, there are no eggs - not even an egg wash on the outside. The challah still gets a nice color and tastes really good, don’t worry. Since the recipe is vegan, it is also parve nondairy. Vegan challah can also sometimes be called water challah.
Because Tu BiShvat is coming up soon, I wanted to add some holiday flavor to the challah. I used dried fruits that symbolize Tu Bishvat celebrations.
For any other occasion, you can bake the challah without the fruits or can add nuts, chocolate chips or other flavors you like.
I shaped the challah as a braid made of 6 strands and I used this YouTube video to learn how to create the braid with 6 strands.
The recipe yields one loaf or 2 small ones.
To garnish the challah, I sprinkled sesame seeds, you can omit or change to other seeds if you prefer. In order for the seeds to stick to the challah, I brushed it with water.
If you want to bake a few types of challah bread then check out my other challah recipes on my blog - they are all festive and delicious!
Classic challah
Whole wheat challah
Sweet potato challah
Beet challah
Apple Cinnamon Rosh Hashanah Challah
For other Tu BiShvat recipes check out my Tu BiShvat recipe index.
Here is the recipe for this delicious vegan challah with dry fruits:
Vegan Challah
Ingredients
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon dry yeast
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1¼ cups lukewarm water
For the filling:
- ⅓ cup dried fruits (I used raisins, cranberries and chopped apricot)
For garnish:
- Handful sesame seeds
Instructions
- In a stand mixer bowl, place all dough ingredients, but make sure you don’t place the dry yeast directly in with the salt as it will cause the dough to not rise.
- Knead the dough in the mixer on low speed with the kneading hook for 4-5 minutes.
- Grease the bowl and let the dough rise for 2 hours.
- Divide the dough into 6 strands and braid them.
- Place the challah on a baking pan and let it rise for one more hour.
- Set the oven to 180°C / 350°F with the fan.
- Brush the challah with water and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Cool the challah at room temperature.
- Have a slice and enjoy!
