Hi Fredricka,
Guess what, I finally have answers for you! I have just baked tons
of challah (and other treats) for my daughter's bat mitzvah, and, the
following weekend, for her friend's bat mitzvah. It was a blast, and
I can know share what I learned about making huge celebration breads.
For our event, I baked in the synagogue kitchen (the events were both
strictly kosher), so I mixed the five-pound version of My Challah
recipe times three--meaning I mixed the dough using 15 pounds of
flour in all--in the professional mixer, a real blessing for that
amount of dough. I wanted to make two four-pound ornately braided
challahs and 16 simply braided one-pound challahs. The amount of
dough was perfect--we were feeding first 70 people for Friday night,
then about 125 for the kiddush lunch.
I mixed the dough, then let it ferment and then braided the
loaves. For the ornate braids, I used two pounds of dough for the
base, and two pounds of dough for the upper braid. This is about as
big as you would want to make a single bread in a normal home oven on
a large cookie sheet (preferably a half-sheet pan).
A flat four-stranded braid is a perfect base, and either a
six-stranded braid or a five-stranded braid makes a gorgeous
top. Remember to lightly flour the strands before braiding, for the
prettiest, most defined braids. Also, braid loosely! Brush the base
braid with egg wash before putting the top on, letting the eggwash
dry to get a little sticky before adding the top, so brush it with
the wash while you are braiding the top.
For the remaining challahs, I used the single-strand braid, which was
quick and pretty.
I refrigerated the shaped loaves overnight, as usual (much better for
both scheduling and flavor), and baked them, after I finished
proofing them in the synogogue's convection oven. The loaves were
very, very well proofed before baking. I baked the four-pound breads
at 275 degrees F for about 45-50 minutes, with the low speed
fan. These breads are normally baked at 325 degrees F, so I reduced
the oven 25 degrees F for the large size and another 25 degrees F for
the convection. They baked perfectly. For the one-pound breads, I
baked them at 300 degrees F.
When I baked the challahs for my friend's daughter, I baked in our
rabbi's home. There I baked the four-pound challahs at 300 degrees F
for about 45 minutes, only reducing the temperature 25 degrees F.
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any more questions.
Best,
Maggie