>To: "Michael Silverberg" <knitter@hotbot.com>
>Subject: large quantities of challah
Hi, Michael, and congratulations on being nominated for the Challah derby!!
I make my holiday Stollen each year in batches of 12, 1-pound loaves and
mostly it's a matter of strength and big enough containers to hold the rise.
Kneading 5+ pounds of flour at a time is not a minor matter, but if you have
been doing your pushups, it's no different than kneading a regular batch. It
just takes longer because you can't really get the whole mass moving at one
time.
It would be prudent to make a small batch once to test out the ovens -- are
they heating evenly, do they run hot, etc. etc. etc. You wouldn't want to
find out the hard way. Or, perhaps there is someone in the congregation who
can lend their experience so you don't have to test.
In your shoes, I would attempt to recruit volunteer kneader/braiders. You
could pretty well forecast the hour or so you'd "knead" them, and they could
have some fun as well. If the temple has commercial-sized ovens, it surely
has commercial-sized containers as well. Look for 20-quart pots, for
instance. If you let the challah rise as a sponge first, and then as a
kneadable dough, the need for kneading is reduced and that may help your
(anticipated) volunteer staff.
If you're going it solo, you will find a kitchen scale a help in making the
loaves pretty even. I cut my Stollen into halves and then quarters and then
thirds, and THEN weigh each lump so the proportions are about right.
Hope it all comes out just grand. Mazeltov!
>To: Jessica Weissman <jweissmn@his.com>
>Subject: First Clear Flour
You can always try asking at a commercial bakery that makes good rye bread.
they may be willing to sell some from their own stock on the side. I've
never seen it on a store shelf to date (sigh).