Challah (Bread)

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour
1/4cup sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
1package regular or quick active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
1cup very warm water
2tablespoons vegetable oil
1large egg
some oil for greasing
1 egg (for egg wash)
2 tablespoons sesame seeds


Method

In large bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups of the flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Add warm water and oil and beat with electric mixer on low to medium speed for about 3 minutes - keep scraping bowl frequently.Add egg and beat the mixture until smooth. Stir in the remaining flour to make a dough.
Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead  for about 10 minutes to get a smooth and springy dough.  Grease a large bowl with oil. Place dough in bowl and grease it on all sides. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in warm place about 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.
Once it has doubled in size, remove it from bowl and punch to remove all the air. Knead well and make 3, 4 or 6 strands to braid the bread.

I took the help of the following video to braid a 6 strand challah.
"how to braid a 6 strand challah"

Place the braided dough on a greased cookie sheet and let it sit for 1 hour till it doubles. Give it an egg wash with 1 beaten egg and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top (you can even use poppy seeds). Bake it in a 375 degrees Fahrenheit oven for 30 to 35 minutes untill bread is a deep golden brown color.

This challah can be eaten with butter and jam or even just like that.