How to Braid a Round Challah That Holds Its Shape

How to braid a round challah into a tight crown the way Herr Sherman taught me, with a honey-apple dough firm enough to hold the weave.

By Henry Hunter · Baking Great Bread at Home · Crust & Crumb Academy

The short answer: To make round challah that holds its shape, roll even strands, let them relax before shaping, and tuck every end firmly underneath before the final proof.

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The German baker who told me to stop fighting the dough

The first time I braided challah into anything other than a straight loaf, I was in the Army, stationed overseas, standing in a German bakery that wasn’t mine.

Herr Sherman handed me a piece of enriched dough and pointed at the bench.

I did what almost everybody does the first time. I gripped it. I rolled it hard. I leaned into it with the heels of my hands and tried to force a strand out of the thing, and what I got back was a short, fat, uneven rope that shrank on me every time I let go. Roll, snap back. Roll, snap back. I kept adding pressure because pressure is what I had.

He watched that go on longer than he needed to. Then he told me, in so many words, to stop fighting it.

That’s the whole lesson, and I’ve been unpacking it ever since.

Enriched dough doesn’t want to be forced. There are eggs and oil in it, and fat coats gluten. You can’t bully a challah strand out of the bench the way you’d bully a stiff bagel dough. You roll a little, you walk away, you come back, you roll a little more. The dough gives you the length. You don’t take it.

I didn’t understand that standing at his bench. I understood it later, at home, the first time a braid came out of my own oven even on all four strands.

Challah isn’t rustic sourdough. It’s eggs, oil, a little honey, and enough gluten development to hold a braid that’s worthy of a holiday table.

Why is challah round for Rosh Hashanah?

A round challah has no beginning and no end. The ring stands for a year that comes back around on itself, and for the hope that the one ahead is sweet. That’s why the honey goes in the dough and gets brushed on again coming out of the oven, and why apples turn up alongside it on the table.

The rest of the year challah is usually a straight braid. On Rosh Hashanah it gets woven into a crown.

For 2026: Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Friday, September 11, and runs through nightfall Sunday the 13th.

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🍏Open the full recipe card (ingredients, timing, and print)

Round Honey-Apple Challah

This is one of those breads that carries more than flavor for me. It was the bread that first pulled me into bread baking. I watched Sherman make challah and asked him what made it special. Instead of explaining it, he told me to wash my hands and put me to work. That moment started a journey I couldn’t have imagined at the time. This honey-apple challah teaches a four-strand woven round: start with an over-and-under grid, weave outward in alternating directions, and tuck all eight ends underneath to hold the crown. Apples and honey give it a natural connection to Rosh Hashanah and the wish for a sweet new year, but you don’t need a holiday to make it. It’s a beautiful table bread, and leftovers make exceptional French toast. The dough should be smooth, satiny, and firm enough to hold the weave. Let stubborn strands rest instead of pulling them tight. Bake the finished loaf to 190 to 195°F in the center, then brush it with warm honey for that glossy finish people remember.

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Prep Time 40 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Rise & Proof 2 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Total Time 4 hours hrs

Course Bread

Cuisine Jewish

Servings 12 servings

Calories 250 kcal

Equipment

• Digital kitchen scale
• Large Mixing Bowl
• Whisk
• Dough whisk or sturdy spoon
• Stand Mixer with Dough Hook (optional)
• Bench scraper
• Small knife and cutting board
• Parchment paper
• Large sheet pan
• Clean kitchen towel or dough cover
• Pastry brush
• Instant-read thermometer
• Cooling rack

Ingredients

  

The Dough

• 500 g bread flour • 4 cups
• 140 g lukewarm water • 1/2 cup + 1 1/2 tablespoons
• 2 large eggs • 100 g
• 1 large egg yolk • 18 g
• 50 g neutral oil • 3 1/2 tablespoons
• 40 g honey • 2 tablespoons
• 25 g granulated sugar • 2 tablespoons
• 7 g instant yeast • 2 1/4 teaspoons
• 9 g fine sea salt • 1 1/2 teaspoons

The Fruit

• 120 g firm tart apple Granny Smith or Honeycrisp, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice • 1 cup diced
• 5 g lemon juice for tossing the apple • 1 teaspoon
• 40 g golden raisins soaked 10 minutes and patted dry, optional • 1/4 cup

Finishing

• 1 large egg white • 33 g
• 5 g water for the wash • 1 teaspoon
• 15 g honey warmed, for brushing after the bake • 2 1/4 teaspoons
• 10 g sesame seeds optional • 1 tablespoon

Instructions

 

• In a large bowl, whisk together the lukewarm water, whole eggs, egg yolk, oil, honey, and sugar until the honey has dissolved and the mixture is uniform. Set the reserved egg white aside in the refrigerator for the wash.
• Add the bread flour and instant yeast. Mix with a dough whisk or the paddle attachment just until no dry flour remains. The dough will look shaggy and rough. That’s what you want.
• Cover and let the dough sit for 20 minutes. This is a short autolyse, shortened because the eggs are already in the mix. The flour hydrates and the knead that follows gets a lot easier.
• Sprinkle the salt over the dough and knead until it passes the windowpane test and feels satiny rather than tacky. That’s 8 to 10 minutes by hand, or about 6 minutes on a mixer hook at medium-low. Don’t stop early because it still looks loose. Stretch a piece thin and look at the light coming through it.
• Peel and dice the apple into 1/4-inch pieces. Toss with the lemon juice so it doesn’t brown while it waits. If you’re using raisins, soak them for 10 minutes in warm water and pat them dry. Wet raisins will bleed into the crumb.
• Cover the dough and let it rise at 74 to 76°F (23 to 24°C) for 60 to 75 minutes, until it’s visibly puffy. You’re not looking for a full double here. Puffy and relaxed is enough.
• Turn the dough out and gently stretch it into a rough rectangle. Scatter the apple and raisins evenly across the surface. Give it a letter fold, bringing one third over the center and the other third over that.
• Twenty minutes later, give the dough a single gentle coil fold to distribute the fruit and rebuild a little tension. That’s it. Stop handling it after this until you’re ready to shape.
• Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Use the scale. Eyeballing it gives you a lopsided crown, and you’ll see it the second it comes out of the oven.
• Roll each piece into a strand 14 to 16 inches long, slightly thicker in the middle and tapered at the ends. If a strand shrinks back, let it rest for 5 minutes, then roll again. Let the dough relax instead of forcing it.
• Work on parchment. Lay two strands horizontally and two vertically, weaving them over and under where they cross in the center, like a tic-tac-toe grid. Alternate over and under at each crossing. You will have eight loose ends around the woven center.
• Find an end lying under its neighbor and bring it over that neighbor. Work counter-clockwise around the center, making four crossings. Reverse direction and work clockwise for the next round. Keep alternating directions, bringing the lower end over its neighbor each time, until the ends are too short to cross.
• Tuck all eight loose ends underneath the woven loaf and pinch them into the base. Gather the loaf into a compact round crown without stretching the strands tight. Every end needs to be secured underneath so it cannot lift and unravel in the oven.
• Transfer the shaped crown to a parchment-lined sheet pan. Cover loosely and proof for 45 to 70 minutes, depending on your kitchen temperature. A 76°F (24°C) room lands near 45 minutes. A 68°F (20°C) room needs the full 70 minutes or more.
• About 25 minutes into the proof, preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) with a rack in the center position. Give the oven a full 25 minutes to come completely up to temperature.
• Check the proof. Flour a fingertip and press gently into the side of the dough about half an inch. The indent should spring back slowly and leave a faint mark. If it springs back instantly, give it another 15 minutes. If the dent stays put and the dough sighs, get it into the oven.
• Just before baking, whisk the reserved egg white with 1 teaspoon of water. Brush the loaf with a full, even coat of egg wash, getting into the crevices between the strands. Sprinkle with sesame seeds now if you’re using them.
• Bake for 28 to 35 minutes. The crust should come out deep gold, not mahogany. Check the internal temperature in the thickest part of the woven loaf and pull it at 190 to 195°F (88 to 91°C).
• Honey browns fast. If the top hits deep gold before 25 minutes, tent loosely with foil and keep baking to temperature. Color is not doneness.
• The moment it comes out of the oven, brush the hot loaf with warmed honey. It sets into a light shellac as the loaf cools, and it’s the difference between a good challah and one people remember.
• Cool on a rack for at least 45 minutes. Cutting a hot enriched loaf collapses the crumb and compresses the braid. I know it’s hard. Wait anyway.

Video

Notes

Pull at internal temperature, not at a color you liked. An underbaked challah goes gummy at the center of the woven loaf where the strands are thickest, and you won’t find out until you slice it at the table.

Room temperature: 2 to 3 days wrapped in a clean cloth or a paper bag. Plastic softens the crust and dulls the honey glaze.

Refrigerated: Not recommended. The refrigerator stales enriched bread faster than the counter does.

Frozen: Up to 3 months. Cool completely, wrap tightly in plastic, then foil, and freeze whole or sliced.

To refresh: Warm the whole loaf at 325°F (163°C) for 10 to 12 minutes. Day-old slices make outstanding French toast, which is the real reason to bake two.

Keyword apple challah, braided bread, four strand challah, honey apple challah, Rosh Hashanah challah, round challah

Ingredients for honey-apple round challah

Makes 1 large round loaf, about 1,000 g of dough, or 2 smaller loaves.

• 500 g bread flour (about 4 cups)
• 140 g lukewarm water (about ½ cup plus 1½ tbsp)
• 2 large eggs plus 1 yolk, reserve the white for egg wash
• 50 g neutral oil (about ¼ cup)
• 40 g honey (about 2 Tbsp), plus 15 g for brushing after the bake
• 25 g sugar (about 2 Tbsp)
• 7 g instant yeast (about 2¼ tsp, one packet)
• 9 g fine salt (about 1½ tsp)
• 120 g firm, tart apple (about 1 medium), Granny Smith or Honeycrisp, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice
• 5 g lemon juice (1 tsp) for tossing with the apple
• Optional: 40 g golden raisins (about ¼ cup), soaked 10 minutes and patted dry

Egg wash: the reserved egg white plus 1 tsp water.

Sesame seeds are optional. Leave the loaf bare or use white and black sesame.

Baker’s percentages, flour = 100%: salt 1.8%, yeast 1.4%, oil 10%, honey 8%, sugar 5%. Counting the water and the whole eggs as liquid, you’re at roughly 52% hydration. If you count only the actual water inside the eggs, it’s closer to 45%. Either way this is a firm dough on purpose. Oil and honey are enrichment, not free water, and a slack dough will not hold a crown.

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How to braid a round challah, step by step

1. Mix the dough

Whisk together the water, eggs, oil, honey, and sugar.

Add the flour and yeast. Mix until shaggy, then rest the dough 20 minutes. It’s a short autolyse, even though the eggs are already in there.

Add the salt.

Knead until the dough is smooth and satiny and passes a windowpane test. Figure 8 to 10 minutes by hand, or about 6 minutes in a mixer with the dough hook.

Enriched dough lies. Early in the mix it looks wetter than it is. Give the gluten time to catch up before you start adding flour you’ll regret.

2. Add the apple late

Toss the diced apple with the lemon juice and set it aside while the dough bulks.

Bulk ferment 60 to 75 minutes at 74 to 76°F. You’re looking for puffy, not doubled.

Stretch the dough into a rectangle and scatter the apple across the surface. Add the raisins now too, if you’re using them.

Fold it like a letter. About 20 minutes later, give it one gentle coil fold.

I add fruit late because putting it in at the mix shreds the gluten you just built and dumps extra water into the dough while it’s still trying to organize. I learned that the hard way with blueberries last spring.

3. Weave the crown

Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces, about 250 g each.

Roll each into a strand 14 to 16 inches long, slightly thicker through the middle and tapered at the ends. Roll, rest, roll again. Herr Sherman’s rule. If a strand fights back and shrinks, walk away for five minutes and come back to it.

Now lay them out in a grid instead of a line. Two strands running across, two running up and down, woven over and under where they meet in the middle, like a tic-tac-toe board. Every crossing alternates. If two strands both sit on top at the same crossing, pull it apart and set it again, because that’s the spot where the loaf comes open later.

Find a strand lying under its neighbor and bring it over. Work counter-clockwise, four moves, one full circle.

Then reverse and do the same thing clockwise.

Keep alternating directions until the strands are too short to cross. Under goes over, and you switch direction every pass. That’s the whole method.

The ring and the open center come from the weave itself. There’s no coiling and no straight braid to wind up.

Tuck every loose end underneath and pinch it into the base of the loaf. That tuck is what holds the shape. Leave an end sitting alongside instead of under, and it lifts in the oven, and your round year starts looking like a cinnamon roll that gave up.

4. Proof

Cover and proof 45 to 70 minutes, depending on your kitchen.

September mornings run cooler than August ones. If your kitchen sits below 70°F, another 15 minutes might be exactly what it needs.

Use the poke test. Press lightly with a floured finger. The dough should spring back slowly and hold a faint mark.

Watch the dough, not the clock. My guide to proofing yeasted dough shows what to look for as the loaf becomes ready for the oven.

5. Bake

Heat the oven to 375°F.

Brush with the egg wash, getting into the seams between the strands where pale streaks like to hide.

Bake 28 to 35 minutes, until the center reads 190 to 195°F. Enriched dough is done lower than a lean loaf. Don’t take it to 205°F or you’ll dry it out.

You want deep golden, not mahogany. If the top is racing ahead, tent it with foil around minute 22.

As soon as it comes out, brush it with the warm honey.

Cool at least 45 minutes before you cut it. Slice a round challah too soon and the crown collapses on you.

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🌾Notes from the bench

• Apple water is real. That 120 g of diced apple can hand back 15 to 20 g of moisture into the dough. If it goes slack after you fold the fruit in, dust about 10 g of flour over the apple before you fold. Don’t start pulling water out of the original mix to compensate.
• A cooler kitchen slows the yeast, and the eggs don’t speed it up. If bulk is dragging, find a warmer spot. Adding more yeast halfway through is not a fix, it’s a flavor problem you’ll taste at the table.
• Same dough, different shape. The round loaf and the straight braid use the identical formula. The crown is a shaping decision, not a different recipe.
• Make-ahead. Weave the loaf and cold proof it overnight. Apply the egg wash after it comes out of the fridge, then let it sit on the counter about 30 minutes before it goes in the oven. Useful if you’re giving two loaves away.
• Seeds. If you’re topping it, egg wash and seed right before it bakes, not before the proof. Seeds applied early slide off with the wash as the dough expands.

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❓Round challah questions bakers actually ask

Why did my round challah unravel in the oven?

Almost always a loose end. Four strands leave eight ends, and every one of them has to go under the loaf and get pinched into the base, not just laid against it. Oven spring pushes hard in the first ten minutes and an untucked end lifts and peels away. The second cause is underproofing: a loaf that goes in too young has more spring left in it than the weave can hold.

Why is my challah doughy in the middle?

You pulled it early. Enriched dough finishes at 190 to 195°F in the center, and a round challah is thicker through the middle than a straight braid, so it needs the full time even when the crust looks ready. If the top browns before the center catches up, tent it with foil and keep baking. Take the temperature, don’t guess by color.

Why does my challah split or crack down the side?

Underproofing again, or a skin that dried out during the proof. Dough that hasn’t relaxed enough will blow out at its weakest seam. Keep the loaf covered while it proofs, and use the poke test rather than the clock.

Can I make a round challah with sourdough starter?

Yes. Use 100 g of active 100% hydration starter, drop the flour to 450 g and the water to 90 g so the totals stay put, and reduce the instant yeast to 3 g. Expect bulk to run 2 to 3 hours instead of one. You can go fully wild and skip the commercial yeast, but plan on a long overnight bulk and weave in the morning.

What’s the difference between round challah and regular challah?

The dough is the same. The shape is the difference, and so is the method. A regular challah is a straight braid, strands laid out end to end and crossed down the length. The round challah I make for Rosh Hashanah is woven from the center out, four strands crossed in a grid and worked in alternating directions until a ring forms. Same formula, different geometry.

How far ahead can I shape a round challah?

Weave it the night before and cold proof it in the fridge, covered, up to about 18 hours. Egg wash after it comes out, rest it 30 minutes on the counter, then bake. Shaped dough held at room temperature more than about 90 minutes will overproof and lose its definition.

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🥐Bake it with us

Bake this and share it in the Baking Great Bread at Home group with #GiveBreadInstead.

If you want the full challah-from-scratch path I learned from Herr Sherman, it’s in Bread: A Journey Through History, Science, Art, and Community.

Starter bakers can run the conversion above and then come argue with me about it in Crust & Crumb Academy. This recipe and 130 more live in The Recipe Pantry, with the timers and the baker’s math already built in.

Shanah tovah u’metukah. A good and sweet year.