My original Honey Oat Challah Recipe!
Gluten Free Oat Water Challah is one of the best gluten free challah’s EVER!
I’ve been working for a while on a gluten free water challah recipe. After the rousing success of my previous Gluten Free Oat Challah and Gluten Free Honey Oat Challah recipes, I had no choice but to make the vegan version as good…or even better! I also wanted the challah to be completely plant based but completely delicious, and so Gluten Free Oat Water Challah was born.
Gluten Free Oat Water Challah Had to be as good as it’s predecessors
Over the years people have asked if there was an egg free version of the originals – and aside from accidentally forgetting to add eggs one time (it was super dense… the challah and me), I didn’t really have an answer.
Until…
When I was in Israel in December, I bought some excellent gluten free oat challah in Ramat Beit Shemesh. While I couldn’t be sure (I had thrown the wrapper away), the challah tasted like a water challah version. It motivated me to try to come up with a good recipe when I got back to Chicago.
Ding!
If you didn’t already know, in a previous lifetime I was an electrical engineer. Really. An MSEE from Columbia University and everything. I even worked in the industry for 15 long years! I’m telling you this because a part of me will always love science. GASP! It’s true. So, finding out the chemistry and properties of ingredients gives me goose bumps.
It’s why I love anything from America’s Test Kitchen.
This is the one!
How America’s Test Kitchen helped develop Gluten Free Oat Water Challah
Shortly before our trip, Leeba Gluck posted about “The How Can it be Gluten Free Cookbook” by America’s Test Kitchen on the Kosher Me & Gluten Free Facebook group. I knew I had to have it. Amazon -> Click!
I studied that book. I highlighted that book. I had great revelations from that book. And I knew.
I knew!
I had the tools to develop the all new-delicious-fluffy-fabulous Gluten Free Oat Water Challah!!!
As with America’s Test Kitchen, I had to go through several iterations of the recipe until I was satisfied with the result. I made a lot of challah! I had so many challahs that I actually posted for people to come pick some up!
The earlier batches were pretty great too!!!
On to the science of making Gluten Free Oat Water Challah…
Because the recipe is vegan, I had to replace the egg protein in the original recipe with another. Rice milk was out. I tried almond milk, and the result was good, however many people who are gluten intolerant, have nut allergies as well. I switched to soy milk, but it was incredibly hard to find (surprisingly), and the word on the street is that it’s not the healthiest option.
You’ve got to have friends!
I posted again on Kosher Me & Gluten Free, asking for another option. I got two good ones – oat milk and hemp milk. I really liked the idea of using oat milk with an oat flour. Sadly, I didn’t have any oat milk in the house. So…I made some! It wasn’t too complicated. I made a few minor errors in the process, but in the end, I had a reasonable excuse for oat milk.
The challah was really good!
So…tell us what you really think Margo Strahlberg!!! Margo says: “Less than 5 minutes and it’s practically gone!!!!!”
I still wanted to adjust the recipe to use over-the-counter oat milk. I also wanted to tweak a few of the other ingredients. I bought some oat milk from the store, and it seemed kind of thick. The challah made with the thick oat milk came out slightly denser than I would have liked. I wasn’t sure if that’s how all store bought oat milk was, so I purchased another brand. The second one was definitely not as thick. The result?
In the end, Gluten Free Oat Water Challah was PERFECTION!
In my final batch I made some hamburger buns, braided a few loaves, and made a loaf of sandwich bread. All were, in my humble opinion, exactly what I was looking for. I tried a suggested method of egg wash replacement of maple syrup and oat milk. While it was absolutely tasty, it didn’t really do the browning thing too well. Oh well.
I had my GF burger on my just-out-of-the-oven bun!!!
As a non-celiac GFE (gluten free eater), I used non-gluten-free-certified oat milk. If you are more sensitive, or celiac, it’s critical that you use a gluten free certified brand of oat milk. If you don’t have oat milk handy you can substitute unsweetened almond or soy milk. Don’t use rice milk. I didn’t try hemp milk but that’s on my list of things to do at some point.
I also used my Escali scale to weigh the ingredients. This will help you to ensure that you have the right volume of ingredients, as some gluten free flours are prone to clumping.
Here’s a similar scale to my Escali Taso.
One more tip. I add a “whisking” step in the recipe instructions. DO NOT SKIP THAT STEP. It’s critical because it not only de-clumps the flour blend, but it also aerates it. It’s important in achieving the resulting lightness and fluffiness of the final recipe. I use a balloon whisk in this step rather than a fork.
Use me!!!
In the end I washed more than I have in a very long time, but it’s been a good journey.
One of the middle trials…
If you have any suggestions or modifications, please let me know in the comments below.
Here’s the recipe for Gluten Free Oat Water Challah!!!
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Gluten Free Oat Water Challah (Vegan)
- Prep Time: 10 mintues
- Rising Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 90 minutes
- Yield: 18 rolls 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Plant Based
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Fluffy and delicious. You can even braid this dough to wow and amazing your GFE’s (gluten free eaters)!!!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups certified gluten free oat milk, baby bottle warm
- 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
- 4.5 cups (575g) certified gluten free oat flour
- 1/2 cup (70g) tapioca flour
- 1 1/3 cups (225g) potato starch
- 1 tablespoon xanthan gum
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1 cup fresh plain seltzer
- Propellant free nonstick vegetable spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F or 325°F convection.
- In a medium bowl, or large measuring cup, whisk together the oat milk and the yeast. Place in a warm spot to proof.
- In a large mixing bowl, place the oat flour, tapioca flour, potato starch, xanthan gum, kosher salt, sugar, and baking powder. Whisk the dry ingredients together for 3-4 minutes, making sure all the clumps are removed and the flours are aerated.
- Make a well in the center of the flour. Add the canola oil, oat milk/yeast mixture and seltzer. Using a large spatula or wooden spoon, gently stir together the ingredients until completely blended and smooth. Allow the batter to rest for 5 minutes.
- Spray 18 muffin tins/molds with the nonstick spray. Make “muffin sized” balls with the dough and gently press into the muffin tins. If braiding, carefully braid the dough and place in a tin or on a prepared baking sheet*. Repeat with all the dough.
- Loosely, but completely, cover the challahs with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot. Allow the challahs to rise for 60 minutes.
- Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before removing from the molds.
- Serve warm for best taste.
Equipment
The Kosher Cook Silicone Braided Challah Mold
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Nordic Ware Heritage Cast Loaf Pan, 6 Cup Capacity, Graphite
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Bob’s Red Mill, Xanthan Gum Powder, 8 oz
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Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oat Flour
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Notes
- If you decide to braid the dough, sprinkle some additional oat flour on a pastry board. Roll 3 balls into strands, tapering at the end. I recommend not using more than 3 strands as the dough is fragile. Braid into a challah, then bake according to the above instructions.
- If making a larger challah, bake for a short time longer. Be careful not to over bake the challah.
- Feel free to use less sugar for a less sweet challah. The challah may be drier as a result.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 253
- Sugar: 9.6 g
- Sodium: 167.2 mg
- Fat: 8.5 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 39.8 g
- Fiber: 2.5 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 0.4 mg
Keywords: Gluten Free, Plant Based, Gluten Free Challah, Oat Challah, Washing, Shabbat Challah, Gluten Free Recipe
You can even make sandwich bread!!!
But these are the prettiest!!!
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Check out the all new Gluten Free Challah List! It has all you might need to make Kosher Everyday Gluten Free Oat Challah!
Amazon Influencer Kosher Everyday Gluten Free Challah Storefront
I’d love to hear what you think!
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This is such a promising recipe after I’ve had so many GF vegan challot fail! Can you use almond milk and/or lactose free milk? I don’t have a way to get oat milk for it ready by tomorrow.
Thank you!!
Thanks for your comment Brianna! YES! You can use almond milk for this recipe. I didn’t try it with lactose free milk, but it would probably work as well. Please let me know how yours turns out! All the best, Sharon
If my measurements aren’t the same as yours should I go by volume or weight?
Also, which GF challah did you have in RBS?
Hi Sora! Go by weight. This way you always know you measured correctly. I had the gluten free challah from the store next to Holy Bagel. If someone knows the name of it please let me know and I’ll be happy to post it. Thanks for your questions!
Instead of the starches and xanthan gum can I use a premade mix of flours that includes those? In israel, it’s called Keragil flour.
Hi Naomie, I wouldn’t unless you know the proportions of the flours are the same as what is in the recipe.
Thank you! I am totally going to try this!! I usually make my Challah with honey rather than white sugar. Is there a way to do this or can I substitute a different sugar? Again thank you!
Thanks for your comment and question Deborah. When using honey I generally substitute half of the sugar, otherwise the challah becomes very dense. You will notice a slight difference in the texture even with half substitution. You can try a different sugar and let me know how it turns out! All the best, Sharon
Excited to try this! What can I use instead of xantham gum? Also, what is the purpose of the seltzer water, can it be replaced with regular water (or extra plant milk)?
Hi Emilye thanks for your comments and question. I’m not sure what you can use instead of xanthan gum. It helps to give the challah it’s consistency. The purpose of the seltzer water is to add carbonation to the dough. My goal is to keep the challah from being dense, so I do my best to add different natural leavening to the recipe. If you don’t have bubbling water, of course you can use “flat” water – the challah may be slightly more dense as a result. Please let me know how yours turns out. This is one of my all time favorite recipes – I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Thanks a lot for your reply! I don’t have xantham gum so will probably try using psyllium.. will let you know how it goes when I do try it.
My pleasure. Looking forward to hearing the results. I always appreciate variations of my recipes!!! All the best, Sharon
Hi, I’m eliminating wheat, soy, dairy and eggs for my baby’s allergies, but she can have oats (with gluten)
Is there a way to eliminate the other flours/xanthan gum if I’m using oats with gluten?
Hi Raizy, I hope your baby is doing ok. Kudos to you for taking such good care of her! In order to give you the correct answer I’d like to better understand what needs to be eliminated. Tapioca and Potato starch are wheat and soy free, so they should be fine according to your guidelines. The xnathan gum is included to help give the challah it’s wonderful texture. Similarly xanthan gum is not related to wheat, soy, dairy or eggs. Generally non-certified gluten free oats are oats that may or may not have come in contact with gluten. For those with gluten intolerance or Celiac disease, even small amounts of gluten can cause GI distress. Using glutenous oats doesn’t really effect the outcome of the recipe – it just means that the oats are not gluten free. It doesn’t change the primary properties of the oats. I hope this answers your questions and concerns. If you have any additional questions/concerns please let me know. I’m happy to help. All the best, Sharon
I can’t have potatoes. Increase the tapioca? Use corn starch?
Hi Lisa, thanks for your question. You can try equivalent corn starch, however the texture may be different. If you try it please let me know how it turns out! All the best,
Sharon