Challah with pumpkin chirshi
Delicious fluffy challah served with pumpkin chirshi, a dish made from sweet roasted pumpkin and warm spices that makes for a wonderful dip.
Ingredients
For the pumpkin purée
- 2kg/4lb 8oz pumpkin, cut into large wedges (skin on)
For the challah
- 500g/1lb 2oz strong white flour
- 200ml/7fl oz ice cold water
- 60/2¼dz vegetable oil
- 80g/3oz caster sugar
- 30g/1oz fresh yeast
- 2 free-range eggs
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp poppy or sesame seeds (optional)
For the chirshi
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tsp ground caraway
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- pinch ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp harissa
- 700g/1lb 9oz pumpkin purée (see above)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 small bunch coriander, chopped, some reserved to garnish
To serve
- 100g/3½oz walnuts, roughly chopped
- handful pomegranate seeds
Method
To make the pumpkin purée, preheat your oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7. Place the pumpkin wedges on a baking tray, flesh-side up, and roast for 30–40 minutes or until the flesh is very soft. Remove from the oven and cool a little until you can handle the wedges easily. Use a spoon to scoop all the flesh off the skin and into a fine sieve. Set over a large bowl to drain any excess water for at least 2 hours, or ideally overnight.
Meanwhile, to make the challah, mix the water, yeast, oil, and sugar in a large bowl. Once combined add the flour and mix well.
Break 1 egg into a small bowl, beat lightly, and add to the flour along with the salt, using a cutlery knife bring the ingredients together into a dough. Once the dough has started to form, use your hands to bring it together.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 minutes, until elastic and smooth. Place the dough into a large well oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm place until doubled in size, this should take about 1 hour.
Transfer the risen dough to the workbench and knock it back, kneading for 2–4 minutes.
Grease a 23cm/9in round tin. Either roll the dough into 8 balls and sit them around the tin or make a 3-strand plait. Loosely cover the challah with a tea towel and allow to prove in a warm location for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 230C/210C Fan/Gas 8.
Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl. Once the challah has proved, brush the surface with the egg wash and sprinkle with the sesame or poppy seeds, if using. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6 and bake for a further 10 minutes.
The challah is baked when it is golden-brown on the outside and sounds hollow when tapped. If not, return to the oven for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.
Meanwhile, to make the chirshi, heat the oil in a large frying pan on a medium-low heat and cook the garlic until soft but not brown. Stir in the spices and harissa and fry for another minute before adding the cooked pumpkin, salt and honey. Cook for 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick, then add the chopped coriander to the warm purée. Mix well and transfer to a serving dish.
Garnish the pumpkin chirshi with the walnuts, pomegranate seeds and some fresh coriander. Serve alongside the challah.
Recipe Tips
Vegan challah can be made by substituting the egg with 60g of tahini and brushing it lightly with sugar syrup or date syrup after baking to make it shiny.
For vegan chirshi, you can replace the honey with maple syrup or date syrup.
You could also use readymade pumpkin puree for the chirshi.