Gluten Free, Oat Free Rosh Hashanah Challettes

Four  mini-challot with raisins and honey.

It is grain free, so is not technically “challah” but it makes a really good replacement for people who can’t eat grains. This is a Rosh Hashanah variation on the grain-free challah recipe I developed years ago. (I didn’t remember to take pictures, so the pictures on this page are borrowed from the regular grain free version, which is why you can’t see any raisins.)  

Ingredients:

• ½ c raisins
• ¾ c hot water
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tsp cider vinegar
• ¼ c canola (or any) oil
• ¼ c honey
• ¼ c warm water
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast or 1 envelope
• 1 ¼ c brown rice flour
• ¼ c millet flour
• ¼ c quinoa flour
• 2 Tbsp ground flax meal
• 2 Tbsp masa harina or some other kind of GF flour
• ½ c potato starch
• ½ c tapioca flour
• 1/3 c cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp xanthan gum
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp water
• a drizzle of honey

Directions:

1. Soak the raisins in the hot water for 20 minutes or more. DO NOT DRAIN!
2. Preheat oven to 200 °F. Grease a Silicone Mini-Challettes  bread pan.
3. Mix the wet ingredients together — eggs, vinegar, oil & honey — and set aside.
4. Add yeast and 1 tsp sugar to the warm water and let sit for 5-10 minutes to proof.
5. Combine the rest of the dry ingredients — rice flour through cinnamon — in the mixer bowl and stir with fork or wire whisk to mix well and get out all the lumps.
6. Add the wet  ingredients to the mixer bowl and begin mixing on low. Add  the yeast. Add the raisin water — but not the raisins.
7. Mix on medium  for 2 minutes.
8. Add the raisins and mix for 10 seconds. Do not mix longer or the raisins will disintegrate.
9. Glop the dough (batter) into greased mini-challot  pan.
10. Turn off oven, place pan in oven, cover loosely with foil tent and let rise for 1 hour.
11. Combine  the egg yolk, water and a drizzle of honey; mix well and set aside for the glaze.
12. Remove pan from oven and preheat oven to 375 °F. Uncover and set the foil aside because you’ll use it again soon.
13. Bake at 375 °F in stages:
    Bake for 20 minutes, then cover loosely with foil tent.
    Bake for 15 minutes, then put that foil on a cookie sheet and invert the loaves onto it.
    Glaze the loaves, then return to oven.
    Bake for 15 minutes.
14. Cool a little on rack. Eat while still warm, or warm up again before serving if possible.