Gluten Free Challah Bread
Gluten Free Challah Bread with milk and honey – how does one describe this amazing gift without diving into thousands of years of Jewish history? I am humbled at the thought of even giving it a try. For a humorous read about the subject of challah bread, click on this link if you would enjoy a tutorial.
What we can say from our perspective, and from the many who have enjoyed this recipe, is that challah is a special bread. It creates poignant memories of gastronomical account while reaching into the symbolic past. In English – it rocks socks! Truly, the bread is addictive. Dave and a friend of ours, whose family is Jewish, ate an entire loaf in one sitting. He raved about how lovely the eggs, milk and honey tasted perfectly balanced in our bread.
Disclaimer: this recipe may not deemed appropriate for high holidays. Please consult your Rabbi to determine if you may use Flour Farm in this recipe for your traditional offering.
Tips for Success
- Use high quality ingredients – especially the eggs at room temp.
- Refrigerate the dough overnight for best results.
- Braid the dough on greased parchment.
- Spray or coat your hands with oil to form the strands. Be gentle!
- Tent the braid with foil if it begins to over-brown in the oven.
Flour Farm GF Bonus Flour Blend
Our challah recipe uses Flour Farm flour with a blend of other ingredients that we created for some of our specialty bread recipes. You may go to our Bonus Blend for Specialty Breads recipe page or mix together the following ingredients (you will have more than enough for another recipe):
- 430g (15 oz) Superfine White Rice Flour (3C + 2T)
- 162g (5.7 oz) Flour Farm Organic Gluten Free Flour Blend (1 1/2 C)
- 65g (2.3 oz) Tapioca Flour (1/2 C)
- 85g (3 oz) Potato Starch (1/2 C)
- 78g (2.8 oz) Nonfat Dry Milk Powder (1/2 C)
- 1 1/4 tsp Xanthan Gum (4g)
- 1 tsp Guar Gum (3.5g)
Store Bonus flour in an airtight container for up to 6 months. Each cup weighs approximately 122g (4.3 oz).

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How did your gluten free Challah Bread recipe turn out? Please leave us a comment and rating in the section provided below the recipe. We love to hear from you!
An important note: this recipe successfully uses Flour Farm Organic Gluten Free Flour Blend. Flour Farm may be purchased through our website or through our partners: Amazon.com & Azure Standard. If you choose to make this with another flour blend, please note that your results may differ.
Peace & LOVE – Teri
P.S. Flour Farm gives back. We are committed to bringing healthy food to members of our community. If you are looking for replacement ingredients, please consider supporting Flour Farm and 2nd Harvest by clicking on this Amazon Associate link. We donate 50% of the profit made from Amazon purchases to 2nd Harvest, which is a local organization dedicated to feeding our children, our community and helping those in need. You will be sent directly to Amazon.com; we do not store any of your information. Thank you and share the love.
– Teri & Dave
Recipe Inspiration: Jewish holidays with my best friend Pat & her Nan; Photos by DuPree Productions; Recipe updated 9.20 for clarity; Recipe adapted from Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking and posted by The Mediterranean Dish
Flour Farm Challah Bread
Mix Rise Roll Braid Embellish Delish!

Gluten Free Challah Bread
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 1 large or 2 small loaves 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Our gluten free Challah Bread is a delicious loaf of tradition baked with milk and honey. We set out to make a challah bread that would make Nan proud. We hope you enjoy making it and sharing with family and friends as much as we do. Share the love!
This recipe makes one 2 1/2 lb (1.1kg) loaf or two smaller loves.
Ingredients
Choose Gluten Free, Non-GMO & Organic Ingredients.
Substitutions: Do you need to swap out an ingredient? Click here for suggestions.
Note: If clicking the 2X or 3X scale boxes to the right, please know that weights listed in parentheses below may or may not change. Please take care to check amounts if increasing the recipe.
Dry
- 495g (17.5 oz) Flour Farm Bonus Flour – see blog above or click here for the recipe and include the nonfat milk in the blend (4 C + 1T spoon & level)
- 2 1/4 tsp Instant or Rapid Rise Yeast (8g)
- 1 3/4 tsp Citrus Pectin (5g)
- 1 1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum (5g)
- 3/4 tsp Extra Fine Pink Himalayan Salt (4.5g) Increase to 1 tsp (6g) if using unsalted butter
Wet
- 296ml (10 fl oz) Warm Filtered Water (1 1/4 C)
- 113g (4 fl oz) Honey (1/3 C)
- 7 Large Pasture Raised Egg Yolks (126g) – reserve the whites
- 85g (3 oz) Salted Butter – melted and cooled (6 T)
Topping
- 1 Large Pasture Raised Egg White, lightly beaten (30g)
- 1/2 tsp Honey (3.5g)
- 2 T Poppy or Sesame Seeds (18g)
Instructions
Equipment: Digital Scale (preferred), Baking Stone, Container with Lid, Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment, Whisk, Silicone Spatula, Measuring Spoons & Cups, Aluminum Foil, Mixing Bowls, Rimless Baking Sheet or Peel, Unbleached Parchment, Cooling Rack
Before You Dive In – Prep: Please read!
- Bring eggs to room temp and separate
- Warm water to slightly above room temperature (no more than 110 F/43 C)
- Melt and cool the butter
- Move oven rack to center and place baking stone in the middle
- Note: The dough will need to be refrigerated for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight
Make challah!
Step 1: Whisk together dry ingredients in a bowl that attaches to the stand mixer. Secure the bowl to the mixer and attach the paddle.
Step 2: Add the honey to the water and stir frequently to dissolve. Don’t worry if it hasn’t fully dissolved by the time you need to add it to the mix. The honey does not have to fully dissolve.
Step 3: Turn the mixer onto low and add the egg yolks and butter. Mix to combine. Add the water and honey mixture and mix to combine.
Step 4: Turn the mixer off and scrape down the sides. Turn the mixer back onto medium and blend for 3 minutes.
Step 5: Transfer the dough to a container with a lid. Do not secure the lid, leave it slightly askew to allow the dough to breathe. Leave the dough in a warm, undisturbed place for 1 hour. Move the dough to the refrigerator and keep the lid slightly askew – do not secure it. We use a lid with a hole in the top, which allows us to secure the lid if needed.
Step 6: Refrigerate the dough for a minimum of four hours, but preferably overnight and up to 3 days.
Step 7: Grease a piece of unbleached parchment. Remove the dough from the refrigerator (divide in half if making two loaves.) Place the dough that you are working with on the greased parchment and divide into 3 even sections. You should have about 200g (7 oz) per strand if making a single loaf. It’s helpful to have a scale to measure the dough evenly. If making two smaller loaves, refrigerate the second half of dough until ready to bake. Use within 3 days.
Step 8: Grease your hands – this helps A LOT! Roll out three separate strands about 10 inches (25cm) long, or your preferred length. Connect the three stands at one end and pinch them together to anchor the loaf. Braid gently, greasing your hands when needed. Pinch together the finished end, and then gently tuck each end under a bit to hide the pinches. Place a large bowl over the braid and allow to rise in a warm, undisturbed place for 30 minutes.
! Preheat the oven and baking stone (or rimless baking sheet) to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/ 177 C.
Step 9: After 30 minutes, apply the egg wash and sprinkle with seeds. Use a rimless baking sheet or peel to transfer the challah on its parchment. Slide the dough onto the preheated baking stone. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Tent the challah after 15 minutes if it darkens too quickly. It is finished when the color is golden brown and the bread springs back when touched.
Step 10: Remove challah from the oven and allow to cool on a cooling rack. This is one bread that tastes delicious when warm. The bread keeps well on the counter in a container with a tight fitting lid for 2 days. Freeze for up to a month.
Enjoy!
Notes
The nutrition information below is for the recipe as written using salted organic butter and poppy seeds. Assume each serving to be approximately 50g (1.8 oz).
- Prep Time: 1 hr 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: bread
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: Jewish
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 170
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 180mg
- Fat: 6g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 25g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 80mg
Keywords: gluten free challah bread
For more tasty gluten free recipes by Flour Farm, click on this link!

