Yes!  I made the Apple-Honey Challah that I posted about a few weeks ago.  It was wonderful.  I even made the absolute best ever french toast this morning with the left overs.  My family said I have to make it every year (and more often if I love them), heh. 

I got the recipe out of Martha Stewart's "Living" magazine.  Since I tweaked it into french toast, I'm calling it MY recipe now. 

Apple-Honey Challah French Toast

1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for bowl, pan, and plastic

3 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour, plus more for surface

3/4 cup warm water

2/3 cup honey

2 large eggs plus 3 egg yolks

2 tsp. active dry yeast (one envelope)

2 tsp. coarse salt (I used kosher salt)

1 1/2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/4 in. thick slices (about 1 3/4 cups)

What I did to make this for breakfast today:

On Friday, late morning, I ran to the store for the kosher coarse salt.  I hadn't realized that I was out, but it meant fresh GS apples, too!  Whew.  The others were a little droopy. 

Got home and reread the recipe.  YIKES!  Martha!  This recipe requires the bread to rise THREE times!  I hadn't planned for that even though I'd read it a few weeks ago.  I needed to be 45 miles away by 4:15 p.m. to drop off an invoice and pick up a check.  So, this was a little stressful.  But, I was determined to have a happy new year by celebrating Rosh Hashanah.  So, this just had to be baked! 

I melted 4 Tbs. of the butter in my smallest saucepan over medium-low heat and let it cool.  While it was melting, I got out all of my measuring utensils and a couple of bowls.  I measured out the dry ingredients into various bowls so I could make sure I had everything ready at the right times.  I don't normally do this, but when I'm following a Martha recipe, I usually go all out.  Heh.

When the butter was ready, I put 2 Tbs. of it into my medium sized glass mixing bowl.  I added the flour, water, 1/3 cup of the honey (which I had to heat up in the microwave as it was a bit crystalized,) the eggs and yolks, yeast, and salt to the bowl and mixed it until a dough formed.  Then, I turned it out onto my counter top.  It was floured before the blob of dough plopped onto it and made a big puff of flour go into the air.

After I needed it about 10 minutes, it became very smooth.  I buttered the largest sized bowl and put the dough into it.  I brushed a tablespoon of the butter on the top and covered it with plastic.  I put it by my kitchen window for an hour and a half to let it rise.  It was about double in size, but not quite.  It smelled SO GOOD already!  While I was waiting for this to happen, I made sure to clean everything up so I could use the counter top again and I cleaned the kitchen cabinets.  Even though I used the oven timer for the whole recipe, I was a bit nervous about leaving the dough unattended.  I guess because I was in such a time crunch the whole day. 

Next, I refloured the countertop and plopped the dough out again.  I patted it into a rectangle about 8 1/2 x 14 in.  I had peeled, cored, and chopped the apple during the rising time.  Now it was time to spread the pieces on top of this rectangle I'd made.  Then, I kneaded them in and put the dough back into the bowl.  I used the last little bit of melted butter to brush on the top and covered it with the plastic.

This time it had to rise again by the warm window until it was almost double.  That took another hour.  I'm glad I used the timer, or I'd have been sidetracked, I'm sure. 

I followed the directions to preheat the oven after the hour timer went off.  But, next time, I'll wait 'til later to do this because it was just wasted energy.  My oven preheats quickly and it didn't need to be ready until right before the hour was up.  The scary thing is that you bake this bread with the rack in the lowest position.  EEK!    But, don't worry, it does turn out fine.

I had a 9 in. round cake pan ready and buttered when it was time to turn the dough out again.  I rolled the dough into a rope (about 24 in.) on the floured counter top.  I tried coiling it into a circle, but it seemed "too big" to me and I stretched it out a bit more and recoiled it.  Next time, I'll coil it too big anyway and not change it.  Part of the beauty of this bread is the fact that it is supposed to puff up and look like a crown.  I think my stretching it made it come out a little "shorter" than it would have the first coil.

I put the coiled circle of dough into the pan and covered it with buttered plastic this time before putting it by the window to rise for another 45 minutes.  It was almost double in size again. 

Just before the timer went off, I heated the remaining 4 Tbs. of butter and 1/3 cup of honey in my little saucepan until the butter melted.  I brushed the dough with half the honey-butter and baked it for 35 minutes.  It came out a little more golden than the picture in the magazine, but it was firm and beautiful!

When I took the challah out of the oven, I brushed it with the rest of the honey-butter and let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes.  Yes, I had the timer on for this, too.  I had to be able to "plate" it and head to town as soon as the timer went off.  The recipe said to "turn out loaf from pan, and let cool."  I basically did this, but not on a wire rack.  I put it on a pretty plate with flowers painted around the edges and we scooted to town ON TIME!  Hallelujah!

So, we enjoyed a few pieces of challah while we watched the CBN Rosh Hashanah celebration on the web at my parents' house.  Then, I brought the rest of the loaf home.  Hubby and Scooter each tried it when they got home yesterday from an out of town trip. 

Now, for the french toast part.  I sliced up the rest of the loaf this morning.  Cracked a few eggs in a bowl.  Added a little milk.  Dipped the slices into the mixture and toasted them in a hot pan.  Plated the toast and added powdered sugar and/or syrup depending on individual taste preferences.  It was enjoyed by all! 

I may use my brother and sister-in-law's Christmas recipe for the french toast next time.  They use day old french bread and dip it in eggnog.  I think this apple-honey challah will taste even better made that way.

YUMMY NEW YEAR!