Fig, Olive Oil, and Sea Salt Challah

1. Stage

In a large mixing bowl, combine yeast mixture with remaining honey, 1/3 cup olive oil, and eggs. Add salt and flour, and mix until dough begins to hold together. Switch to a dough hook, mix on low speed 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer dough to an olive oil–coated bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set aside until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour.

2. Stage

Make Fig Paste: In a small saucepan combine figs, orange zest, water, orange juice, salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until figs are soft and tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat, let cool to lukewarm. Process fig mixture in a food processor until it resembles a fine paste, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Set aside to cool.

3. Stage

Stuff Dough: After dough has risen, transfer to floured surface and divide in half. Roll half of dough into a wide rectangle. Spread half of fig filling evenly over dough, stopping short of the edge. Roll dough into a long, tight log with filling inside. Gently stretch log as long as feels comfortable, and divide log in half. Repeat with remaining dough and fig filling.

4. Stage

Weave Challah (see photos below): Arrange two ropes in each direction, perpendicular to each other, like a tight tic-tac-toe board. Weave them so that one side is over, and the other is under, where they meet. So, now you’ve got an eight-legged, woven-headed octopus. Take the four legs that come from underneath the center and move the leg to their right (jumping it). Take the legs that were on the right and, again, jump each over the leg before, this time to the left. If you have extra length in your ropes, you can repeat these left-right jumps until you run out of rope. Tuck corners or odd bumps under dough with sides of your hands to form a round.

5. Stage

Transfer dough to a parchment-cover heavy baking sheet, or, if you’ll be using a bread stone, a baker’s peel. Beat egg until smooth, and brush over challah. Let challah rise for another hour; 45 minutes into the rise, preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

6. Stage

Bake Loaf: Before baking, brush loaf one more time with egg wash and sprinkle with sea salt. Bake in middle of oven for 35 to 40 minutes. It should be bronzed; if it gets too dark too quickly, cover with foil for the remainder of the baking time. Cool loaf on a rack before serving.