Cooking Delights: Challah braided bread

This is a special Jewish braided bread eaten on Sabbath and holidays.
Ingredients :
All purpose flour - 4 cups ( sieved ),
Milk - 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp ( room temperature ),

Powdered sugar - 1/4 cup plus 1 tsp,
Active dry yeast - 2 tsp,
Egg - 2 ( beaten ),
Salted butter - 4 tbsp ( melted and not hot ) plus more for greasing,
Egg - 1 for egg wash,

Sesame seeds - to sprinkle.

Method-

Put butter paper on a baking tray and grease it with butter .
Warm milk in microwave for 20 seconds .The milk has to be luke warm .

Add 2 tsp of active yeast and stir with a spoon. Let it rest for 10 minutes to foam up.

Beat egg in a bowl and then pour the melted butter in it .

When the yeast is fermented add the egg butter mixture to it .

Stir .
Take a bowl and put flour and sugar mixture in it .

Mix with a wooden spoon.
Make a well and then pour the yeast egg butter mixture .

With a fork or wooden spoon mix the flour in a circular motion till it starts to gather together.
Dump the dough on a counter and knead for 10 minutes till the dough is smooth and not sticky.

Initially the dough will stick on the counter but as the kneading progresses the dough becomes soft and smooth.

Grease a large bowl with olive oil.
Keep the dough in the bowl and toss and turn the dough, so that it evenly coated with oil.

Cover with a damp cloth and let it rest in oven or warm place to rise for an hour and double in size.

When the dough has risen, remove the cloth and punch the dough.

Take out the dough on the counter and spread it ,so that air is removed.

Roll it and make a log and pinch the seam side.

Divide the log into 6 parts .

Make 6 small logs and cover with a cloth and let it rest for 10 minutes.

Take each log and make 16 inch long ropes.

Place them side by side leaving some space in between.
Take the top ends of the 6 ropes of dough and pinch them together.

Braid the dough ropes by taking the first end rope of the right side and placing it over the second and third 2 ropes and then under the fourth rope and then again over the left fifth and sixth 2 ropes and then placing it in the extreme left end.
Then again repeat the same process from the right end side taking the first rope.Repeat this process till you reach the tail end.
Just remember the mantra , over 2 and then under 1 and then over 2 .
The best part of this braiding is the movement of the dough ropes is only from the right side.
When you reach the tail end just pinch and tuck it .
Now lift the braid carefully and reverse the side by bringing the top pinched end at your side.

Open the pinched rope dough and quickly braid it and pinch and tuck the ends.
Using both your palm squeeze the braided dough from all sides into a rectangle .

Lift gently and transfer the dough onto the greased butter paper tray.
Brush the dough with egg wash.

Cover with a greased cling film and let it proof for 1 hour ( second rise ).
Pre heat oven to 190 C or 375 F.
Pre heat oven 15 minutes before the tray is put in the oven.
After an hour , remove cling film and then brush the braided dough with egg wash again and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.