Dear Rabbi, Could a bread be called challah if it contained butter rather than oil? My understanding is that it is customary, rather than halachic to make challah parve, and that there is no halachic definition of the braided bread called challah. If my understanding is correct, could I use a challah made with butter to say hamotzi if I continue to observe the kosher laws regarding the separation of meat and dairy - for example, if I am vegetarian and my shabbat meal is vegetarian? Thank you so much

Shalom, Thank you for your question. You are totally correct in thinking that the two loaves of bread used for “Challah” at the Shabbat meals can be any (kosher) whole loaves. The tradition is to use braided loaves, baked especially for the Shabbat. But, in truth, any full loaves can be used – and indeed people use pita breads, bagels, even a full whole matzah will do the job (and that’s what we use during the week of Pesach). As to whether it can be dairy is an interesting question. (Of course (as you point out) this is only going to be a question at a non-meat meal.) There is a law, not related to Shabbat at all, but to the laws of kashrut. That is, the Rabbis ruled that a person not baked bread with milk (or butter etc) out of the fear that a person may inadvertently eat it with meat foods. This rule applies across the board – even if you are a vegetarian. However, there are two exceptions made. Firstly, if the bread has a distinct shape, which will remind people that it’s dairy. (That’s the reason why all dairy berekas baked in Israel are triangle shaped!). So, if your “challot” loaves where formed in an unusual shape, you could make them dairy. You could achieve the same end by sprinkling cheese over the bread at the time of baking, as then it is obviously and visibly dairy. Secondly, if one only bakes a “small amount” of bread, it may be dairy. As to the definition of a small amount – if you only bake enough bread which will be all eaten up in your home on that one Shabbat, it will be permitted. But, if this is not the case, it would be forbidden to bake, or even use, dairy bread. By the way, the same laws apply as to making “meaty” bread – it’s forbidden lest it mistakenly gets eaten with dairy foods. (Unless the one of the two exceptions apply). Blessings.