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If I'm eating an apple, can I say "Baruch atah Hashem elokenu melech haolam" before I decide that the brucha I'm making is a Haeitz, and not Mezonot, Shahakol, or Haadamah?

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The community hasn't decided on a transliteration scheme, and until we do there's no reason to value one person's over another's. So I've reverted the (doubtless very well-meaning) edits to this question that (twice!) changed the transliterations in the question: I've brought back the original poster's. Better yet, though, would be to include also a translation or English-language explanation. – msh210♦ Dec 19 '11 at 16:13
@msh210 you did not revert completely. you can just do a rollback, it will make things easy, because not everything is mixed up... – Naftali Dec 19 '11 at 16:16
@Naftali, thanks. Done now, I think. A rollback would have gotten rid of the other edit made to the question (tagging, spacing). – msh210♦ Dec 19 '11 at 16:26
I'm unable to cite a source at the moment (hence the comment in place of an answer), but, as DoubleAA wrote, there are those who hold that if you started with the wrong Berachah that you may continue with the correct one. I believe, also, that they are assuming you know what you are eating but believe your Berachah to be different from the one required. As such, it would follow, I think, that those same Posekim would allow you to continue if you were unsure at the outset what Berachah to make and then realized the Berachah and concluded accordingly. – Seth J Dec 19 '11 at 17:23
The only example I can think of where this could happen would be if one started a Berachah, looking blankly at the person seated beside him, who then realized that the first person was unsure and quickly told him the correct Berachah (while that person was, let's say, slowly saying the word "Elokeinu"), so that the first person could conclude the Berachah without interruption. – Seth J Dec 19 '11 at 17:25

1 Answer

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There is a dispute among the rishonim regarding if one had the intention for the wrong bracha while saying the opening and then realized and corrected his mistake. Some hold that this is fine, and some hold this is a case of doubt (safek) and regarding the laws of blessings we don't say blessings out of doubt (safek brachot lehakel). (Biur Halacha OC 209)

Regarding your case, it seems that ideally one should have the correct intention from the beginning but if one didn't have it then one should not repeat the blessing.

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