Have you ever had sweet babka? Be prepared to be amazed!
With a dark chocolate filling and a simple glaze poured over the hot babka loaves, this bread is a real treat for breakfast, afternoon tea, or really any time at all. Cook it With Our: Seasoned Cast Iron Loaf Pan
INGREDIENTS:
Babka Dough
⅓ cup milk
2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
⅓ cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
10 tablespoons butter, softened
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Dark Chocolate Filling
2 ounces dark chocolate
¼ cup unsalted butter
⅓ cup sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
2 tablespoons milk, warmed if needed
Glaze
½ cup water
6 tablespoons sugar
METHOD:
Babkas:
1. Gently warm the milk until it’s lukewarm (about 38°C). Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk in yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar and let sit for 5 minutes.
2. Add remaining sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and salt. Using the dough hook, incorporate flour ½ cup at a time. Knead the dough on medium speed until
the dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, 10 minutes.
3. Remove the dough from the bowl and form a ball. Place in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap until doubled in size, 1-2 hours. At this juncture, make
the chocolate filling. See the steps below.
4. Grease two loaf tins (cast iron or standard) well. Line each with baking paper, allowing it to overhang slightly on the long sides for easy removal. Lightly grease the paper as well.
5. Once risen, punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured bench. Divide in half, covering one half while you work with the other.
6. Roll the dough into a rectangle, roughly 23 x 38 cm.
7. Spread the chocolate filling evenly over the dough, leaving about a 1 cm border around the edges.
8. Roll the dough into a log and place seam-side down. Using a sharp knife, cut the log in half lengthwise and turn the halves so that the cut side is up. Starting at
one end, pinch the loaves together and begin wrapping the halves around each other. Pinch the opposite end of the loaf together and tuck the pinched ends
under the loaf.
9. Carefully place the loaf inside the prepared loaf pan and cover with plastic wrap. Repeat with second loaf.
10. Allow the loaves to rise in a warm spot for another 30 minutes.
11. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C (fan bake 160°C), with a rack in the centre.
12. Bake for around 45 minutes, or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
13. At this point, make the glaze. See the steps below.
14. Pour glaze evenly over the finished loaves and let sit for 10 minutes. If it feels like there’s too much glaze, then you’ve got the right amount.
15. Remove the loaves and continue to cool on a cooling rack.
Filling:
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate until smooth. Stir in the cocoa powder and sugar until incorporated. Add
milk, as needed, to thin the filling.
Glaze:
Simmer water and sugar over medium-low heat until dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour evenly over babka loaves before removing them from the loaf pans.