I’m not going to lie, this recipe takes some doing. It’s not hard, but it’s not fast. Both rising steps take at least an hour and a half. Make this on a lazy day at home, when you have your Christmas tunes turned up high and you’re avoiding the crowds by ordering everything online. You can either make this in 2 regular loaf pans or in several mini loaf pans. The mini ones would make great neighbor gifts, and provide a lovely respite from all the cookies. (Not that I’m hating on cookies.) She read her list: “Go to the post office, give the dog a bath, buy pajamas for grandkids, finish sewing Christmas projects, make treats for coworkers, and shave your legs.” You know that your life has gotten too busy when standard grooming procedures make it on your to-do list. At least it didn’t say “blink” or “breathe” anywhere on there. Although I’m one to talk. Pretty much any day that I’m organized enough to make a to-do list the first item says “take a shower, you dirty animal.” I’ll be the first to admit that sometimes it still doesn’t happen. And that’s when I count my many blessings: dry shampoo and deodorant top the list. Even if this babka wasn’t covered in high quality dark chocolate, it would STILL be amazing. This dough is the stuff, I’m telling you. The milk, sugar, and eggs added to the dough make it super rich and tender, like a croissant. It’s easy to work with and when you twist a filling into it, it creates a delicious layered bread that makes the perfect snack or breakfast treat. Chocolate babka (and all babkas, no matter the filling) have their origins in Jewish kitchens in Eastern Europe. The name is pretty similar to the Polish word for grandmother, because babkas used to be baked in these tall pans that looked like a grandmother’s skirt. They can be filled with chocolate, fruit, nuts, you name it. What makes a babka a babka is that buttery dough, which is just about as decadent as it gets. The babka, on the other hand, is probably the best thing since…well, since sliced bread. We are talking an incredibly tender fall-apart butter-bread with a crusty outer layer and swirls of dark chocolate layered throughout. It’s almost like eating one of those chocolate filled croissants, except it’s even better because it’s warm. Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram In a glass measuring cup, warm the milk in the microwave. Add sugar and yeast, and stir to combine. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes. Add the yeast mixture to a stand mixer or large bowl. Add sugar and part of the flour and stir to combine, then add eggs, yolk, vanilla, and salt, and stir to combine. Add the rest of the flour and use the dough hook to mix it up. Add the softened butter a little bit at a time, beating thoroughly each time. Once it is all mixed in, knead with the hook for about 4-5 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, and scrape the dough in. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size. Assemble babkas with the filling: Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and punch it down with your hand. Knead by hand in the bowl, adding flour until it is workable and able to be rolled out. Divide the dough in half. On a lightly floured silpat or heavily floured work surface, roll out 1 piece of dough into a rectangle. In a small bowl, beat together yolk and cream. Spread softened butter on dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border on the edges. Brush a light amount of egg wash on the long border furthest from you. Use a knife or food processor to finely chop 5 ounces of the chocolate. Sprinkle half of the chopped chocolate over the dough, then sprinkle half of the whole chocolate pieces over the dough. Sprinkle with half of the sugar. Starting with the long side that is not brushed with the egg wash, roll dough into a snug log. Pinch firmly along egg-washed seam to seal. Bring ends of log together to form a ring, and pinch it to seal, using more egg wash if necessary. Twist the entire ring twice to form a double figure 8. Line two 9×5 loaf pans with parchment paper. Gently place the babka into the first pan, and cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Let rise in a warm place for 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours. Make another babka with the remaining piece of dough, butter, egg wash, chopped chocolate, whole chocolate, and sugar. Chill remaining egg wash, covered, to use later. Place oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Brush tops of dough liberally with remaining egg wash. Bake until the tops are deep golden brown and bottoms sound hollow when tapped (when loaves are removed from pans), about 40 minutes. Transfer loaves to a rack and cool to room temperature.
Use fresh yeast. Your babka won’t rise if you use expired yeast. That’s why we’re proofing it in the first step of the recipe – to make sure your yeast is alive. Leave plenty of rise time. Some dough rises in an hour (or even 45 minutes). Babka dough needs at least 1 ½ hours or more to rise both the first AND second time (it’s all those rich ingredients – butter, sugar, eggs – that cause it to need a little more time). In other words, if you’re making this for breakfast, you’re making it the day before. Accept the softness. If you’re used to making bread with less butter in it (like pizza dough, ciabatta, sandwich bread, etc.) then you’re used to a dough that comes together and has a certain quality to it. This babka dough is super soft because of all the butter – and that’s totally ok! It will turn out just great. Only twist your bread once if you’re making a mini loaf. Otherwise, the tension of twisting it twice could cause the dough to rip.
Spread the rolled out dough with basil pesto and sprinkle with shredded parmesan. Brush the dough lightly with olive oil, sprinkle it with shredded mozzarella, sprinkle with dried basil, and toss on some chopped pepperoni. Spread the babka with your jam of choice: peach, blueberry, and raspberry are some great options. Grab the Nutella and spread it over the dough. Sprinkle the rolled out dough with everything bagel seasoning. Instead of dark chocolate morsels, try cinnamon chips or chopped white chocolate.
