Karen Gordon offers up her secrets to creating that perfect babka at home.
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Babka: Partly bread, partly coffee cake; partly breakfast, partly dessert. Wholly delicious!
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For those who aren’t familiar with babka, it’s a loaf similar to a brioche. It’s soft and fluffy, but unlike a brioche, it’s layered, with either a cinnamon or a chocolate filling.
In the Seinfeld — Dinner Party episode, there was much debate as to which, the chocolate or the cinnamon, was the “lesser babka”. As Jerry said, “Cinnamon takes a back seat to no babka!” Cinnamon being the lesser babka, I think not; they’re both equally delicious. But if you’re a chocolate hazelnut lover on the other hand, then this Chocolate Hazelnut Babka with a hint of cinnamon is certainly the superior babka!
Making babka from scratch is known to be time-consuming and labour-intensive. But this recipe helps simplify the process and still produces a scrumptious loaf.
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There are a few secrets to creating that perfect babka at home. Here are mine:
• Use warm, whole milk. Whole milk adds richness to the dough that skim or even 1% milk can’t recreate. Heat the milk to 110 degrees Fahrenheit before adding it to the yeast. This will help the yeast bloom beautifully.
• Use room temperature unsalted butter. Room temperature butter is essential to laminating the dough. If the butter is too hard, it will be difficult to incorporate it into the dough. Similarly, if the butter is too soft, your babka will not be as airy and it certainly won’t have those lovely little air pockets in its crumb. Do not microwave your butter to quicken the softening process. To soften butter quickly, cut up butter into small cubes. Place the cubed butter in a single layer, on a plate and cover with a large ceramic mixing bowl for about 30 minutes. To test the butter, press it with your finger. If it indents, it’s at room temperature.
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• Don’t rush the process. Since the dough needs to rest before it’s rolled out, it’s best to make the dough the day before you plan to bake your babka. Resting the dough overnight will not only help it develop that heady yeasty flavour but will also make it easy to roll out and shape.
• Use store-bought spread for convenience. To save time, I recommend using a store-bought chocolate hazelnut spread for the filling. It’s equally yummy and will save you the hassle of making the filling from scratch.
• Lock in moisture by glazing. One of the biggest complaints about babka is that they’re somewhat dry. Babka in general is supposed to be firm, rich yet slightly dry but it doesn’t hurt to help seal in moisture. To do this, I like glazing my babka. A sugar syrup is normally used to glaze babkas. But for added decadence, I topped this babka with a pourable chocolate hazelnut that dries shiny.
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Babka is best eaten the day it’s made while it’s still soft and airy. But babka is notorious for drying out quickly. To store, placed your cooled babkas in an airtight container, on the counter, for up to two days.
When ready to eat, for softer babkas, reheat slices in a microwave for 8-10 seconds before serving. For crisper babkas, toast them in a toaster oven until lightly brown and serve with a pat of butter. This is how I love my babka served! And on special occasions, I love turning my babkas into French toast and serving them up with a little maple syrup. They’re sinfully decadent this way!
Makes 2 loaves
For the babka:
1 cup (240ml) whole milk, warmed to 110 degrees Fahrenheit
1/4 oz (7g) instant yeast
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1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar
1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter
4 cups (480g) all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups (444g) chocolate hazelnut spread
1-1/2 tbs ground cinnamon
For the glaze:
3/4 cup (222g) chocolate hazelnut spread
1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream
1 tbs (20g) corn syrup
2 tsp ground cinnamon
In a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add milk, yeast and 1 tbs sugar. Stir to combine. Allow to bloom for 1 minute.
Add the remaining sugar, whole egg, egg yolk, and butter. Mix on low speed for 1 minute to combine.
Add the flour and mix on low speed until the flour is mostly incorporated. Increase speed to medium high and knead for 6 minutes until dough is soft and supple. Do not overmix as this will cause the babka to be tough and dry.
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Oil a large bowl. Add the dough to the bowl and turn to coat.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot to proof for about 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.
Remove the dough and divide it into two equal portions.
Pat each dough into a square. Wrap each square of dough with a piece of well-oiled plastic wrap and place in them in the refrigerator to chill overnight.
Next day, butter two 9×5 loaf pans then line with two pieces of parchment paper so that the parchment paper overhangs on all four sides of the pan.
In a bowl, add the chocolate hazelnut spread and 1-1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon. Using a rubber spatula, gently stir until well combined. Set aside until needed.
On a well-floured work surface, roll out the dough to a 20×20” square. Using an offset spatula, apply half of the chocolate hazelnut cinnamon spread to within a 1/2” of the edge. Roll the dough tightly into a log. Pinch along the long edge and the ends of the log to seal in the filling.
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Using a sharp knife, cut the log in half, with each half measuring 10” long. Working with a 10” piece, turn the log so that the seam side is down. Using the same knife, make a deep cut down the length of the log. The cut should be deep enough to reveal several layers of dough but not deep enough to cut through the dough. Repeat with the other log of dough.
With the cut side facing up, place one log over the other, creating an “X”. Working from the middle down, braid the log and tuck in the ends. Turn and repeat for the other end.
Gently transfer the braided loaf into the prepared loaf pan. Repeat for the second square.
Cover each of the loaves with a piece of well-oiled plastic wrap. Place the loaves in a warm spot and allow the loaves to rise for 2 hours.
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Around the 100-minute mark of the proofing stage, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Remove the plastic wrap from the top of the loaves and transfer them into the preheated oven.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a digital probe thermometer registers 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
When babkas are about done, make the chocolate hazelnut cinnamon glaze. Add the chocolate hazelnut spread, heavy cream, corn syrup, and ground cinnamon to a microwaveable container with a spout. Microwave on the defrost setting in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until the mixture is smooth.
Remove the babkas from the oven and immediately pour the glaze over the top of the babkas. Allow the glaze to set. Once set, using the parchment paper as handles, lift the babkas out of the pans. Slice and serve immediately.
If not serving immediately, it’s best to keep the babkas whole. Slice when ready to serve. Enjoy!
Karen Gordon is a Food Blogger from North Vancouver who shares her recipe creations online at karentology.com and on Instagram at @karen.t.ology
Source: vancouversun.com
