04 Jan
Posted as Yeast Breads
Rich, rich, rich is the best way to describe this out-of-this-world, decadent bread. This babka was a long time coming, as I had seen it on other food blogs ages ago, and have stared at it in my Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook
Now, you may be saying to yourself, “How rich could this bread possibly be?” Well, to give you an idea, here is a small breakdown of some of the ingredients that the recipe includes:
- 2 pounds of chocolate
- 5 eggs
- 1+ pounds of butter
- 3+ cups of sugar
Definitely not for the faint of heart, but absolutely amazing and perfect with a cup of coffee after dinner (or for breakfast!).
Now, I’m not going to try to sell this to you as an easy recipe. It’s not. It’s time consuming and involves some different shaping methods. But boy is it worth it. Just be sure to read the recipe the whole way through a couple of times before proceeding to get your head around it. At its core it is much like a brioche (a rich, buttery dough) with the addition of a rich chocolate filling, and the loaf is twisted and turned a couple of times before being topped with streusel and baked. And of course, if you have any questions along the way, don’t hesitate to leave a comment and I’ll help you as much as possible!
More delicious yeast breads:
Soft Cheese and Pepperoni Bread
Potato Rosemary Bread
Challah
Chocolate Babkas
Makes 3 loaves
Note: A babka can be frozen in the pan for up to a month before baking. When ready to bake, remove from freezer; let stand at room temperature for about five hours. Be careful not to underbake; otherwise, the center may not set properly.
1½ cups warm milk (110°F)
2 envelopes (¼ ounce each) active dry yeast
1¾ cups plus a pinch of sugar
3 whole large eggs, plus 2 large egg yolks, room temperature
6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 teaspoon salt
3½ sticks (1¾ cups) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, room temperature, plus more for bowl and pans
2 pounds semisweet chocolate, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Streusel Topping (recipe follows)1. In a small bowl, sprinkle yeast and a pinch of sugar over the warm milk; stir until dissolved. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, whisk together ¾ cup sugar, 2 eggs, and the yolks; add yeast mixture, and whisk to continue.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flour and salt. Add the egg mixture, and beat on low speed until almost all the flour is incorporated, about 30 seconds. Switch to the dough hook. Add 2 sticks butter, and beat until completely incorporated and a smooth, soft dough forms, about 10 minutes. The dough should still be slightly sticky when squeezed.
3. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface, and knead a few times until smooth. Place dough in a well-buttered bowl, and turn to coat with butter. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
4. In a bowl, stir together chocolate, remaining cup sugar, and the cinnamon. Using a pastry blender, cut in remaining 1½ sticks butter until combined; set aside filling.
5. Generously butter three 9-by-5-by-2¾-inch loaf pans and line with parchment paper, leaving a 1½-inch overhang along the sides. Brush more butter over the parchment, and set aside. Punch down the dough, and transfer to a clean work surface. Let the dough rest 5 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, beat the remaining egg with the cream. Cut dough into three equal pieces. On a well-floured work surface, roll out one piece of dough to a 16-inch square, about 1/8 inch thick. (Keep other pieces covered with plastic wrap while you work.) Brush edges of dough with the egg wash. Crumble one-third of the chocolate filling evenly over dough, leaving about a ½-inch border on the long sides. Roll up dough lengthwise into a tight log, pinching ends together to seal. Twist dough evenly down the length of the log, a full five or six times. Brush the top of the log with egg wash. Crumble 2 tablespoons filling down the center of the log, being careful not to let mixture slide off. Fold log in half into a horseshoe shape, then cross the right half over the left. Pinch ends together to seal and form a figure eight. Twist two more times, and fit into a prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
7. Preheat the oven to 350°F, with a rack in the lower third. Brush the top of each loaf with egg wash; sprinkle with one-third of the Streusel Topping. Loosely cover each pan with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place until dough has expanded and feels pillowy, about 40 minutes.
8. Bake loaves, rotating halfway through, until golden, about 55 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F; bake until loaves are deep golden, 20 to 30 minutes more. (If the tops begin to brown too quickly, tent with aluminum foil.) Transfer pans to wire racks to cool completely. Babkas can be wrapped in plastic and kept at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Streusel ToppingMakes enough for 3 loaves (about 3 cups)
1-2/3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1½ sticks (¾ cup) unsalted butter, room temperatureCombine sugar and flour in a large bowl. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some larger clumps remaining.
(Source: Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook
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I LOVE Martha’s Baking handbook. It is probably one of my most favorite cook/baking books!
OMGaaaawd, 2 lbs chocolate, you know it has got to be gooooood! That looks amazing.
Wow – I’m so impressed, this looks amazing! I definitely need to get a little more confidence with my bread baking skills before I tackle anything like this
Yum, yum!!
You have just touched this Polish woman’s heart.
Fantastic recipe. Can’t wait to try it out!
three loaves of this should last a person all year, but i’d take it down in a couple of weeks. what a luscious and irresistible creation–nicely done!
my goodness, what have you gone and done now … sinful …blessed to now have this recipe…
I can’t think of babka without thinking of that Seinfeld episode either. With that bounty of rich ingredients, it’s bound to be wonderful.
that does look yummy. though would you of happened to have come across a nut version in your search for recipes? just wondering since that is the filling i’m used to seeing in babka.
I had thought seriously about doing this as Christmas gifts. Now you’ve made me wish I’d tied it! Never too late, right?
Wow! This is beautiful and so rich. Glad you made it during the holidays to share. – mary
Oh, my! Those look fabulous!!!! I want one for breakfast right now
Thanks for posting!
Gorgeous! I’d pondered making a chocolate babka in recent weeks but never took the plunge. Glad you took it for me! This is a great post to return to if I ever decide to go ahead and do it. Yours really looks luscious.
i’m seriously thinking about making this. just i need a little bit more elaboration on “Crumble 2 tablespoons filling down the center of the log, being careful not to let mixture slide off.” should i press the log a bit before i put the filling on along the log? how can i make sure the filling is not sliding off as the log needs to be folded and twisted after?
Yee-haw, this is a go-for-the-gusto dessert! What a rich and fabulous recipe. Two pounds of chocolate — I love it!!!
I just stumbled upon your blog via my google reader recs, and I’m hooked already! This looks delicious, I’m flagging it for later!
Hi Jacquie,
I did not see a nut babka recipe, but perhaps you could use the filling for nut roll? This is the filling I use for my nut rolls:
1 pound walnuts, ground
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
4 ounces (1 stick) butter
In a medium saucepan, mix together all filling ingredients. Bring just to a boil, reduce heat and simmer on medium-low, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thick. Cool completely before spreading on dough, but don’t refrigerate because it will become too firm to spread.
Hi lululu,
Since you brush the top of the log with the egg/cream mixture and then crumble some filling on top, it will naturally stick, but I went ahead and lightly pressed the topping into the egg wash to be sure that it stuck. A few crumbs fell off here and there, but for the most part it all stayed on.
Enjoy the babka!
OK…I have this cookbook and have wanted to make this ever since watching Seinfeld!
You’ve convinced me that it’s a “must make.”
I’ve been wanting to make this chocolate babka for years since I saw it in a Martha Stewart magazine, but didn’t because like you I had no idea what to do with 3 loaves! Your babka looks amazing.
Eeeeeeeeeek! My waist, my waist! Your site should be banned! God, I just have to try making that bubka. Would you like to know how it turns out? : D
NOTHING LIKE GREENS CHOCOLATE BABKA
http://www.greenscakes.com
Thanks! I was hunting around for a filling for a chocolate babka and found your blog. I’ve been baking my way through Peter Reinhart’s “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” and just made the cinnamon rolls. Eating them, I thought the dough would make a nice babka. It’s a lot less rich than Martha’s, but still tender and light.
I did cut down the chocolate in the filling a bit, and added in some walnuts so the filling is closer to what I had as a kid. The loaves are in their final proof right now, and I’ll eventually write a blog post and put some photos up on my flickr stream.