Cinnamon Babka
When I was a kid, I enjoyed a lot of sleepovers at my grandma’s house. My mom said it all started when my sister was born and would be awake from 1am until 5am, just in time for me to wake up. My grandfather was retired and my grandparents lived right down the street, so when my dad left for work, my grandpap would come to pick me up so my mom could sleep while my sister slept. The result? I became extremely attached to my grandparents. My mom said there were days I would cry because I didn’t want to go back home.
My grandpap passed away when I was only five, but sleepovers continued at my grandma’s for years and years. My sister, my cousin Kristy and I would stay over nearly every weekend and for days on end in the summer. Weekend nights at my grandma’s were extra-special, as she would make Boboli pizzas for us and we would eat in front of the television and watch TGIF on Friday nights (Full House, Family Matters, the works!), and on Saturdays we would watch The Golden Girls, Empty Nest, Mama’s Family, and then stay up late and watch Star Search. Can you say EIGHTIES?!
In the morning, I distinctly remember three things my grandma would routinely have for breakfast: (1) Bagels and cream cheese. Except my grandma, the genius that she was, wouldn’t just cut the bagel in half, she would actually slice it into fourths. Hello, very high cream cheese to bagel ratio! Such a smart lady. (2) Cinnamon swirl bread. This was no ordinary cinnamon bread, and I have not been able to find it in stores for the better part of a decade. Not only was it a cinnamon swirl, but the top of the bread had a crumb topping, like crumb cake. It was amazing! (3) Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tarts. Self-explanatory :)
(Would you be shocked to hear that I put peanut butter on both the cinnamon bread and the Pop-Tarts? Of course you’re not shocked.)
As soon as I took a bite of this cinnamon babka, I was flooded with memories of Sunday mornings at my grandma’s house. It tastes like a combination of that fabulous cinnamon bread we used to have, as well as the filling in the Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tarts (except much tastier, obviously!).
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I may have become addicted to babka-style breads without realizing it. Quite a few years ago I made this chocolate babka, and then just last month I made an apricot cream cheese babka. I love the intense swirls of babka, which ensures that every single bite will have a substantial amount of filling in it. That’s uber important in a seriously swirl bread, right?
While this babka does take some advance planning since there are three separate rise times, it is, without a doubt, 100% worth making. The dough is easy and forgiving, so even if you haven’t spent a lot of time working with yeast, it’s nearly foolproof. I urge you to give it a go, even if it means stepping a bit outside of your comfort zone.
I’m so glad that I carved out the time to finally make this bread, which I’ve had my eye on for months. It brought back so many wonderful memories and made me realize what a lucky little girl I was to be able to spend such an abundance of time with my grandma. It’s time that you can never get back and I know, without a doubt, that mine was spent in the best way possible.
One year ago: Moussaka
Two years ago: Banana Nut Bread
Six years ago: Beef Mushroom Barley Soup
Cinnamon Babka Bread
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 1 cup (220 g) light brown sugar
- ¼ cup (31.25 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon (0.13 teaspoon) salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 egg white
For the Dough:
- ½ cup (122 ml) whole milk, heated to 110 degrees F
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) instant or rapid-rise yeast
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) salt
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces and softened
For the Egg Wash:
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
Instructions
- 1. Make the Filling: Combine all of the filling ingredients in a medium bowl. Set aside 1 tablespoon of the filling.
- 2. Make the Dough: Grease a large bowl and set aside. In a 1-cup measuring cup, whisk together the milk, egg yolks and vanilla extract.
- 3. Using a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix the flour, sugar, yeast and salt on low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Slowly pour in the milk mixture and mix until the dough comes together, about 3 minutes. Increase the speed to medium-low and add the butter, one piece at a time, until they have all been incorporated, about 1 minute. Continue to mix until the dough is smooth and comes away from the sides of the bowl, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer the dough to the prepared bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise at room temperature until risen slightly, about 1 hour.
- 4. Place the bowl in the refrigerator until the dough is firm and has doubled in size, at least 1 hour.
- 5. Assemble the Babka: Line an 8½ by 4½-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, allowing the excess to hang over the edges.
- 6. Punch down the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out the dough to a 20 by 14-inch rectangle. Spread all but the 1 tablespoon reserved filling over the dough, leaving a ½-inch border around the edges. Working from the short side, roll the dough into a cylinder and pinch along the seam to seal.
- 7. Position the cylinder seam side up and roll back and forth until stretched to 18 inches long. Spread the reserved filling over the top of the cylinder. Fold the cylinder on top of itself and pinch the ends to seal.
- 8. Gently twist the double cylinder twice to form a double figure eight. Place the shaped dough seam side down in the prepared pan, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
- 9. Bake the Babka: While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly beat the whole egg and brush the top of the loaf. Bake until the loaf is deep golden brown and the inside of the loaf registers 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 45 minutes. Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then remove the loaf from the pan and cool completely, about 2 hours. The bread can be kept at room temperature, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, for up to 3 days.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Any thoughts on how to make this orange and cinnamon? Looks amazing!
Can I substitute buttermilk or whipping cream or 2 percent milk
Hi Ruthie, I would substitute 2% milk for the whole milk. Enjoy!
I attempted to make this babka and followed the recipe with the exception of adding a bit more flour to form a more cohesive dough. It really was just more like a thick batter, even after 12 minutes of mixing in the mixer. I thought the refrigeration step would help but it did nothing but dry it out, though the dough was covered. I decided to try and trust the process and after rising an hour at room temp and over an hour in the fridge, I rolled out the dough. The dough was difficult to roll out and form as it was very soft. By this time the filling was too think and unspreadable so I had to microwave it a bit in an effort to be able to spread it over the dough. In trying to spread the filling, the dough would rip in places or the filling and dough would mix together and I was unable to spread the filling over the entire surface in an even manner. Attempting to roll this into a cylinder was out of the question. I am a seasoned home baker and as much as i tried to troubleshoot and save this, I just couldn’t. If you have any tips, I’d be happy to make a second attempt but as of now, I’ll just be searching for another recipe. Thanks anyway.
One half cup of milk seems too small? The dough is very stiff! I have let it ride for one hour and nothing has happened. Are you sure this is correct?
That is the correct measurement. Is it in a warm area?
I made this and was very happy with the results. I do like Steven’s tip about rolling and twisting the dough and will do that next time. Like many others, I did not let it rise in the fridge, but rather in a warm area and it grew beautifully. Nice reliable recipe. Thank you!
hello.im farzaneh from iran.thank you for your recipe.icant imagine and cant undrestand step 8. i want bakethis bread .please describe step 8 again with picture or paint or ,… .please.
thank you .im waiting.please
roll the dought into a long cylinder triple the length of the pan, then form the cylinder into a large circle..then grab each end and twist 2 times, place in pan and let rise…
helo.thank you steven.
i wish you the best.
Thank you Steven Lewis for that tip!
This is a great recipe that turned out a beautiful and tasty loaf! I am a very experienced baker and the dough handles much like my cinnamon roll dough despite very different ingredients. I did have to add quite a bit more flour to get a handleable dough. I am truly not sure the fridge time is necessary– cold proofing is used for very lean (no fat or sugar) doughs to slow the rise and allow the flavor to be developed. I always roll out on a Pam-sprayed counter rather than a floured one to get a very tender crumb. And I use the microwave as a warm proofing box– boil a cup of water in the microwave to a rolling boil, leave it in the microwave and add the bowl of dough.
@Melanie— I would not increase the amount of yeast, and there is no advantage to softening instant yeast in water. My dough did not rise all that much in the fridge and I think expecting a doubling (as the recipe says, I know!) is neither realistic or necessary given how rich the dough is and how short the suggested cold proof time is. My baguette dough spends 24-72 hours in the fridge!!
Not really sure how you were able to get the dough to rise in the fridge … that is a mystery. After letting the dough rise for 4+ hours, it finally came close to almost “doubling” in size. I think I should probably add the entire packet of yeast instead of just 1.5 teaspoons, and perhaps activate the yeast in a bit of warm water first?
Prep and ingredients are quick and very easy. Total time for me took a full 7 hours!
Tip: Use the two egg whites from the eggs used in the dough to serve as 1) egg white for the filling and 2) egg white for brushing.
Hi Michelle,
I made the recipe. About 10 minutes into the baking, my dough spread and flattened. It then begin to rise. Tastes great, all the same. Any ideas?
Hi Michael, I’ve never seen bread dough “spread”, crazy! I typically don’t watch the oven closely until it gets toward the end of baking, so I’m not sure if that is typical of this recipe or not. I’m glad you liked it all the same!
great story about food memories !
Oh no! Now you have 3 babka recipes on your website… How to decide! More specifically which dough recipe is the best? Thanks!
Hi Grace, You’ll have to make all three! :) I like the dough from the cinnamon and apricot; the chocolate one is pretty chocolate-heavy.
I just made your cinnamon babka recipe yesterday and it was fantastic! I had made your chocolate babka a couple of weeks ago and loved that one too! Thank you so much for sharing these wonderful recipes!