I have Melissa Clark’s Babka recipe in my notes. It’s in metric weight and volume measurements. I edited/organized the instructions and made some minor changes to the way I prefer to do things. There’s a lot of directions, but it’s really just a straightforward enriched dough.
The dough is time consuming as it ferments overnight after a bench bulk. But I ferment most of my doughs overnight anyway.
My SIL asked me to bake her biscotti to send my cousin in Japan. So I’ll bake this babka as well to take it all over together. I’ll post when I do.
Babka
Melissa Clark - NYTimes
NOTE: sugar syrup is not necessary. This babka is very rich as is.
DOUGH: requires overnight fermentation
- ½ cup/118 milliliters whole milk
- 1 package (1/4 ounce/7 grams) active dry yeast
- ⅓ cup/67 grams granulated sugar, plus a pinch
- 4 ¼ cups/531 grams all-purpose flour, more as needed
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (optional)
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
- 10 tablespoons/140 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing bowls and pans
FUDGE FILLING: make up to week in advance. Let come to room temperature before using.
- ½ cup/100 grams granulated sugar
- ¾ cup/177 milliliters heavy cream or half-and-half
- Pinch kosher salt
- 6 ounces/170 grams extra bittersweet chocolate, preferably between 66 and 74 percent cocoa, coarsely chopped
- 8 tablespoons/112 grams/1 stick unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons/10 milliliters vanilla extract
CHOCOLATE STREUSEL: make up to 3 days in advance,
- ½ cup/60 grams all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons/45 grams granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons/11 grams cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 ½ tablespoons/64 grams unsalted butter, melted
- ⅓ cup/60 grams mini semisweet chocolate chips
SYRUP: NOTE THIS NOT NECESSARY
- ⅔ cup/135 grams sugar
- 2/3 cup/158 milliliters water.
DAY 1
DOUGH:
Equipment
- Mixer w/ dough hook OR food processor
- Buttered bowl
- Clean tea towel
- Spatula or bowl scraper
NOTE: to hand mix use a large bowl and a wooden spoon
Warm the milk to 110°F (43°C) . Stir a pinch of sugar into milk. Sprinkle yeast over milk let sit for 5 to 10 minutes, until slightly foamy.
Mix on low to combine flour, 67g (1/3c) sugar, salt, and nutmeg
Add yeast
Add eggs, vanilla, and zest
Mix until the dough comes together in a soft mass, about 2 minutes. If the dough sticks to the side of the bowl and doesn’t come together, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until it does, beating very well in between additions.
Add half the butter
Mix until the dough is smooth and elastic, 3 to 5 minutes, scrape sides and bottom of bowl as needed.
Add remaining butter mix until the dough is smooth and stretchy, 5 to 7 minutes. If dough sticks to the sides of the bowl, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Press test dough. Dough is kneaded enough when smooth and springs back when pressed with finger tip
Form dough into a ball and roll it around in the bowl so all sides are buttered.
BENCH RISE:
Heat oven 60 seconds, then turn OFF
Turn on oven light.
Cover dough with clean tea towel and place in OFF oven
Rise 1 1/2 - 2 hours
It may not double in bulk but it should rise.
Press the dough down with your hands, re-cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight (or, in a pinch, for at least 4 hours, but the flavor won't be as developed).
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FILLING: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, cream and salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Scrape mixture into a bowl. Stir in chocolate, butter and vanilla until smooth. Let cool to room temperature. Cover and store in refrigerator up to a week if not using right away. Bring to room temperature before using.
STREUSEL: In a bowl, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Stir in melted butter until it is evenly distributed and forms large, moist crumbs. Stir in the chocolate chips. Streusel can be prepared up to 3 days ahead and stored, covered, in the fridge.
SIMPLE SYRUP (optional): In a small saucepan, combine sugar and 2/3 cup/158 milliliters water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then simmer for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Cool. Place in covered container in the refrigerator. A 1:1 simple can be refrigerated up to 1 month.
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DAY 2
Bring filling to room temperature if refrigerated
Butter two 9-inch loaf pans, then line with parchment paper, leaving 2 inches of paper hanging over on the sides to use as handles later.
Remove dough from refrigerator and divide in half.
On a floured surface, roll one piece into a 9-by-17-inch rectangle. Spread with half the filling (there's no need to leave a border). Starting with a long side, roll into a tight coil. Transfer the coil onto a dish towel or piece of plastic wrap and stick it in the freezer for 10 minutes. Repeat with the other piece of dough.
Slice one of the dough coils in half lengthwise to expose the filling. Twist the halves together as if you were braiding them, then fold the braid in half so it’s about 9 inches long. Place into a prepared pan, letting it curl around itself if it’s a little too long for the pan.
Repeat with other piece of dough
Cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until puffy (it won’t quite double). Alternatively, you can cover the pans with plastic wrap and let them rise in the refrigerator overnight; bring them back to room temperature for an hour before baking.
Preheat oven to 350°f (180°C). Use your fingers to clump streusel together and scatter all over the tops of the cakes. Transfer to oven and bake until a tester goes into the cakes without any rubbery resistance and comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. The cakes will also sound hollow if you unmold them and tap on the bottom. An instant-read thermometer will read between 185°F (85°C) — 206°F (96°C).
Simple Syrup if using: As soon as the cakes come out of the oven, use a skewer or paring knife to pierce them all over going all the way to the bottom of the cakes, and then pour the syrup on top of the cakes, making sure to use half the syrup for each cake.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before serving.