Chocolate Babka: You Can't Beat a Babka

Tonight's recipe isn't Marble Rye, it's Chocolate Babka. This recipe was suggested last week by a close friend and though it didn't fit for the occasion at the time, I think it will go over well tomorrow. I added a liberal sprinkle of cinnamon to one of the loaves before rolling the dough and think it will be a nice addition (I also won't get comments about Lesser Babkas as I've combined the two into what will hopefully be a delicious pastry). The recipe is a little more involved than my usual fare, and takes quite a bit more time because of multiple risings but it shouldn't be intimidating as you prepare the dough, walk away for an hour, punch it down, roll it out, assemble the loaves, put it in pans, walk away for an hour then bake for 40 minutes. It's a fair bit of effort but it's spread out over a few hours.

I found the dough to be very sticky and wasn't able to roll it out with a silicone rolling pin, instead i had to gently spread it apart with my hands, which I think gave it a more rustic look. I also rolled it out on parchment paper, which it doesn't stick to and makes it far easier to roll off into the loaf pans.



Ingredients

For dough

• 3/4 cup warm milk (105–115°F)
• 1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3 teaspoons active dry yeast (from two 1/4-oz packages)
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour plus additional for dusting
• 2 whole large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces and softened

For egg wash

• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon heavy cream or whole milk

For chocolate filling

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, well softened
• 2 (3 1/2- to 4-oz) bars fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (no more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
• 1/4 cup sugar

Directions

1. Make dough: Stir together warm milk and 2 teaspoons sugar in bowl of mixer. Sprinkle yeast over mixture and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. (If yeast doesn't foam, discard and start over with new yeast.)
2. Add 1/2 cup flour to yeast mixture and beat at medium speed with flat beater (or sideswipe if you have one) until combined. Add whole eggs, yolk, vanilla, salt, and remaining 1/2 cup sugar and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low, then mix in remaining 2 3/4 cups flour, about 1/2 cup at a time. Increase speed to medium, then beat in butter, a few pieces at a time, and continue to beat until dough is shiny and forms strands from paddle to bowl, about 4 minutes. (Dough will be very soft and sticky.)
3. Scrape dough into a lightly oiled bowl and cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
4. Assemble babkas with filling:
5. Line each loaf pan with 2 pieces of parchment paper (1 lengthwise and 1 crosswise).
6. Punch down dough with a lightly oiled rubber spatula, then halve dough. Roll out 1 piece of dough on a well-floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into an 18- by 10-inch rectangle and arrange with a long side nearest you.
7. Beat together yolk and cream. Spread 2 1/2 tablespoons softened butter on dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border all around. Brush some of egg wash on long border nearest you.
8. Sprinkle half of chocolate evenly over buttered dough, then sprinkle with half of sugar (2 tablespoons). Starting with long side farthest from you, roll dough into a snug log, pinching firmly along egg-washed seam to seal. Bring ends of log together to form a ring, pinching to seal. Twist entire ring twice to form a double figure 8 and fit into one of lined loaf pans.
9. Make another babka with remaining dough, some of egg wash, and remaining butter and chocolate in same manner. Chill remaining egg wash, covered, to use later. Loosely cover pans with buttered plastic wrap (buttered side down) and let babkas rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until dough reaches top of pans, 1 to 2 hours. (Alternatively, let dough rise in pans in refrigerator 8 to 12 hours; bring to room temperature, 3 to 4 hours, before baking.)
10. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.
11. Brush tops of dough with remaining egg wash. Bake until 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.