Recipe

Chocolate babka

A babka bread, with spirals of white and chocolate.

Total time:

About 3 hours

Yield:

One cake

A rich and indulgent chocolate babka with swirls of decadent cocoa and a soft, buttery texture!

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Ingredients

1 cup milk
5 tablespoons butter, plus extra for greasing
¼ cup lukewarm water
1 ½ tablespoons dry yeast
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 to 4 cups unbleached white flour
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa

Preparation

In a small saucepan heat the milk until it just about boils. Remove it from the heat and stir in 5 tablespoons of butter. Set it aside to cool.
Thoroughly grease a standard sized tube or Bundt pan.
Put the water in a large bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. When the milk mixture has cooled to about room temperature, add it to the yeast along with the salt and sugar.
Add the flour, one cup at a time, stirring after each addition with a wooden spoon at first, and with your hand as the dough gets stiffer.
When all the flour is mixed in, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 to 10 minutes.
Add a little flour if needed to keep the dough from getting too sticky to handle.
Grease a clean bowl and place the kneaded dough in it.
Keep it in a warm place to rise until doubled in size (about 2 hours).
Put the chocolate chips in a food processor or blender, and grind them until they resemble coarse meal.
Transfer to a small bowl and combine with the unsweetened cocoa.
Sprinkle 1/3 cup of this mixture into the bottom of the greased pan, distributing it as evenly as possible.
After the dough doubles in bulk, punch it down and return it to the floured surface.
Knead another 5 or 10 minutes then use a rolling pin to flatten the dough into a large oval.
Sprinkle the rest of the chocolate filling as evenly as possible over the dough, leaving a ½ inch rim around the outer edge.
Roll it up tightly along the long edge, pinching the edges to seal them.
Lift the babka carefully and ease it into the pan. Pat it firmly into place, and then seal the two ends together with a little water and a good pinch.
Let the babka rise at room temperature for 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until it sounds hollow when tapped.
Remove babka from the pan and invert onto a plate.