Chocolate Babka In A Bag Recipes

CHOCOLATE BABKA

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly. In a small saucepan, heat water to 120°-130°; stir into dry ingredients. Stir in eggs and yolk, orange zest and enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (dough will be sticky)., Turn dough onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight., Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface; divide in half. Roll each half into a 12x10-in. rectangle. For filling, in a microwave, melt butter and chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Stir in confectioners' sugar, cocoa and salt. Spread filling to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch seam and ends to seal., Using a sharp knife, cut each roll lengthwise in half; carefully turn each half cut side up. Loosely twist strips around each other, keeping cut surfaces facing up; pinch ends together to seal. Place in 2 greased 9x5-in. loaf pans, cut side up. Cover with kitchen towels; let rise in a warm place until almost doubled, about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375°., Bake until golden brown, 35-45 minutes, tenting with foil halfway through baking. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine sugar and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Brush over warm babka. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

CHOCOLATE BABKA - IN A BAG!

Steps:

• Open a large zip-top bag and place it on the counter. Add the yeast, water, egg, orange zest, sugar, salt, vanilla and butter. Close the bag and squeeze to mix thoroughly. Open the bag and add the flour. Squeeze and knead until the dough is a somewhat even consistency. Place the bag in a bowl of warm water to rise for 1 hour. Remove the dough and place on a well-floured surface. Roll out the dough into a large rectangle. Spread nutella on the dough, avoiding 1 inch around the edges. Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly. Starting from one of the long edges of the dough, roll up the dough into a rope. Cut the dough in half down the middle of the rope. Place one strand on top of the other to create a large X, then twist the remaining ends. Place in a greased 8-inch loaf pan, cover and place in a warm part of the kitchen to rise for one hour or until doubled in size. Preheat the oven to 350℉ / 175℃. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove the babka from the oven then place a small sauce pan on medium heat. Add the water and sugar then bring to a simmer. Once sugar is dissolved, brush the syrup on top of the babka.

CHOCOLATE BABKA

Steps:

• Make the dough: Sprinkle the yeast over the milk in a liquid measuring cup; add a pinch of sugar and set aside until bubbly, about 7 minutes. Combine the flour, the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, the eggs, yeast mixture, salt, vanilla, nutmeg and lemon zest in a large bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead until soft and smooth, about 5 minutes. Knead in the butter in three additions, dusting the dough with flour if it's too sticky. Transfer the dough to a large bowl; cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch down the dough, re-cover with plastic wrap and let rise in the fridge overnight.
• Make the filling: Heat the sugar, heavy cream and salt in a saucepan until scalding. Pour over the bittersweet chocolate chips, butter and vanilla in a bowl. Whisk until smooth and shiny. Let cool to room temperature.
• Make the topping: Whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and salt in a separate bowl; work in the butter with your fingers until the mixture is sandy and chunky. Stir in the mini chocolate chips; set the topping aside.
• Form the loaves: Cut the dough in half with a bench scraper or chef's knife. Using a rolling pin, roll each half into a 12-by-16-inch rectangle. Using an offset spatula, spread the filling on both dough rectangles, all the way to the edges. Starting from a long side, tightly roll each rectangle into a log. Wrap each log in plastic wrap and refrigerate 15 minutes. Unwrap the logs; cut each in half lengthwise with a bench scraper or chef's knife. Twist the halves together a few times, starting from the middle. Coat two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with cooking spray and line with parchment, then spray the parchment. Place a dough twist snugly in each pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 1/2 hours.
• Finish and bake the babka: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush each loaf with butter and sprinkle with the topping. Bake until browned, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, make some simple syrup: Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan; simmer, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Let cool. Pull the loaves out of the oven and immediately poke a bunch of holes in each with a wooden skewer. Pour 1 1/4 cups simple syrup evenly over the loaves.
• Let sit 10 minutes, then remove the babka from the pans, remove the parchment and let cool completely on a rack.

CHOCOLATE BABKA RECIPE

Steps:

• Make the dough the day before.
• Measure out all the ingredients first.
• Add the milk, yeast and honey into the mixing bowl, and gently whisk to combine. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the yeast to activate.
• Add the eggs, vanilla, sugar, flour and sea salt, and mix to form a scraggly dough.
• With the dough hook attachment, knead the dough on speed 3 for about 5 minutes. The dough should start to look smooth.
• Roughly divide the butter into 4 portions. Add the first portion of butter, in increments, after the first 5 minutes of kneading. Each butter portion should be mixed in for at least 2 minutes at a time.
• Repeat with the other 3 portions of butter, kneading the dough for about 2 -3 minutes after each addition. Make sure to stop the mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl (and the bottom if needed) between kneading as well. You will have incorporated all the butter in about 12 - 15 minutes of kneading time.
• Once all the butter is incorporated, scrape down the sides of the bowl (and bottom if needed), and knead the dough for a further 5 - 15 minutes on speed 5 or 6. If you lower the speed, this can take longer, so it's best to knead until the dough has reached the correct consistency.
• The dough will have been kneaded enough when it can be lifted fairly cleanly off the bottom of the bowl when picked up with the dough hook. It will be very soft and tacky to the touch, but shouldn't stick to your fingertips. Please note that the dough will still be very soft.
• You can also do the window pane test with the dough to check if enough gluten has developed.
• Flour your work surface lightly, and turn the dough out onto the floured surface. Lightly flour your hands to prevent the dough from sticking to your palms.
• Fold in the edges of the dough towards the middle, and gently press them into the dough to form a smooth ball. Flip the dough over, and then with the heel of your palms, shape the dough to form a tight ball.
• Carefully pick up the dough ball and place it back in the mixer bowl (or another large bowl).
• Let it rise until it has almost doubled in size, in a warm place (72°F), for about 1 hour. It can take longer if your kitchen is colder.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and press down gently to deflate the dough with your hands. Fold in the edges again as before towards the middle and press them in. Carefully flip the dough over (seam side down now), and tighten the ball of dough to get a smooth taut surface. Transfer the dough into the mixer bowl again.
• Cover and let it chill in the fridge for at least 8 hours, or up to 24 hours. The dough WILL RISE in the fridge, so make sure the bowl is large enough to contain the dough properly.
• The following day, the dough is ready to be used. You will be using the dough while it's chilled, so do not let it come to room temperature before working with it.
• This chocolate filling can be made the same day you make the dough, and then chilled overnight. OR it can also be made the day you assemble the babka, but make sure you give the filling enough time to cool down before rolling out the chilled dough. If you chill the filling overnight, then heat it in the microwave in small increments (10 - 30 sec intervals) until you have a thick paste that is spreadable.
• In a saucepan, place the cream, cocoa powder, sugar and salt.
• Heat over medium / medium high heat, while whisking. Whisk to dissolve the cocoa powder and sugar, until the cream just starts to simmer.
• Remove from the heat, and add the butter and chocolate. Whisk very well until the butter and chocolate have dissolved.
• Place the chocolate mixture in a shallow container and let it cool down until it's thick and spreadable. You can also let it cool in the fridge, but check on it to make sure the chocolate has not hardened.
• Butter and flour TWO 9 x 4 x 4 inch loaf pans. I prefer to butter and line them with parchment paper, but you can do whichever is easier for you. Set aside.
• When the filling is at the correct consistency, remove the chilled dough from the fridge.
• Slightly flatten the dough to remove excess air in the dough.
• Measure the weight of the dough. Evenly divide the dough into TWO portions by weight (to make 2 loaves).
• Return one of the portions back into the bowl, cover, and let it chill in the fridge until you've assembled the first portion.
• Place the first portion of the dough on a floured, smooth surface.
• Roll out the dough until it's a rectangle that is about 10 x 15 inches.
• Spread a layer of the chocolate filling (about ⅓ - ½ of the filling) over the surface of the dough. Make sure to leave a 1 inch border along one of the long edges.
• Roll the dough along the 10 inch side, towards the 1 inch border (so that you end up with a 14+ inch long bread roll).
• Once rolled up, pinch the end into the dough roll to create a seal (see pictures in the post).
• At this stage, the dough can be very soft and sticky and hard to manage. So carefully place the bread roll on a parchment paper-lined baking tray and cover with plastic wrap and freeze for about 20 minutes until the dough is firm. While the dough is firming up in the freezer, you can repeat the whole process with the second dough portion.
• When the dough is firm enough to handle again, remove it from the freezer.
• Trim the two ends of the roll (optional), then slice the roll in half lengthwise.
• Twist the two halves to form a twisted braid (see pictures in the post).
• Carefully place the twisted loaf in the prepared loaf pan, making sure to tuck in the ends.
• Cover the loaf pan with plastic wrap, and let it proof at room temperature for about 1 hour or until it's about doubled in size. The time for proofing will depend on the ambient temperature in your kitchen. In a cooler place, it could take as long as 3 hours to proof.
• Repeat the cutting and twisting of the babka loaf with the second portion of dough, and let it proof in the second loaf pan.
• While the chocolate babka is proofing, preheat the oven to 325°F / 163°C (conventional oven).
• When the babka has proofed, bake in the preheated oven for about 50 minutes. If the surface is caramelizing too fast, you can tent a foil on the surface to prevent further browning.
• The internal temperature of the dough should reach about 190 - 200°F when it's done baking.
• Remove the pan from the oven, and carefully use a skewer to poke several holes through the loaf from the top.
• While hot, generously brush the babka with the sugar syrup (recipe below) to glaze the top and to allow some of the syrup to be absorbed by the babka as well (optional).
• Let the babka cool down in the loaf pan. Once at room temperature, or only slightly warm, remove the babka loaf from the pan.
• Slice and serve while warm or at room temperature.
• Make the sugar syrup while proofing the loaf, or while baking the babka loaf. The syrup can be used warm or hot.
• Add all the ingredients in a saucepan and heat over medium high heat.
• Stir to dissolve the sugar and bring it to a boil.
• Lower the heat to simmer the sugar syrup for about 5 minutes. Set aside until you're ready to use it.

CHOCOLATE BABKA

Steps:

• Warm the milk and melt 1/4 cup butter in a glass or ceramic bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds, or on the stovetop in a saucepan. Combine the bread flour, 2 cups all-purpose flour, yeast, and 1/4 cup sugar. Add the water, the milk-butter mixture, the egg, and the salt to the dry ingredients and mix well.
• Use the dough hook in a stand mixer on low speed or knead the dough by hand until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 15 minutes. If the dough is too wet, add more bread flour, about 2 tablespoonfuls at a time (up to 8 tablespoons) to make a workable dough; too much flour can make the dough dry. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let rise until double in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
• Make the chocolate filling and the streusel while the dough is rising. For the filling, stir together the finely chopped chocolate, the cinnamon, and 1/4 cup sugar. Cut in 1/4 cup chilled butter with a fork. To make the streusel, combine the confectioners' sugar and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour; cut in 1/4 cup chilled butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• When the dough has doubled, punch the dough down and cut it into two equal pieces. Loosely shape each piece into a ball. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 10 minutes.
• Roll out one portion on a lightly floured surface to form a 15x4-inch rectangle. Sprinkle with half the chocolate filling, roll up to form a long log, and seal the seam. Attach the ends to form a circle and place the ring, seam-side down, on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the second piece of dough. Use a serrated knife or kitchen shears to cut slits at 1-inch intervals around the rings. Cover the rings with damp kitchen towels and let rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Brush the loaves with the egg wash, if desired. Sprinkle streusel on top. Bake the loaves for about 25 minutes, rotating the baking sheets to promote even browning, until the bread is a deep golden brown.

CHOCOLATE BABKA RECIPE

Steps:

• Place flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix on low speed until combined. Add eggs and water, and mix on medium speed until dough comes together, 2-3 minutes. Add butter, adding a few cubes at a time, mixing on low-medium speed, until incorporated. Continue mixing for about 10 minutes on medium speed, until dough is completely smooth, elastic and shiny. It would look soft and might be sticky - that's ok. During mixing, you will need to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• With floured hands, transfer dough to a large bowl brushed with oil, cover with plastic wrap, and leave in the fridge for at least half a day or overnight. The dough may not look like it has risen much, that's ok. If placed a long time in the fridge the dough can become hard, that's ok, too; leave it at room temperature until it's easy to work with, 30-60 minutes.
• Grease two loaf pans (I usually use 9×5 inch pans but a bit smaller or larger pans would work too) with oil and line the bottom and sides of each pan with parchment paper for easy release later on. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan place chocolate, butter, heavy cream, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt, and bring just to a boil over moderate heat. Reduce heat to low and mix until melted and completely smooth. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool. It would thicken and become spreadable as it cools. You can place it in the fridge for a short while until you get a spreadable consistency.
• Divide dough in half. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface and shape into a rectangle measuring 16x12 inches (40x30 cm). Position dough so that a long side is closest to you. Using an offset spatula, spread half of the chocolate mixture over the rectangle.
• Use both hands to roll up the rectangle like a roulade, starting from the long side closest to you and ending at the other long end. Press to seal the dampened end onto the roulade, then use both hands to even out the roll into a perfect thick cigar. Rest the cigar on its seam.
• Using a serrated knife, gently cut the roll in half lengthwise, starting at the top and finishing at the seam, essentially dividing the log into two long even halves, with the layers of dough and filling visible along the length of both halves. With the cut sides facing up, gently press together one end of each half, then lift the right half over the left half. Repeat this process, but this time lifting the left half over the right, to create a simple two-pronged plait. Gently squeeze together the other ends so that you are left with the two halves, intertwined, showing the filling on top. Carefully lift the cake into a loaf pan. Don't worry if there are gaps in the pan since the cake will rise and will eventually look fine, even if it looks messy at this point. Cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap and leave to rise at room temperature for 1 to 1½ hours until almost doubled in size. Repeat to make the second cake.
• Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C, making sure to allow plenty of time for it to heat fully before the cakes have finished rising. Remove plastic wrap, and place cakes on middle rack of oven. Bake 30-35 minutes, until golden brown on top. If you have a thermometer, you are looking for an internal temperature of about 200ºF/93ºC degrees.
• While the cakes are in the oven, make the syrup. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring water and sugar to a boil. As soon as the sugar dissolves, remove from heat and set aside to cool. As soon as the cakes come out of the oven, brush the syrup over them. Use all of the syrup, even if it looks a lot. Let cakes cool until they are warm, then remove from pans and let cool completely before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.
• Babka will stay fresh for 24 hours in an airtight container at room temperature. Do not place it in the fridge. It also freezes well for up to 2 months. To thaw, leave at room temperature for 2 hours, or overnight in the fridge.