Polish Cheese Babka Bread Recipes

POLISH BABKA WITH OPTIONAL CHEESE FILLING

Steps:

• Add yeast to lukewarm (hot will kill the yeast)water and let stand until softened or dissolved, about 5 minutes.
• Cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
• In a separate bowl, add salt to egg yolks and beat until thick; then add to sugar and butter mixture.
• Add yeast and water, lemon rind, cinnamon and cardamom.
• Add flour alternately with milk and beat well to make a smooth batter.
• Add raisins and knead by hand until batter leaves the fingers.
• Let rise in a warm draft free place until double (about 1-1/2 hours). Punch down and let rise again until double.
• Generously butter a fluted tube pan. Sprinkle with fine bread crumbs and fill with dough. Brush with mixture of egg yolk beaten with 2 tablespoons water. Sprinkle with almonds and let rise again. Bake in preheated 350 degrees F oven for 45-60 minutes.
• Optional:.
• Mix cheese filling ingredients together.
• Place 1/2 the dough in the prepared pan place the filling mixture on the center of the dough, place the rest of the dough on the mixture. Try to pinch the dough together so filling is encased inside. Or roll out into a log about 20x 10. Then place cheese filling in the center down the long side of the roll, bringing the sides over to encase the filling. Then place into prepared pan and let rise 30 minutes. Brush with eggwash and sprinkle with almonds. Bake 350 for 45-60 minutes.

CHEESE-FILLED EASTER POLISH BREAD (BABKA)

Steps:

• Mix 1 teaspoon sugar, water, and yeast together in a small bowl. Let stand until yeast softens and begins to form a creamy foam, about 5 minutes.
• Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to bubble. Pour into a large bowl. Stir in 6 tablespoons butter until melted. Let mixture cool to 110 degrees F (43 degrees C), about 5 minutes.
• Mix remaining sugar, yeast mixture, 2 egg yolks, and salt into the milk mixture. Add 3 1/3 cups flour; knead dough until shiny and elastic.
• Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat both sides. Cover with greased plastic wrap; let rise until doubled, 1 to 2 hours.
• Combine cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, 2 egg yolks, orange liqueur, orange zest, and 1 vanilla extract in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until smooth.
• Mix 1/2 cup sugar and 6 tablespoons flour together in a bowl. Cut in 1/4 cup cold butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives. Stir in almonds.
• Grease two 9x5-inch loaf pans and line the bottom with parchment paper.
• Punch down dough and divide in half. Roll 1 half into a rectangle 1/8-inch thick; keep the other half covered. Spread 1/2 of the cream cheese mixture over the dough. Fold in the short ends of the dough and roll up tightly like a jelly roll. Transfer to a prepared loaf pan. Repeat with remaining dough and cream cheese mixture.
• Brush beaten egg white over the loaves; sprinkle almond topping evenly on top. Cover loaves with greased plastic wrap and let rise until dough reaches above the rim of the pans, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake loaves in the preheated oven until golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 190 degrees F (88 degrees C), 40 to 50 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Run a knife along the sides to loosen; let cool completely, about 30 minutes.

CHEESE BABKA

Steps:

• Sprinkle the yeast and the pinch of sugar over the warm water; stir to dissolve. Let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.
• Combine the 1/2 cup butter, 1/4 cup sugar, salt, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, milk, and 3 eggs in a bowl with 1 cup of flour and mix well. Add the yeast mixture and beat for 1 minute. Gradually add the remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, adding small amounts of flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Shape the dough into a round, and place it in a greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Beat together the farmers' cheese, 1/3 cup sugar, sour cream, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and dried lemon peel in a bowl until smooth. Set the filling aside. Lightly oil a 10-inch fluted tube pan (such as a Bundt®).
• Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a 10-inch by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Spread the cheese filling evenly over the dough. Roll the dough up like a jelly roll, starting from the long end; twist the dough 6 to 8 times to form a rope. Pinch the seams and ends closed and arrange the rope of dough in the greased pan. Cover loosely and let rise 1 hour.
• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake the babka until deep golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes; invert the babka onto a wire rack and remove the pan. Allow the babka to cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

CHEESECAKE BABKA

Steps:

• Dough: In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the dough hook, beat together milk, yeast, flours, eggs, sugar, vanilla, salt, and butter on low speed until well combined. Transfer dough to work surface and form into a 10-by-8-inch rectangle, about 1 inch thick. Wrap in parchment; refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.
• Butter Package: Place butter between two pieces of parchment or plastic wrap. Using a rolling pin, gently beat until butter is slightly softened, then roll into a 9-by-7-inch rectangle. Loosely wrap in plastic; refrigerate at least 2 hours.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to an 18-by-9-inch rectangle with a short side parallel to edge of work surface. Place chilled butter package on top half of dough. Fold bottom half of dough over butter to cover completely and firmly press to adhere butter and dough to one another. Pinch edges to seal. Roll out dough once more to a 24-by-7-inch rectangle. Fold top and bottom of dough toward center until they meet. Fold bottom half up to cover top half, rotate dough package 90 degrees, and roll out dough to a 28-by-7 1/2-inch rectangle. Repeat folding process. Wrap dough in plastic; refrigerate 1 hour or freeze for later use.
• Filling: In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese on low speed until softened. Beat in ricotta until just combined (do not overbeat). Add half the egg (reserve remaining half for egg wash), vanilla seeds, lemon zest, confectioners' sugar, and cornstarch; beat until combined. Refrigerate 1 hour.
• Streusel: In a medium bowl, stir together butter and sugar. Mix in flour until large clumps form. Cover; refrigerate 1 hour.
• Spray three 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pans with cooking spray. Roll out dough to a 27-by-9-inch rectangle. Divide into six 13 1/2-by-3-inch rectangles. Transfer filling to a pastry bag and pipe one-sixth of filling in a line down the center of each rectangle, leaving a 1-inch border on all sides. Pull edges of dough up and pinch to enclose filling. Place two filled portions of dough, seam-side down, on work surface to form an X. Working from center of the X, twist ends. Transfer to prepared pan, seam-side down. Repeat process with remaining dough.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly cover pans with a kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place until almost doubled in size, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. (Dough should just reach edge of pan.) Gently brush dough with egg wash. Break streusel into pebble-sized pieces and gently sprinkle over loaves, dividing equally. Bake until crust is firm and golden brown, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer pans to a wire rack; let cool 10 minutes. Invert loaves onto racks; let cool completely. Lightly dust with confectioners' sugar.

BABKA

Steps:

• Heat the milk; stir in the butter until melted; cool to lukewarm. Proof the yeast in the warm water.
• Beat the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until thick. Add the salt, grated rinds, vanilla, and Grand Marnier. Add the milk-butter mixture to the egg mixture. Stir in the yeast.
• Add the flour, a cupful at a time, mixing with a wooden spoon. The dough should not be dry, but it should not be sticky. Too much flour will make a dry, crumbly cake. Add the almonds and raisins.
• Turn the dough onto a floured board and knead for about 5 minutes, until dough comes away from your hand. Butter a very large bowl and put dough in bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down and let rise a second time until almost doubled.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the pans generously. (You can sprinkle pans with a tablespoon of sugar if you wish.) Divide the dough into 3 portions. Arrange evenly on the pans and cover loosely. Let rise to top of pans.
• Bake cakes in oven for 30 to 45 minutes, until golden brown. There should be a hollow sound when you tap the top with your knuckles. Cool for 5 minutes in the pans, then turn out onto racks to cool.