post62 // a chocolatey babka to bake this weekend

ready, set, dough!

this recipe is one that i am very excited to share as it’s a great introduction to working with yeasted products. if you’re someone who homemade bread and doughs have intimidated, you’re not alone.

working with yeasted products is pretty adventurous for the average person’s sense of baking. instead, brownies, box cakes, and cookies are what we’re taught to start with. well today, that changes! i’m here to show you that dough can be easy too.

i first became (very!) interested in doughs when i set out to discover a special recipe: kindred’s milk bread. after recipe testing, testing, and testing again, i quickly grew acquainted with my instant packets of yeast. fast forward two years and i’ve had four months of working in an award-winning bread bakery and six months of pastry school under my belt. i am still by no means an expert but dough making is now my very favorite of kitchen activities.

a couple tricks of the trade to get comfortable:

• try working the dough without a mixer. while most dough recipes for home cooks call for a kitchenaid with a dough hook, almost all of these final doughs can be achieved without a mixer. mixing by hand also helps you get familiar with the texture, elasticity, and form the dough should take.
• work on a cold surface. marble or butcher block is preferable and make sure your ac is cranking!
• salt and yeast aren’t friends. salt slows down fermentation (a.k.a. what the yeast is doing!) so don’t combine them at the onset of your recipe making. instead, dissolve the yeast in a bit of water and stagger adding it with the salt.

now that you’re a bit more comfortable with the basics, let’s dig into this babka recipe! it’s truly foolproof and the filling options are endless. pictured here is my dough, filled with dark chocolate, banana, olive oil, and sea salt.

next comes the braiding. youtube is a god send for these kind of video tutorials and much like pie crust braiding and cake decorating, videos for babka braiding are a great way to get familiar. i found this one super helpful when i braided my first babka. while i added some twists to my dough, you get the basic gist!

while on the babka subject, i wanted to share two of my favorite loaves:

• in nyc, breads bakery’s nutella babka
• in dc, bread furst’s chocolate babka, available on fridays

so get going and make your own! you can find the recipe below as usual and always know that my inbox and instagram are awaiting all your questions!

and to add a bit more to your daytime scrolling, here’s this week’s other stuff. enjoy!

major mid century vibes in urban outfitter’s latest collection

the best congratulations card that ever did exist #corgis

i’m heading to normandy in a couple of weeks, any recos??

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chocolate and olive oil babka

serves 6-8

fixings

dough

3.5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading

1 packet active dry yeast

3 eggs

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup warm milk

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil (a quality brand)

filling and assembly

1 bar dark chocolate (100g)

1 banana, mushed

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for finish

sea salt flakes to finish

the lowdown 

dough

1. heat milk to just warm and add yeast. while yeast is dissolving, combine the butter and sugar. in a separate bowl, whisk eggs and olive oil to combine. gradually, add egg mix into sugar and butter and mix until well combined.
2. add flour and salt into wet ingredients, bit by bit. the dough at this point should be shaggy and does not need to be well combined. add yeast and milk to mixture and begin to knead the dough.
3. knead dough until smooth, about 10 minutes. dust work surface with flour as necessary throughout kneading. once dough is regular and well-combined, transfer to a well-oiled bowl and cover with plastic. let dough rise 1 hour in a warm room, 2 hours in a cooler room, or overnight in the fridge.

filling and assembly

1. grease loaf pan. break chocolate bar into small portions and melt in a microwave or saucepan. mush banana and combine with chocolate, and olive oil.
2. roll dough out to the size of a baking sheet. the dough will retract a bit while shaping so make sure it truly is as large as a baking sheet. brush dough with filling mixture and use a spoon or offset spatula to smooth out evenly. do not brush filling on outer edges of dough for a clean finish. sprinkle salt flakes on to finish.
3. time to roll! turn dough so that the longest edge is facing you, crosswise. tightly roll up babka dough. once rolled, use a serrated knife or bench scraper, to cut dough down middle. criss-cross dough ends down entire strand. tuck ends underneath dough to finish. transfer braided dough to loaf pan and let rest, uncovered for the same resting times as before, 1 hour in a warm room, 2 hours in a cooler room, or overnight in the fridge.
4. preheat oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit. bake babka for 35-45 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean and dough has browned on top. check on dough halfway through cooking and cover with aluminum foil if already well-browned. (this will vary oven by oven.)
5. once out of oven, brush another layer of olive oil on top for added shine.