Cinnamon Babka Recipes

Steps:

• FOR THE FILLING: Combine all ingredients in medium bowl. Set aside 1 tablespoon filling.
• FOR THE DOUGH: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200 degrees. When oven reaches 200 degrees, turn it off. Grease large bowl. Whisk milk, egg yolks, and vanilla together in 1-cup liquid measuring cup.
• Using stand mixer fitted with dough hook, mix flour, sugar, yeast, and salt on low speed until combined. Slowly add milk mixture and mix until dough comes together, about 3 minutes. Increase speed to medium-low and add butter, 1 piece at a time, until incorporated, about 1 minute. Continue to mix until dough is smooth and comes away from sides of bowl, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer dough to prepared bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and place in turned-off oven until dough has risen slightly, about 1 hour. Place in refrigerator until dough is firm and has doubled in size, at least 1 hour.
• Line 8½ by 4½-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, allowing excess to hang over edges. Punch down dough on lightly floured counter. Roll out dough to 20 by 14-inch rectangle. Spread all but 1 tablespoon reserved filling over dough, leaving ½-inch border around edges. Working from short side, roll dough into cylinder and pinch along seam to seal. Position cylinder seam side up and roll back and forth until stretched to 18-inch length. Spread reserved filling over top of cylinder. Fold cylinder on top of itself and pinch ends to seal. Gently twist double cylinder twice to form double figure eight. Place shaped dough seam side down in prepared pan, cover loosely with plastic, and let rise in turned-off oven until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Lightly beat whole egg in bowl. Remove loaf from oven and discard plastic. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brush loaf with beaten egg. Bake until deep golden brown and loaf registers 190 degrees, about 45 minutes. Let cool in pan on wire rack for 20 minutes. Remove loaf from pan and cool completely, about 2 hours. Serve.
• TO MAKE AHEAD: Instead of letting dough rise in step 4, cover shaped loaf with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Let dough sit at room temperature for 1 hour before baking.
• **Once you've added the butter in step 3, if the dough is still sticking to the sides of the bowl after five minutes of mixing, add 2 to 4 tablespoons of extra flour. The test kitchen's favorite loaf pan measures 8½ by 4½ inches; if you use a standard 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, start checking the babka for doneness after 40 minutes.

Steps:

• To prepare the dough: In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, dissolve the yeast in 1/4 cup of the warm water. Sprinkle in 1/4 teaspoon of the sugar and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.
• Turn the mixer on low speed and add the remaining water, sugar, melted margarine, eggs, and salt. Add 2 cups of the flour and turn the speed up to medium; continue to mix until incorporated. Gradually add the remaining flour, and continue to mix until the dough holds together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl; the dough will be very soft.
• Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface, until smooth and elastic. Rub the inside of a mixing bowl with the oil and put the dough in it, turning to coat. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours, until doubled in size.
• To prepare the filling: Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a mixing bowl. Add the orange zest, raisins, walnuts, and melted margarine. Fold the ingredients together to combine.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and brush with melted margarine.
• Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle, about 10 by 18-inches. Brush the surface of the dough with melted margarine and spread the filling evenly across. Roll the dough up, jelly roll-style, into a long cylinder, and twist it a few times like your wringing out a towel. Put the dough on the sheet pan and coil it around like a pinwheel, tuck the loose end of the dough under so it doesn't unravel. Brush the top of the dough with more melted margarine. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until your kitchen smells like cinnamon, and the babka is golden brown. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack.
• To prepare the orange glaze: Mix the all the ingredients together in a bowl, until the sugar dissolves. Whisk the glaze to smooth out any lumps; drizzle it over the top of the babka while it is still warm.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 and grease two loaf pans.
• To make chocolate filling:
• In the bowl of a food processor (I use a mini-prep for this), chop the broken up chocolate, cinnamon and sugar until the mixture looks coarse and sandy. If you do not have a food processor, simply chop the chocolate finely and mix with cinnamon and sugar.
• Cut in the butter or margarine with a fork.
• To make streusel:.
• In a medium bowl, combine the confectioner's sugar and flour, then cut in the butter or margarine until it resembles coarse crumbs.
• To assemble:.
• Roll out the dough as thinly as possible on a lightly floured surface to form a 15x4 inch rectangle (the thinner you roll out the dough, the greater the swirl effect inside).
• Sprinkle the dough evenly with the filling then roll up tightly lengthwise so that you are left with a long log. Seal the seam if you can.
• To create the swirl: fold the log in half (it should look like a squished letter 'U') and then twist the 'U' a few times so it looks like a twisted rope.
• Immediately place the shaped loaf into a greased loaf pan and set aside to rise for 30 min or so.
• Brush the loaves with the egg wash, then sprinkle heavily with the streusel topping.
• Place the loaves on a baking sheet (never bake without something underneath - as the cake rises, the streusel can tumble out of the pan onto the oven floor, creating a smoky mess) and bake for 30-40 min, depending on the size of your loaves. They should be a deep golden brown on top.

Steps:

• Cream the butter and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth.
• In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks until they are creamy. Mix the yeast in warm water with 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. When this thickens, add it to the egg yolks with the vanilla and salt.
• Combine the milk with the egg yolks and the creamed butter and sugar. Begin adding the flour until a soft dough is formed. Stir in the raisins until they are evenly distributed. Knead the dough until it is no longer sticky.
• Cover the dough and allow it to rise in a warm place until it doubles.
• Butter a 3-quart pan and shape the dough into it. Allow the dough to rise again for about 2 hours.
• For the topping, cream the cinnamon, sugar and butter, then mix in the egg, milk, and the flour. Coat the top of the dough with this topping and place in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Put the milk in a small pan over a low heat until it feels slightly warm (not hot). Dissolve the yeast in a small bowl with a tablespoon or two of the milk and a large pinch of the sugar. Set aside for 10 mins.
• Meanwhile mix 265g of the flour, the remaining sugar and ¼ tsp salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and stir to combine. Make a well in the flour and once the yeast has started to foam, pour it in together with the beaten egg and the butter. Add the yeast mixture, then use the remaining milk to rinse all the yeast out of the bowl and add this too.
• Mix to combine the ingredients until they form a ball of dough, then continue to knead it for 5-6 mins until elastic and shiny. (You can do all of this by hand if you do not have a mixer.) If the dough is very sticky you can add more of the flour a tablespoon at a time. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean tea towel. Leave to rise at room temperature, around 45 mins, then put in the fridge to rise for at least 6 hrs or overnight.
• To make the filling, chop the dates if they are whole, then put them in a heatproof bowl with 90ml boiling water and leave to soften for 30 mins. Blitz to a paste in a food processor, adding more water, a tablespoon at a time if it is too thick. Don't add too much - you want a spreadable paste and not a liquid. Once the consistency is right, add the cinnamon and stir to combine.
• Lightly oil a 23cm loose bottom cake tin and line with baking parchment. Put the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface and roll into a 40cm x 30cm rectangle. Spread with the date paste and sprinkle with the chopped pistachios. Roll up from one of the shorter sides to make a log. If the dough has become soft, lift onto a baking sheet and chill for 20 mins in the fridge until firm. (If the log is too large for the fridge, carefully slice it in half using a sharp serrated knife.)
• Use a sharp serrated knife to cut the log into slices 5cm thick. You should have about seven slices. Arrange them in the prepared tin, with the spiral facing upwards, beginning with one in the centre and the others around it. Leave space between them so they can spread as they rise. Cover and leave in a warm space to prove until they have doubled in size (about 1 hr-1 hr 30 mins).
• About 20 mins before the end of proving, heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Lightly brush the dough with the beaten egg. Bake for 20 mins.
• Meanwhile, make the sugar syrup by dissolving the sugar and honey in 2 tbsp water in a small pan over a low heat. As soon as the babka buns come out of the oven, brush generously with the honey syrup and leave to cool in the tin. Serve warm or at room temperature. Will keep for up to three days covered in an airtight container.