Easy Chocolate Babka Bread
Babka is a dense cake swirled with delicious layers of everything from chocolate, cinnamon sugar, Nutella and more! It is a traditional Eastern European dessert and a favorite in our house!
Servings: 2 loaves
Calories: 4731kcal
Ingredients
Dough Ingredients
- 3 ½ - 4 cups flour
- 2¼ tablespoons yeast or 3 packets
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons warm water
- ¾ cups butter melted
- 1 eggs
- 1 egg yolk save the egg white to use for the egg wash on the loaf
- 1 tsp salt
Streusel Crumb Topping Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup flour
- 6 tablespoons sugar
Chocolate Filling Ingredients
- 2 sticks butter melted
- 1 5.9 ounce box Instant chocolate pudding mix
- 1 egg
- ½ cup cocoa
- 2 cups sugar
- ½ cup water
Instructions
Streusel Crumb Topping Instructions
- In a small bowl melt 1/4 stick of butter. Add flour and sugar and mix together until combined. Use your hands to crumble the mixture and set aside for later.
Chocolate Filling Instructions
- Melt 2 sticks of butter. Add pudding mix, sugar, cocoa, water, and egg. Mix all together with a spoon. Set aside for later!
Bobka Loaf Instructions
- Prepare two 9x5 loaf pans by spraying them very well with nonstick spray.
- Melt margarine in microwave. Set aside to cool
- Place yeast and sugar in a large bowl and give it a little shake to combine.
- Add warm water to the bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let sit for 5 minutes while the yeast is activating.
- Crack the eggs in a small bowl and whisk together (1 egg and 1 egg yolk). Set aside.
- Once the yeast is activated sprinkle salt over the mixture, add melted (and cooled) margarine, and stir slightly.
- Add beaten eggs and 2 cups of flour and stir until the flour is all incorporated.
- Continue to add flour ½ cup at a time, kneading until a smooth dough forms (if you find the dough sticky, add a tablespoon more of flour at a time until a finger inserted into the center of the dough comes out clean)
- Place the ball of dough and place it in a bowl with a clean kitchen towel over it to let rise. Let rise for at least 1 ½ hours (2 hours is preferable).
- Divide dough into 2 equal parts and roll into large and VERY thin rectangles (they don’t need to be perfectly shaped. Just make sure they are thin.
- Divide the chocolate filling evenly amongst the two rolled out doughs. Spread the chocolate evenly with a spatula, leaving a 1/2 inch border on all sides.
- Starting with the longest edge, roll the dough into a very long log-like roll. Cut it in half and bring the bottom half up next to the top half (line them up opposite ends - so the end of one of the pieces is next to the middle-end of the other piece).
- Using a sharp knife cut down the center of each piece of dough just through the top (not all the way to the bottom of the piece).
- Pinch the tops together. Lift the left piece of dough and twist to the left. It will be limp and messy! Then twist the right piece of dough to the right. Then take each side and braid one over the other, continue until you get to the ends of the dough. Then pinch the bottoms of the two pieces together. You may have to pinch the top again. (The chocolate will ooze out - the messier the prettier it will turn out after baking).
- Lift the dough and place it into the prepared loaf pan.
- Egg wash the top and sprinkle generously with streusel. Let rise for 1/2 hour
- Place in oven at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes
- Serve immediately, later or freeze (if freezing, let cool completely first!)
- NOTE: For the egg wash I used the leftover egg white and 2 tablespoons of milk.
Notes
- For the egg wash I used the leftover egg white and 2 tablespoons of milk.
- You may not use all of the streusel.
Nutrition
Calories: 4731kcal | Carbohydrates: 711g | Protein: 68g | Fat: 188g | Saturated Fat: 114g | Cholesterol: 717mg | Sodium: 3457mg | Potassium: 1127mg | Fiber: 24g | Sugar: 306g | Vitamin A: 5668IU | Calcium: 187mg | Iron: 28mg