12/21/2024
This Cinnamon Sugar Babka recipe brings warmth, sweetness, and a touch of tradition to your Hanukkah celebration! 🕎 See details below and find everything you need at http://spr.ly/6186Qh0kY
CINNAMON SUGAR BABKA✨
Ingredients
For the dough:
¼ cup Bowl & Basket whole milk, at warm to 85 degrees F
2 teaspoons dry active yeast
¼ cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
2 ½ cups, Bowl & Basket unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
½ teaspoon kosher salt
5 tablespoons salted butter, sliced and softened to room temperature
For the Filling:
5 tablespoons salted butter, softened
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ cup Bowl & Basket dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
For the Simple Syrup:
½ cup water
½ cup granulated sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the warm milk, dry active yeast, lemon zest, and sugar. Whisk well to dissolve the yeast, and let the mixture rest for 5 minutes in order to activate the yeast. Add eggs, and whisk to combine thoroughly. Add the unbleached all purpose flour and kosher salt to the bowl. With the mixer on low, add the butter, one tablespoon at a time, mixing until it’s incorporated into the dough. Then, mix on medium speed for 10-12 minutes until the dough is completely smooth. Scrape the bowl down a few times. After about 10 minutes, the dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl. If it doesn’t, add 1 tablespoon of extra flour to help this along.
2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise at room temperature (about 70 degrees F) for 60 - 75 minutes. At the end of the rise, the dough should be almost doubled in size and very puffy.
3. Meanwhile, make the filling. In a small mixing bowl, combine the softened 5 tablespoons of butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and ground cinnamon. Use the back of a spoon to press the butter into the sugar, and stir to combine until all of the sugar and cinnamon is incorporated and smooth.
4. Pour the risen dough out onto a generously floured work surface. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with more flour. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, roughly 10 x 12, with the short edge facing you. Rotate the dough as you roll to ensure that it doesn’t stick to the board, and sprinkle more flour if necessary.
5. Dot spoonfuls of the cinnamon sugar butter filling onto the dough, then use a small offset spatula to spread the filling out into an even layer, leaving a ¼ inch border around the perimeter of the dough.
6. With the short side facing you, tightly roll the dough up into a log, with the seam side down. Use a very sharp chef’s knife to trim about ½ inch off of the ends. Line a 9x4 loaf pan with parchment paper, or spray the sides and bottom generously with nonstick cooking spray.
7. Use a very sharp chef’s knife to slice the roll of dough right down the center, lengthwise, then turn the cut sides up. Next, twist the dough up, trying to keep the cut sides facing up as much as possible to showcase the beautiful layers of filling. Pinch the ends together, and place the shaped babka into the prepared loaf pan. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise at room temperature for another hour until it is puffy and almost reaches the top of the pan. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
8. Bake the babka for 15 minutes, then rotate the pan 180 degrees, and bake for another 15-18 minutes until the top is golden brown. Meanwhile, make the simple syrup: in a small saucepan, combine the water, granulated sugar, and pinch of kosher salt. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and book over medium heat for 5-7 minutes until the mixture thickens slightly.
9. When the babka is warm from the oven, generously brush the babka with the simple syrup, letting it soak in. Enjoy!
📷: lions.bread (IG)
