Sweet and Nutty Babka Recipe

Ever since I learned of the babka recipe's existence, I thought it was very similar to the Romanian sweet bread. Even so, there was never a good time to give it a go.

At first, I tried the savory babka with garlic which was a complete hit. After making it, we didn't go back to any other classic form of garlic bread.

However, today is about sweet bread or, better said, a nutty version of the traditional babka recipe, so I won't linger any more on other stories. This being said, here is what you need to do:

• The first thing you will need to do is to mix the yeast with one tsp of sugar and one tbsp of water in a small bowl. Cover and leave it to rest for 5 minutes.
• In a small saucepan, heat the milk and the butter on medium heat until the butter is completely melted.
• Take a large enough mixing bowl. Add 250 g flour, the remaining sugar, salt, and egg. Slowly pour in the hot liquid. Mix everything to cool down, and then add the yeast mixture.
• Start kneading and add more flour as you go. The type of flour is very important for the final quantity. If it's wet flour, you will use up to 400 grams. If it's a drier one, you will only need 300 g.
• Knead for 10-15 minutes until you get a very fluffy and elastic dough.

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• Put the dough in the bowl, cover it and leave it to prove for one hour and a half.
• While the dough is resting, you can focus on the filling. Using a food processor, crumble your walnuts.
• Transfer them into a bowl and mix them with the sugar.
• Heat up the milk and pour it into the nutty-sugar mixture. Stir to combine.
• When the dough is done proofing, take it out of the bowl and start rolling it out on a clean surface.
• You want to have a rectangular shape of 2-3 mm thick.
• Using a small spatula, spread the filling throughout the dough.
• When all the filling is spread equally on the dough's surface and add the chopped Turkish Delight.

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• Start making a roll out of the dough.
• When you have a compact roll, take a sharp knife and cut it lengthwise.

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• Take the two halves and form a very simple braid.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Bring the braided bread to the tray and cover it with a clean tea towel. Let it sit for 30 minutes.

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• Mix the egg white with a splash of milk and gently cover the bread with this egg wash.
• Bake the bread for 25 minutes in the preheated oven at 180°C (350 F). Then reduce the temperature at 160 °C (320 F) and let cook for another 15-20 minutes or until the toothpick comes clean.
• When ready, take it out of the oven and let it rest for 10-15 minutes on a wire rack before eating it.

That's it. The dessert is ready. In case you missed the story behind this recipe when talking about the savory version, I will say it again. If you are wondering about the babka's origin, you should know that it is a Jewish dish that comes from Poland. Even so, it grew in popularity ten years or so ago after bakeries in New York started to serve it.

* You should know that the original babka recipe is made using chocolate-walnut spread such as Nutella.

** Don't forget to tag us on Instagram when making this baked good.