Double chocolate and raspberry babka

By Lulu Grimes, Olive

A babka is an Eastern European yeast cake traditionally make around Easter. Our version, a double chocolate and raspberry babka, is delicious. Serve it with a cup of tea or for an indulgent breakfast.


Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients

• milk 175ml
• fast-action (instant) yeast 1 tbsp
• strong flour 640g
• golden caster sugar 100g
• vanilla 1 tbsp
• butter 275g, softened
• egg yolks 2
• white chocolate 100g, chopped
• freeze dried raspberries crushed to make 2 tbsp

FILLING

• golden caster sugar 50g
• butter 50g
• dark chocolate 75g
• dried raspberries crushed to make 3 tbsp

SUGAR SYRUP

• golden caster sugar 125g melted with 125ml water

Instructions

Step 1

Put the milk, yeast and 160g flour in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix it to a sloppy dough. Cover and leave for several hours, somewhere warm, to activate the yeast and turn into a bowl full of bubbly dough.Add the remaining flour, sugar, 1 tsp salt, vanilla, butter and egg and mix with a dough hook until the mixture turns into a soft dough that leaves the side of the bowl. This can take up to 20 minutes, so you can leave it to mix and check it every few minutes.

Step 2

Tip the dough out onto a floured worksurface and press it out into a long rectangle about 1cm thick. Scatter over half of the chocolate and raspberries, fold the dough in half widthways and scatter on the rest, fold the side of the dough over the filling and pinch the edges together. Put the dough into a buttered bowl and leave it to rise for 1-2 hours, until it has doubled in size.

Step 3

To make the filling, heat the sugar and butter together until the sugar has dissolved, then stir in the chocolate and keep it warm enough to stay spreadable. Make the syrup by dissolving the sugar in 125ml water and simmering it for 2 minutes. Leave it to cool.

Step 4

Tip the dough onto a floured worksurface and press and roll it out to make a long rectangle about 1 cm thick, spread the filling over the dough leaving a 1cm border around the edge. Scatter on the raspberries and roll it up along the long edge, pinch the dough together around the edges.Lift the dough onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Cut down the centre of the log, leaving one end attached. Carefully plait the two lengths from the joined end along the length, stretching out and twisting the dough to expose the filling. Form the dough into a circle and pinch the join together. Leave to prove, covered in clingfilm, until doubled in size.

Step 5

Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Bake the babka for 45-50 minutes, or until it is dark golden brown, risen and cooked through, if the chocolate looks as if it is getting too dark, cover the loaf with a sheet of foil. Brush the babka with the sugar syrup and leave to cool completely.

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