The Babka Bible

By Jessica Halfin February 2019

Ph
otos by Jessica Halfin

Originating in Eastern Europe—a region with one of the world’s oldest pastry traditions—the
beloved babka is in fact known by the German word “krantz” cake in Israel. Many of the cafes
and large patisseries in Israel were founded by Jews of Austrian or Hungarian origin, so you’re
more likely to find a poppyseed or gooey walnut-filled yeast cake than the fun, colorful
American babka variations made popular in the last few years. (Case in point: the multitude of
fun riffs found in Shannon Sarna’s 2017 book The Modern Jewish Baker.)

Just as New Yorkers wax nostalgically poetic about babka from iconic Jewish eateries like
Zabar’s, Israelis have a tradition of going equally nuts for them. Friday mornings feature
incredibly long lines at bakeries known for their flavored yeast cakes, both traditional versions
and more modern Israeli takes.
 So,
what’s a modern Israeli yeasted cake? Think Nutella (nothing can’t be improved with Nutella,
am I right?), halva spread and pistachio. The aroma of baking bread combined with the scents of
sweet cinnamon, creamy butter, chocolate and shortbread cookie dough is heavenly. The recipes
I feature below, with an array of possible fillings, toppings and shapes, will hopefully serve as a
primer on all things babka for the range of dessert palates you are no doubt trying to please.

Here, I’ve tackled an almond-crusted sweet cheese braid; double-decker poppyseed swirl;
chocolate pecan coffee cake ring; and cinnamon-swirl, standard-twist babka. But, in truth, any
shape can be paired with any filling for a successful outcome—save perhaps the cheese filling,
which does best when formed as one thick central filling surrounded by dough. Along with this
recipe guide, I’m including fool-proof tips and insider bakery tricks. All you knead to know!
Tips and Reassurances for Babka Baking:
 Parchment paper with
“fingers” cut into top and bottom edges

Using baking forms such as a loaf pan, ring or springform pan means you can get away
with less than perfect braiding skills and even over-filling. Use baking forms as your
safety guard, and know that even if your cakes look less than perfect going into the oven,
the baking forms will keep them in shape, so to speak.
  As with any other yeasted item: Let them rise! Giving the filled and shaped cakes ample
rising time is essential for a light and fluffy final product. Sometimes, especially in the
winter, this can take longer than expected, or written in a recipe. The golden rule is to
wait until the cakes begin peaking over the top of the baking form before putting in the
oven.
 An easy out: Cutting parchment paper inserts for all types of cakes and breads baked in a
form will make removing the cakes later far less onerous. To get the perfect fit for a loaf
pan, make a large strip of parchment paper that is about one-and-a-half times the width
and the length of your pan; then, cut three fat “fingers” 2 to 3 inches up on either end, and
push the strip of paper down into your pan. The fingers will fold down over one another
to create a little paper basket into which you can place the dough without fear of sticking.
 Let them cool! As with any yeasted product, wait until your babkas have cooled
completely before digging in. Cutting into them hot will ruin the distribution of hot steam
trapped in the freshly baked cakes, leaving you with a gummy and dense cake texture. (It
might turn out stodgy, as Paul Hollywood or Mary Berry might say.)
 Babkas freeze and defrost very well. Consider making a double batch to always have
these insanely popular cakes on hand for unexpected guests.

BABKA DOUGH
Makes enough for three cakes, each made from a little over 1 pound of dough. This dough can
easily be doubled.
 Traditionally made from a Danish
dough consisting of thin layers of butter rolled alternately with thin layers of dough, my hassle-
free version skips the time-consuming process of laminating the butter and dough. My coffee
cake/babka dough is based on a recipe that resembles a challah or brioche, with a little added
butter where it counts, and could easily pass a side-by-side comparison with the original
laminated recipe.

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 1/2 cups bread four
2 tablespoons dried yeast
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
5 tablespoons softened butter
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Up to 1 1/2 cups whole milk
For later: Egg wash (1 egg plus 1 tablespoon water) for brushing cakes before baking.

1. In an extra-large bowl, combine flours, dried yeast, salt and sugar, mixing briefly after
each addition.
2. Add the butter, and work it into the flour mixture using your fingertips.
3. Lightly beat eggs and add to the flour mixture along with the vanilla extract.
4. Mix to combine, then add milk a bit at a time until the flour is moistened enough to form
a dough without being sticky.
 5. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured working surface and knead until smooth and
elastic, 5 to 10 minutes.
6. Form the dough into a ball, and return it to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise
until at least tripled in size. Allow a few hours at least for this step to ensure your dough
has risen to its maximum.
7. After the dough has risen, you can either work with it immediately, or store it in a plastic
bag (squeeze out any excess air) or airtight container in the fridge for up to three days
before using.

FILLINGS

Sweet
Cheese With Toasted Almond

Sweet Cheese With Toasted Almond

1 3/4 cups mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
Small pinch salt
1 large egg
3/4 cup sliced, blanched almonds

Whisk all ingredients together except the almonds to create a smooth mixture. Use immediately,
or cover and keep in the fridge for 1-2 days. Reserve the almonds for sprinkling over the formed
cake just before baking.
 

Chocolate Pecan

Chocolate Pecan
2/3 cup Nutella or chocolate spread
1 1/2 teaspoons espresso powder
1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

Mix first Nutella and espresso powder together until combined. Use immediately, or store in an
airtight container at room temperature indefinitely. Reserve pecans for sprinkling over the spread
Nutella mixture while filling the babka dough.

Poppy Seed
Makes enough for two cakes, or for one cake and a batch of hamantaschen cookies

Up to 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs, as needed (from about 5 to 6 graham crackers)
3/4 cup poppy seeds
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 heaping tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons butter
 1.

Poppy Seed

Using a food processor, pulse cookies until you have fine crumbs. You can do this using
a rolling pin and a ziplock bag.

2. Scrape the cookie crumbs out of the food processor if using, and set aside. In the same
food processor (you do not need to wash it), pulse the poppy seeds a few times until they
are slightly crushed.
3. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring milk, sugar, honey and lemon zest to a light
boil.
4. Add poppy seeds and stir constantly for 2 to 3 three minutes, until thickened.
5. Add the butter and 1/2 cup of the cookie crumbs, and the rest if needed, to achieve a
thicker texture and sweeter flavor.
6. Let cool completely before using. Leftover filling can be used for cookies, specifically
hamantaschen. The filling can be kept in the fridge for 3-5 days, and frozen for up to
three months in an airtight container.

 
 Cinnamon Swirl

Cinnamon Swirl
Makes enough filling for one cake

1/2 cup softened butter

1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped for sprinkling over the top.

For this babka, first spread softened butter over the dough, then sprinkling an amount of brown
sugar and cinnamon. Lastly, disperse the chopped walnuts over the sugar and cinnamon, before
rolling up the babka and shaping into a swirl.

 
 Simple Lemon

Simple Lemon
Makes enough filling for one cake 

1/2 stick softened butter

1/2 cup sugar
Fine zest of three medium lemons
Pinch of salt

Combine all the ingredients using a fork. Use immediately, or store in the fridge for up to 1
week.

TOPPINGS

Shortbread Streusel
Makes enough topping for 4 cakes

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Scant 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup cold butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, powdered sugar, salt and baking powder.
 2. Cut butter into small chunks and dump over the flour mixture.
3. Using you fingertips, integrate the butter into the flour mixture until you start to get a
consistency that is like cookie dough crumbs. Stop if the mixture starts to get sticky. A
good test for a stopping point is to squeeze a few crumbs together in your palm. If they
easily bind together to make a ball of cookie dough, then the mixture is ready.
4. Keep in fridge until using, and sprinkle cold on cakes over the egg wash, just before
baking.

Keeps in the fridge in an airtight container for 1 week, and in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Basting Syrup
Makes enough for 3 cakes

Basting with a half cup of simple syrup directly upon pulling a babka from the oven is the
professional secret behind a soft, bakery-quality cake. Basting with syrup allows a babka to
retain its moisture for up to three days—and gives it one last buttery kick.

1/2 cup sugar

1 cups water
1/4 cup butter, optional
Few drops lemon juice
1 cinnamon stick (about 3 inches in length)

1. In a medium sauce pan add all the ingredients.

2. Bring to a light boil without stirring, and continue to cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until the
sugar has dissolved completely and the syrup has thickened slightly. Skim off any foam
made by the butter.
3. Evenly pour about 1/2 cup of the hot syrup over the hot cakes just after they come out of
the oven. If the syrup has cooled, reheat just before removing cakes from the oven.

Simple Milk Glaze

Most desserts looks fancier with a drizzle of glaze on top. This glaze is very customizable: Add a
bit of cocoa powder, citrus zest or extract, and sub in whatever you like for the amount of liquid,
and it can take on any flavor. Also perfectly good as is, the small amount of honey here helps the
glaze to harden as it sets. 

As far as consistency goes, you’re looking for a glaze that is thicker than you might expect.
Resist the urge to adjust, as a thinner glaze will become almost translucent when drizzled over a
cake, instead of bright white. Also, don’t break the laws of baking by drizzling this over a warm
cake. Waiting until the cake has cooled will let the glaze harden and set properly, instead of
melting into a translucent puddle.

1 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon honey
Splash of vanilla extract
4 to 5 tablespoons milk
Place powdered sugar, honey and vanilla in a medium bowl. Add milk a little at a time, mixing
until you reach a thick, yet smooth, consistency. Drizzle over cooled yeast cakes using a fork

BABKA SHAPING VARIATIONS

Now that you’ve prepped the dough, fillings and toppings, it’s time to get down to business. No
matter what shape you choose, don’t forget the most important step: letting them rise to their
absolute maximum before brushing with egg wash and topping, and then baking.

Standard Babka Swirl (as seen in cinnamon-swirl loaf)

Roll dough into a rectangle shape about half-an-inch thick, fill and roll up like a jelly roll and
seal the open seam at the end by pinching it together with your fingers

Move the jelly roll 90 degrees so that it lays vertically in front of you, and push down on the top
to flatten slightly.

Cut completely in half down the middle using a very sharp knife, then turn the two strands so the
swirled insides face outwards, while the strands are laying back to back.

Twist the strands around each other 2 to 3 times, and place down into a parchment-lined, 8-inch
loaf pan.
Let babka rise over the top of the pan (about 1 hour), then brush with egg wash, top with desired
topping (if using) and bake for 30 to 35 minutes at 350°. A properly baked loaf should be deep
golden brown and have a firm exterior with a little give when push down on.

Once baked, remove the cake from the oven and immediately baste with 1/2 cup hot syrup.

Let cool completely before serving.

The Double Decker Swirl (as seen in poppy seed loaf)

Roll out dough into an elongated rectangle shape about 1/4-inch thick, spread with filling and
roll up like a jelly roll working from the longer edge. Seal the open seam at the end by pinching
it together with your fingers.

At this point you should have a jelly roll that is approximately twice as long as an 8-inch loaf
pan. Turn the jelly roll 90 degrees so that it lays vertically in front of you.
Fold the jellyroll up and over itself to create a stacked double layer jelly roll.

Cut completely in half down the middle using a very sharp knife, then turn the two strands so the
swirl insides face outwards, while the strands are laying back to back.

Twist the strands around each other 2 to 3 times, and place into a parchment-lined, 8-inch loaf
pan.

Let babka rise over the top of the pan (about 1 hour), then brush with egg wash, top with desired
topping (if using) and bake for 30 to 35 minutes at 350°. A properly baked loaf should be deep
golden brown and have a firm exterior with a little give when push down on.
Once baked, remove the cake from the oven, and immediately baste with ½ cup hot syrup.

Let cool completely, then dust with powdered sugar just before serving.

Straight Braid (as seen in the sweet cheese braid)

This is the ideal shape for fillings that might get lost in a cake when baked.

Roll dough out into a vertical rectangle. Pipe a thick layer of cheese filling inside the rectangle,
making sure to leave 2 inches on all sides.

Cut slits into dough all around the filling, where the dough is exposed and does not have any
cheese filling. Create a braid effect to cover the filling by folding down the top portion, and
gently tugging and securing the slits down and over in a crisscross pattern.

Do this down the entire length of the load until you reach the second to last set of slits. Fold up
the bottom section first, then fold the remaining set of slits down and over to secure the design.
Place into a parchment-lined 8-inch loaf pan. Don’t worry if the filling is coming out of the braid
slightly, the spilling will be hidden in the final product.

Let dough rise over the top of the pan (about 1 hour), then brush with egg wash, top with almond
slices and bake for 30 to 35 minutes at 350°. The cheese braid is done when the filling is visibly
set and the cake is golden brown.

Once baked, remove the cake from the oven and immediately baste with 1/2 cup hot syrup.

Let cool completely, then dust with powdered sugar just before serving.

Coffee Cake Ring (as seen in chocolate-pecan ring)

Used here for the chocolate-pecan variation, this shape is comprised of filling and forming the
babka first in the standard way (as with the cinnamon-swirl babka) before placing into a well-
greased or parchment-lined 8-inch tube pan, tucking the tail of the cake just under the braid to
secure the end.
(To fit parchment paper in a tube pan, trace the bottom of the pan and the center hole on a piece
of parchment paper and cut out the pattern with scissors. Place in the pan, using baking spray as
needed to get the paper to stick. Next, cut out an additional stripe of parchment paper to fit along
the inside walls of the pan.)
 Let the dough rise over the top of
the pan (1 hour or more), then brush with egg wash, top with streusel and bake for 30 to 35
minutes at 350°. A properly baked loaf should be deep golden brown and have a firm exterior
with a little give when push down on.

Once baked, remove the cake from the oven and immediately baste with 1/2 cup hot syrup.

Let cool completely, then drizzle with milk glaze before serving. If wrapping up the cake as a
hostess gift, first let the glaze harden to the touch before packing.