Weave Your Own Chocolate Babka Bread

1. Welcome!: Chocolate Bubka combines two of the world's favorite things, that being delicious bread and, of course, swirling molten chocolate. It may not be known to all, but once you begin cutting your first slice, you'll know exactly why it needs such little introduction. Hi there. My name is Marco Dubois, and I'm a professional baking instructor and the owner of the Yeasti Boys Artisan Bakery. Over the years, I've absolutely fallen in love with this dessert. The end of this recipe, I'm sure that you will, as well. With that in mind, I've designed this class for all skill levels with short bite size lessons as well as a written guide to help make your baking experience as easy as can be. You will be able to complete this recipe a total of two ways using either traditional rising agents such as Instant yeast or your very own Sud Osrter. The latter will add an incredibly unique and delicious flavor to your dough through fermentation. So if you want to try it out, then do take a look at my dedicated Suosara class, which you can find on my teacher profile or through the search tab above. This recipe serves as a great way to expand your baking skills and is the fourth of a six part series on making amazing desserts with chocolate. So with that said, do be sure to hit the follow button above to not miss out on any upcoming recipes, such as these molten lava cakes and chocolate eclairs. But with all that out of the way, let's jump straight into the following lesson where we shall be taking a look at the ingredients needed for our Bubka bread. 2. Babka Bread Introduction: In order to make one large loaf of chocolate vodka bread, you'll need to procure a few ingredients, starting off with arguably the most important part of this recipe, the dough. For the flour, I recommend using all purpose flour, as it will help achieve a delicious, soft, spongy texture, which is exactly what we want for this type of dessert. If you don't have any available, though, you can still use white bread flour as an alternative. Butter and flour, just be sure to keep a little bit extra as you will be needing some to coat your bread pan and work surface before baking. The last ingredient to note for the dough is your raising agent. As you can see, you may use instant yeast or alternatively a white flour sour oh starter. A quick reminder if you decide to use sourdotrter, you'll need to prepare it at least 8 hours before use and have an extra ten gram so that you can refresh it and use it again at a later date. For the chocolate filling, as with all these recipes, I recommend using a high quality 70% dark chocolate, as well as pure cocoa powder. Finally, here's what you'll need to make a simple glaze, which will give your Bubka bread a lovely golden sheen. Now that all the ingredients are out of the way, let's go straight into the next lesson. 3. Prepare the Babka Dough: To a large bowl, zero out and then measure 650 grams of all purpose flour. Once that is done, add 80 grams of sugar, 3 grams of salt, 85 grams of water, and 85 grams of whole or full cream milk. You may now add your raising agent of choice, either 100 grams of mature sourdough starter, which I would highly recommend for this recipe or 10 grams of instant yeast. Give all those ingredients a quick 32nd mix until very roughly incorporated, and then begin adding three whole eggs one at a time, mixing for 30 seconds to a minute in between each egg. There measure out 150 grams of unsalted butter, cut it into large cubes, and soften it out in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds to make it easier to mix. Add your butter in slowly bit by bit and mixing in between so that it can easily incorporate into the dough. If you're finding it difficult to mix with a spatula, use your clean hands to thoroughly mix everything in and to start developing the gluten with some light kneading. Once your dough has formed a nice bowl with a smoother texture, cover your bowl with a damp cloth and let it rest at room temperature for 15 minutes. 4. Perform Stretch & Folds: Because this dessert is essentially a type of bread, it's important to develop its gluten for elasticity and for a delicious fluffy texture. To accomplish this, we are going to be performing three sets of stretching folds, and it's actually quite simple. Pick up one side of your dough, stretching it up as high as possible without tearing before folding it back over its center. From there, continue the stretching and folding process all around the dough until you reach one full rotation. Cover your bowl back up with your cloth and let it rest once again for 50 minutes before repeating this process. Just take care not to tear the dough while you're stretching as this may break some of those important gluten bonds. Cover it up one final time to rest for 30 minutes and perform the third and final set of stretching folds. At this point, your dose texture should be much more smooth, and this is a great sign of gluten development. Now that you've completed the stretching folds, take out another bowl and grease it generously with some additional butter to prevent any sticking. Transfer your dough ball over, making sure it's covered to prevent dehydration and let it proof for 2 hours at room temperature. If you've used instant yeast as your raising agent, you may move on to the next step of the process once the 2 hours are done. If you opted to use sourdough, on the other hand, move your ball from room temperature to the fridge in order to let the dough ferment and gain some delicious flavor overnight. 5. Make the Chocolate Filling: For me, it's now the following day, but you can also begin making the chocolate filling about 20 minutes before your dough has finished proofing. I recommend preparing all the ingredients in advance before moving over to the stove. So first, in a small bowl, measure out 70 grams of sugar, 35 grams of cocoa powder, and a 1 gram sprinkle of salt. In a separate bowl, measure and cube 100 grams of room temperature unsalted butter, and finally, set out 150 grams of dark chocolate, also cubed so that it is easier to melt in the pot. Now that everything has been prepared, put a pot on the stove at low heat and add in your cubed butter. Without letting it boil, add your whole chocolate pieces and stir until that fully incorporates into the butter. Now switch off the heat and then mix in your sugar, cocoa and salt mixture until smooth. You can then let it cool off in the fridge for an additional 20 minutes. 6. Prepare the Babka Log: Before we get started with my favorite part of this recipe, first, grease a 30 centimeter bread pan with some melted butter, making sure to coat the entire surface and especially the corners. To that, add a light dusting of flour to complete the non stick surface. This will just make removing our loaf later on much easier, so it's a very important step not to skip. Once that is done, generously flour your work surface and take your dough out of the fridge. Lightly flour the top of the dough, as well as your rolling pin. And begin flattening it out to 30 centimeters in width and roughly 1 centimeter in thickness. While you're rolling the dough out, you'll want to shape it into a rectangular form, spreading out the corners so that they are as close to 90 degree angles as possible. Once your chocolate filling has sufficiently cooled off and isn't going to melt through your dough, pour it out into the center of the surface. Then use a spatul or spoon to evenly spread out the chocolate while making sure to leave a dry three centimeter border on all sides. When that is done, begin tightly rolling the dough from the back until it's completely sealed up. And pinch the seam so that nothing leaks out. If your newly formed log is too wide for the pan like mine is, simply push it in from both sides until it fits. Move the log over, seam side down into the bread pan, covered with a damp cloth, and let it rest in the fridge for 15 minutes. 7. Braid the Dough: It's now time to give our Bubka bread its iconic braids, so once your log has cooled down in the fridge, you can take it out of the bread pan. Then using the sharpest knife you have, cut down the center of the log all the way through. From there, pull each strand gently apart and flip them both chocolate side up. To begin the braid, pinch the back of each strand together, and then begin carefully folding each strand over the next in a zigzag pattern showing they cross over each other. Once you reach the other end, pinch the braids together to complete the braid and then push the top and bottom sides in if needed so they can fit into your bread pan once again. Lightly flour your bread pan once more, and then carefully transfer in your braided dough, making sure it doesn't spill out. Cover it with another baking pan or a damp cloth, and then place it in your oven with just the light on to proof for an additional 2 hours. 8. Bake & Prepare The Glaze: Once your loaf has finished proofing, take it out onto your counter and then preheat your oven to 190 degrees Celsius or 374 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes. Once preheated, bake your loaf at the same temperature for 30 minutes. While you wait, it's a good time to prepare the glaze to give our Popka bread a nice golden sheen, and it's really quite simple. To start, place a pot on a stove top and heat up 70 grams of water at medium heat. Once it begins to simmer, add in 60 grams of brown sugar and stir it in until it fully dissolves. Let that simmer for an additional 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, and then take it off the heat. And that's it. Your glaze is now ready. 9. Babka Bread Conclusion: Once your Bubka bread has finished baking, take it out of the oven using your protective mits and begin generously applying your glaze using a brush to cover the whole surface. It's important to apply the glaze while the loaf is still hot so it can absorb as much as possible into the crust. Once that's done, let it rest for 20 minutes and then carefully take it out of the pan. And there you have it, your beautiful chocolate Bubka bread is now ready to serve in deliciously thick slices. I love everything about this recipe, the layers of chocolate, the delicious bread, and, of course, the glazed infused crust. It helps that it's also a lot of fun to make. And so I really look forward to seeing how your own versions turn out. I hope you're enjoying these classes as much as I am because next on the list, we'll be making these amazing chocolate declares and learning all their tricks along the way. If you'd like this class, please do feel free to leave a review with your thoughts. And before you leave, don't forget to share pictures of your own chocolate creations in the project section below.