babka i

Ingredients

• Servings: 3
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 (0.6 ounce) cake cake yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees f/45 degrees c)
• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 4 egg yolks, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon orange liqueur (optional)
• 3 tablespoons grated orange zest
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
• 10 cups all-purpose flour, or as needed
• 1 1/2 cups dried currants
• 1 1/2 cups raisins
• 1 1/2 cups golden raisins
• 1 cup chopped slivered almonds
• topping:
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 eggs
• 1 tablespoon water

Recipe

Preparation Time: 45 mins Cook Time: 40 mins Ready Time: 4 hrs 55 mins


• in a small saucepan, heat milk until just below boiling. add butter and stir until melted. remove from heat, and let cool until lukewarm.
• place cake yeast in a small bowl; pour 1/2 cup lukewarm water over the yeast. stir with a spoon to break up the yeast slightly; set aside.
• in a mixing bowl, beat 4 eggs and egg yolks with an electric mixer with a paddle attachment. add 1 cup sugar and salt, and continue to beat until mixture is thick and pale. stir in vanilla, orange liqueur, zests, and yeast mixture. beat in 2 cups flour on low speed; when incorporated, add 2 more cups of flour and mix until combined. add cooled milk mixture alternately with an additional 4 cups flour, beating on medium-low speed.
• if the dough is very sticky, add up to 1 cup of flour. mix in currants, raisins, golden raisins, and almonds.
• transfer dough to a well-floured work surface and knead about 8 to 10 minutes, adding reserved flour if needed. shape dough into a ball. transfer dough to a large greased bowl, and turn to coat. cover with greased plastic wrap.
• place in a warm place and allow it to rise until dough has doubled, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. punch the dough down, re-cover the bowl, and allow to rise again for an additional 1 1/2 hours.
• preheat oven to 350 degrees f (175 degrees c). butter 3 tube pans.
• in a small bowl, combine 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and cinnamon. cut in 4 tablespoons butter to form crumb topping. sprinkle evenly among the 3 pans.
• turn out dough a lightly floured surface. knead for 1 minute. cut dough into thirds. flatten each piece of dough into a rectangle and roll it up into a log, pinching the seam to seal. lay each log seam-side up in the prepared pans, pinching ends together to form rings. cover loosely with plastic wrap. allow to rise for 30 minutes.
• beat an egg with 1 tablespoon water to make an egg wash. before baking, gently brush egg wash over each loaf.
• bake babkas in preheated oven until until golden brown and hollow sounding when tapped, about 30 to 45 minutes. immediately turn out a cooling rack so bread does not stick to the pan. cool completely before slicing.