Chocolate Babka Muffin
בבקה שוקולד·(babka shokolad)
Chapter 5 — Sides, Sweets & Drinks
This isn't a three-day, anxiety-inducing loaf. If our malt-boiled bagel is the savory anchor of Saturday morning, the chocolate babka muffin is the pastry case draw you order alongside it: towering, impossibly glossy knots of brioche-like dough, laminated with absurd amounts of chocolate. It is the modern standard, demanding a rich, butter-heavy dough, a strict overnight cold proof, a filling of Nutella and a semi-sweet chocolate smear, and a hot syrup soak that seals in moisture. You force the tight knots into a standard 12-cup muffin tin so the exposed sugar crackles directly against the hot metal. The result is exactly what you would pay six dollars for at the shop, straight out of your home oven. Clear your counter, grab a metal bench scraper, and let's get the dough on the board.
Before you start
Prepare the muffin tin.
Generously coat a standard 12-cup muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray or softened butter before shaping the dough.
Ingredients
- bread flour275 g
- pastry flour225 g
- instant yeast12 g
- granulated sugar100 g
- whole milk180 g
- whole eggs100 g
- vanilla extract5 g
- fine sea salt7 1/2 g
- unsalted butter120 g
- Nutella350 g
- dark chocolate chips150 g
- granulated sugar100 g
- water100 g
Method
- 01
Whisk the dry ingredients together in the bowl of a stand mixer.
Attach the dough hook and whisk together the bread flour, pastry flour, instant yeast, and sugar.
- 02
Hydrate the dough to form a shaggy mass.
Add the cold milk, cold eggs, and vanilla extract, mixing on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes until stiff and shaggy.
- 03
Add the salt and begin gluten development.
Add the salt, increase the mixer speed to medium-low, and knead for 4 minutes until the dough begins to look smoother and wraps around the hook.
- 04
Emulsify the butter into the dough.
With the mixer running on medium-low, begin adding the room-temperature butter one or two cubes at a time, waiting until each addition is nearly absorbed before adding the next. This takes 5 to 8 minutes.
- 05
Knead until perfectly smooth and highly elastic.
Once all the butter is incorporated, turn the mixer to medium speed and let it knead for an additional 5 minutes until the dough slaps cleanly against the sides of the bowl.
- 06
Retard the dough in the refrigerator overnight.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator for a minimum of 12 hours, and up to 24 hours. Do not skip this cold proof; it solidifies the butter and develops the necessary complex flavors.
- 07
Roll the chilled dough into a large rectangle.
Turn the firm dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll it into a 12 by 24-inch rectangle, about 1/4-inch thick. If the dough resists, let it rest for 5 minutes.
- 08
Apply the chocolate filling edge-to-edge.
Spread the Nutella in an even, thin layer across the entire surface, leaving a 1/2-inch clean border along the top long edge, and scatter the dark chocolate chips evenly over the top.
- 09
Tightly roll the dough into a long cylinder.
Starting from the bottom long edge, tightly roll the dough up, pinching the clean seam at the top to seal the roll.
- 10
Slice the cylinder lengthwise to expose the chocolate strata.
Using a sharp serrated knife or a pizza cutter, slice the entire cylinder exactly in half lengthwise to create two long ribbons of dough.
- 11
Braid and portion the dough into twelve segments.
Lay the two halves cut-sides up, overlap them right over left repeatedly to form a long twist, and cut the twisted log into 12 equal 2-inch segments.
- 12
Knot each segment and place into a prepared muffin tin.
Gently coil each segment around itself into a loose knot, tucking the ragged ends underneath, and drop it into a generously greased standard 12-cup muffin tin with the cut layers facing upward.
- 13
Proof the babka muffins until doubled in size.
Cover the tin loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot for 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours until puffing over the rims of the tin.
- 14
Prepare the simple syrup.
While the dough proofs, combine the second measure of granulated sugar and the water in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat until dissolved, and let cool to room temperature.
- 15
Bake until a deep, rich golden brown.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake on the center rack for 22 to 25 minutes until the tops are deeply browned and the internal temperature registers 190°F.
- 16
Glaze the scorching hot muffins immediately.
The exact moment you pull the pan from the oven, generously brush the room-temperature simple syrup all over the hot muffins to lock in moisture. Let cool in the tin for 15 minutes before extracting.
Notes
Compensate for stand mixer heat friction.
Home stand mixers generate significant heat friction. Using cold milk and cold eggs is mandatory to prevent the butter from melting out of the dough during the 15-minute mixing process.
Create a warm micro-climate for proofing.
If your kitchen is cold, place a cup of boiling water in an unheated oven alongside the covered muffin tin to create an ideal humid environment for the final rise.
Do not substitute the Nutella.
Nutella's specific palm oil and sugar matrix provides the exact melting point required to replicate the commercial, moist texture in a home oven. The 55-60% dark chocolate chips offset its intense sweetness perfectly.