chocolate twist bread? chocolate babka? whatever, it's pretty so here it is! i am writing this from the cottage, where wifi is non existent & cell phone reception is weak.. can't wait to see how much in data i went over (also don't mind the spelling errors about to happen, let's just blame it on auto correct). my week has been spent eating, kayaking and wood working. before heading up north i pre-made a bunch of goodies to pack (& for my blog friends). this babka twist bread is one of them! it has been adapted from pastry affair & it is delicious. it looks ten times harder then it actually is, but if you can make a cinnamon bun you can make these. if you can't make a cinnamon bun well.... ok back to the dock!
LEVEL: somewhat modest
ingredients
for the dough
- 1/2 cup milk
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch of sea salt
for the filling
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1.5 tablespoons dutch cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup sugar
- alternative option: shaved chocolate
directions
- for the bread: melt butter & mix with warm milk. add sugar, egg, yeast, vanilla & salt.
- with a stand mixer using the dough hook add the flour 1 cup at a time until dough comes together.
- knead dough for 5 minutes, until it becomes smooth & elastic.
- form dough into a ball & let rest (covered) for a couple hours or until dough doubles in size.
- for the filling: melt butter, cocoa powder, sugar & vanilla together in a bowl until well combined.
- roll out dough to a .5 cm thin rectangle (this process is similar to making cinnamon buns).
- spread filling evenly & tightly roll the dough.
- slice the roll in half length wise (it won't fall apart, i promise) so all the layers are visible.
- twist the two halves together & pinch in the ends.
- shape into a round cast iron pan & let rise again as you preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- bake for approximately 30 minutes, until the dough is cooled throughout.