With nothing else to do during social distancing, I put my sourdough starter to use making Sourdough Chocolate Babka. It didn’t disappoint.
One of my favorite bakes from last year’s Baking Bucket List was Chocolate Babka. With some extra time on my hands during quarantine and a surplus of sourdough starter, I decided to adapt my favorite 2019 recipe for sourdough.
The original recipe is by Melissa Clark from New York Time’s Cooking. Her recipe starts with a traditional yeast base and yields two generous loaves of Chocolate Babka. Since it’s just <3M and me in the house, I scaled the recipe down to a single loaf but you can just as easily double what I’ve outlined below for a two-loaf batch of Sourdough Chocolate Babka.
And my favorite part about this recipe, the chocolate crumbles on top just before baking that adds some crunch and a touch of saltiness.
A Note About My Sourdough Starter
My sourdough starter is a tad liquidy, I follow a 100% hydration feeding schedule, so, if you also have a slightly liquidy starter, then proceed per normal with my recipe below.
If your sourdough starter is more dough-like, then I’d recommend adding 2-3 ounces of milk in step one of the recipe below. Don’t worry about adding too much milk, you can always fix the stickiness of the dough by adding in a tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough is soft and doesn’t stick to your bowl or hands. My recommendation, always start with less milk.
Also, you need to start this Sourdough Chocolate Babka recipe with a room-temperature sourdough starter that has been fed at least once.
Lastly, a Note about Timing
You can definitely make this recipe all in one day if you start in the morning. However, since you have the time (and I know you do!), why not make this a leisurely bake and spread it out over two days so your bread has time to develop deeper notes of flavor. You’ll thank me later.
I ‘ve provided details on how to make this Sourdough Chocolate Babka in one day or over the course of two days, allowing the bread to have a long, refrigerated overnight rest.
Personally, I also prefer the two-day Sourdough Chocolate Babka method because it means I can enjoy warm, fresh Chocolate Babka for breakfast on day two.
Let’s get to it, shall we?
Also, if you need a few guide photos on how to roll, cut, or twist the bread, check out my original Chocolate Babka post here.
- For the Dough
- 4 ounces 'fed' sourdough starter, liquid kind*
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 eggs
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened and divided
- For the Filling
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 3 ounces extra dark chocolate, chopped (66%-74% cocoa)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into ¼ inch cubes
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- For the Chocolate Crumble
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon plus 1½ teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- Make the dough: Add your sourdough starter to an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add in the flour, sugar, instant yeast, salt, vanilla, lemon zest, and nutmeg. Mix it all together until gently combined.
- Add in the eggs and mix for an additional 2 minutes. If the dough sticks to the sides of your bowl, add a tablespoon more of flour at a time until it comes together, mixing between additions.
- Add in half of the butter (2½ tablespoons) and mix again until smooth, about 3-5 minutes then add the remaining butter and mix until just combined. Again, if the dough sticks to the sides of the bowl add a tablespoon more of flour at a time until it comes together, mixing between additions.
- Once the dough comes together, switch to a dough hook and allow the dough to mix on medium-high for 5-7 minutes until it becomes stretchy.
- Grease a large, clean bowl with extra butter and place the stretched dough into the bowl, turning it so it's fully covered (lightly) with butter on all sides. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise on the counter for 2-hours. It may not double in size but it should bulk up at least a tad.
- After 2-hours, check on the dough, pressing it down lightly with your hands. Re-cover and refrigerate the dough overnight (or if not overnight, at least 4-hours for the flavor to develop).
- While the dough rests, prepare the filling and crumble.
- For the filling, place the sugar, cream, and salt in a small saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until the sugar melts, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in the chopped chocolate, butter, and vanilla extract until smooth. Set aside to cool completely then refrigerate until ready to use.
- For the crumble, place the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a small bowl. Stir in the melted butter until large crumbs form. Cover and set aside until ready to use.
- The next day (or after at least 4-hours) remove your dough from the refrigerator and allow it to sit at room temperature, uncovered, for 30-minutes to warm up a bit, making it easier to work with.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll it into a 9-by-17-inch rectangle.
- Spread the filling evenly onto the rectangle (no need to leave a border).
- Now, be prepared to get a bit messy: starting with the long side, roll the dough into a tight coil. Transfer the coil to a large piece of plastic wrap then place it on a large baking tray. Place it in the freezer for 10-minutes to rest (no longer!).
- While the dough is resting, prepare your baking pan by greasing a 9-inch loaf pan and lining it with parchment paper.
- Remove the dough coil from the freezer and using a pastry cutter or sharp knife, cut the coil in half length-wise (the long way) to expose the filling.
- Again, prepare to get messy: twist the two halves around one another into one long twisted log (like a two-stranded braid). Then fold the log in half so the two ends meet. Place the twisted loaf into the prepared pan, tucking the ends under itself (honestly, the messier this looks the prettier it will be post-baking, so don't fuss too much with it here).
- Cover the pan with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rest for 1 to 1½ hours. It might puff up some but it deifnitely won't double.
- When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven is heating, break the crumble into pieces and sprinkle it on top of the dough, pressing it down very gently.
- Bake the bread for 40-50 minutes until a thermometer reads 185-210 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool on a cooling rack for 30-minutes.
- Once cooled, remove from pan, slice, and serve.
