100 Minute Babka and Danish Braid

I put the 100 minute challah dough to new use: babka and danish braid.

I doubled the basic recipe, and changed the formula slightly to make it richer. Instead of 1/4 cup of sugar for a double batch, I added in 1/3 cup. Instead of 1/4 cup of oil, I used 1/2 cup. If I wasn’t in a rush, I might have added in a 1/2 teaspoon of cardamom or cinnamon or added in some vanilla.

After giving the dough the stretch and folds and rising time per the original recipe, I divided the dough in half.

Half the dough got stretched out to 10″ x 16″. I marked off the dough into thirds, with each third being 3″x16″. In the center third, I spread a layer of Four Fruits jam and a layer of frangipane filling based on a recipe from Beatrice Ojakangas that is in Baking with Julia (3 ounces of ground almonds, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon almond  extract, 1 egg white, 2 ounces of Earth Balance margarine, plus my addition of a teaspoon of coffee powder and a handful of chocolate chips).

Then I slashed the sides into strips and braided them.

 

Then came the egg glaze and a sprinkle of sliced almonds.

Then I let it rise while I tackled the other dough (that took about 10-15 minutes). Meanwhile, the oven was preheating to 350 degrees.

I spread the other dough into the same size of 10″x16″ and spread the whole thing with a chocolate paste (scant 1/2 cup sugar, five hugely heaping teaspoons of Dutch-process cocoa (Callebaut) or about 1/4 cup cocoa, a generous teaspoon or so of coffee powder, 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, and four capfuls of corn oil (to equal 4 Tbl.). I left a margin of about 1″ on all sides. Some chocolate chips got sprinkled over and I tightly rolled it up. I ended up with a really long roll that I cut in half. I twisted the two halves together and egg glazed them and sprinkled on almond slices.

I baked off the danish while the babka rose. It took about a half hour to bake the danish. Then I baked the babka. Also about a half hour needed.

When the danish cooled, I drizzled over some coffee flavored glaze.

Did it really take 100 minutes? I was pulling out my danish an hour and a half after I started making the recipe. It took another half hour to bake off the babka. So, it was really 120 minutes, but still . . . pretty fast for two yeast cakes.

I am sending this to Yeastspotting and Bread Baking Day #22 at Hefe und Mehr.

Tags: Babka, breadbakingday #22, danish braid, hefe und mehr, wild yeast, yeastspotting