Babka wielkanocna
Easter yeast cake
Babka wielkanocna: tall fluted Polish Easter yeast cake rich with butter and yolks, with raisins and icing
A golden babka standing tall in the Easter basket used to be a matter of family pride, and old cooks whispered while it baked, convinced a slammed door would make it sink. The dough is soft and rich with egg yolks and butter, beaten until it is elastic, then baked in a fluted ring tin into a cake with a fine, feathery, saffron-yellow crumb. Raisins are often soaked in rum; this version uses orange juice, but a couple of spoons of rum work if you prefer. The usual slip is adding too much flour to a sticky dough, which makes the babka dry; it should stay soft and almost batter-like. Chef's tip: cool the babka on its side, turning it now and then, so the delicate crumb doesn't collapse.
- Total time
- 185 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the dough
- ¾ cup whole milklukewarm
- ⅓ oz instant dried yeast
- 16 oz strong white flour
- 4 oz sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp orange zestfinely grated
- ½ tsp salt
- 5 ½ oz buttermelted and cooled, plus extra for the tin
- 3 ½ oz raisins
- 3 ½ tbsp orange juicewarm, for soaking the raisins
For the icing
- 4 oz icing sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp flaked almonds or candied peel (optional)
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Soak 3 ½ oz raisins in 3 ½ tbsp orange juice. Whisk ¾ cup whole milk with ⅓ oz instant dried yeast and 1 tbsp of the ⅜ oz sugar and 3 tbsp of the ¾ oz strong white flour; leave for 15 minutes until frothy.
15 minStep 3: Put the rest of the 15 oz strong white flour, ½ tsp salt, 2 tsp vanilla extract and 1 tsp orange zest in a stand mixer with the yeast mix and the yolk mix. Knead with the dough hook for 10 minutes, until the soft dough slaps cleanly off the sides of the bowl.
10 minStep 4: With the mixer running, pour in 5 ½ oz butter in a thin stream and knead 5 minutes more, until glossy and elastic. Drain the raisins and mix them in.
7 minStep 5: Cover and leave somewhere warm for 1–1½ hours, until doubled.
75 minStep 6: Butter a 24 cm fluted babka tin well and dust with flour. Spoon in the dough, leaving the tin half full, and rise again for 30–40 minutes, until the dough nearly reaches the rim. Heat the oven to 350°F (300°F fan).
35 minStep 7: Bake for 40–45 minutes, until deep golden and a skewer comes out clean. Cover with foil if it browns too fast.
45 minStep 8: Rest in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out and cool on its side on a rack, turning occasionally, for at least 1 hour.
10 minStep 9: Mix 4 oz icing sugar with 2 tbsp lemon juice to a thick, pourable icing. Spoon it over the cooled babka so it runs down the ridges and scatter with 2 tbsp flaked almonds or candied peel.
3 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 360 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 54 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does babka wielkanocna take?
- About 185 minutes in total: 140 minutes to prepare and 45 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of whole milk?
- Semi-skimmed milk with 1 tbsp cream per 240ml (1 cup).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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Perfect for:Easter