Chocolate Babka

My boss is Jewish, and I'm learning new information, history, and ideas about the Jewish faith the longer I work at the Vegan Butcher. Last week he mentioned to a customer that we may offer chocolate babka for Rosh Hashanah this year. I did not know what a babka was, but I certainly know chocolate. Last weekend when Renee and Vic asked us to bring dessert for our Sunday night dinner at their house, it seemed like the perfect item to attempt.

From the Breadworks Pittsburgh website, "Babka, which means “little grandmother” in Ukrainian, Russian, and Eastern European Yiddish is very popular where those languages are spoken. Babka used to be filled with scraps of Challah and seeds or nuts. It wasn’t until Eastern European Jews arrived in New York that they decided to put chocolate in the bread."

It turned into a more involved process than expected when the yeast we had was old enough to have lost its lifting prowess. Buds and I had to go to two grocery stores to find new yeast, but then we were raring to get that babka whipped up.

The standing mixer Mom gave Yessa for Christmas was a champ with all the baking and frosting making I did last weekend. After Monkey's cake was ready, the mixer begged for more work, and it had that babka dough ready with no problem.

We used this recipe from the Domestic Gothess, and it was delicious.

Though it took hours thanks to the time for rising and resting, it was an easy recipe, and I think we'll definitely enjoy it again. Seems like a perfect holiday bake.