The Best Nutella Babka

4.98 from 35 votes

Super delicious Nutella babka made of fluffy and buttery brioche dough that is twisted around the best homemade Nutella filling is probably one of the most delicious recipes on my blog, the one that always warms my heart!

Prep Time1

Cook Time1

Total Time2

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 574kcal

Author: Katalin Nagy

Equipment

Ingredients

Babka dough

110 g Whole milk lukewarm
30 g Granulated sugar
12,5 g Fresh yeast check my yeast guide to convert it to dry yeast
1 Egg yolk room temperature
1 Egg room temperature
250 g Bread flour high protein content flour
¼ teaspoon Salt
80 g Unsalted butter room temperature

Filling

140 g Nutella

Syrup

60 g Water
20 g Lemon juice freshly squeezed
80 g Granulated sugar

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

First day - first proofing

Start with mixing half of the sugar with lukewarm milk then sprinkle yeast on top. Make sure the kitchen is nice and warm, and in 10 minutes the yeast should foam
Place the yeast mixture into your stand mixer with the kneading hook on, then mix it together with the egg and egg yolk.
Mix in dry ingredients; flour, rest of the sugar, salt and start kneading until the dough comes together.
Slowly start to add in room temp (soft) butter chunks by piece. Knead the dough for another 10 minutes on medium high speed until dough becomes elastic and shiny and not sticky any longer
Move the dough into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rest and rise in the fridge overnight for 12 hours

Next day

After the dough risen overnight, take the dough out of the fridge and let it rest on the kitchen counter for a few minutes, so it warmth a bit
With the help of a rolling pin roll the dough into a rectangle of 42x30 cm / 16x12 inches (on a silicone baking mat)
If the dough gets warm, pop the Babka in and out of the freezer for a few minutes to chill between steps, make sure the dough is always cold enough to work with
Spread Nutella filling on top with the help of an Offset spatula. Roll Babka dough up evenly and tightly from the longer end then press to seal the end onto the roll
Grease your Loaf pan with butter or use parchment paper inside.
Cut the Babka into half lengthwise, then place the logs over each other with filling facing up and twist the logs with your hands on both sides. Gently squeeze together the ends and carefully lift Babka into a prepared Loaf pan.
Proof Babka the second time. Proofing might take 1-2h, wait until the Babka doubles in size
Pre-heat your oven to 190C / 374F then once Babka dough is nicely risen, place it into the oven, lower the temp to 180C / 356F and bake for about 40 minutes. Bake until a skewer inserted comes out clean
During the end of the baking time make the syrup: boil water, sugar, and freshly squeezed lemon juice together until mixture reaches a syrup consistency. Pour hot syrup over baked Babka immediately. Let the syrup sink in and the Babka slightly cool before removing it from the tin to a cooling rack
Store in air-tight container in room temperature

Notes

INGREDIENT NOTES

Use always unsalted butter in baking, in this Babka recipe butter needs to be at room temperature so soft enough to be able to knead into the dough
Fresh or Dried yeast can be used. My instant dried yeast pack says that 25g fresh yeast equals 7 g dried. I use 12,5 g fresh yeast to make this recipe which is equal to 3,5 g dried yeast (approx. 1 teaspoon). Please check your local brand and calculate your yeast need accordingly
Use milk and egg at room temperature in order for the ingredients to properly emulsify
Since Babka is effectively a sweet bread use high protein content bread flour

TECHNIQUE NOTES

For activating the yeast (whether it is dried or fresh), make sure that the milk is lukewarm and your kitchen is also nice and warm
You will knead the dough for about 10 minutes in a stand mixer. The dough is ready when it is shiny, elastic, and does not stick to your fingers any longer. Do not add more flour to the dough. If it sticks too much, continue kneading
Overnight proofing is recommended for the best results. It is much easier to handle (roll, shape) a dough that is risen in a chilled environment
During the rolling, filling, shaping process try to work with chilled dough
Second proofing is necessary for the perfect rise = fluffy texture
Do not skip the syrup at the end. It will make your babka super shiny and moist

Nutrition