So Much Nutella is So Good: Nutella Babka

I'm continuing to find baking inspiration in my pantry during the pandemic. Recently I discovered a huge unopened jar of Nutella (not the Costco size, but the largest size you can normally find at a regular supermarket) in the cupboard that was just calling out for a baking project. The Nutella babka from Sally's Baking Addiction looked perfect. The recipe uses a lot of Nutella (two cups!) and yields two loaves.

This recipe calls for active or instant yeast. I noticed that there is a fair amount of sugar in the dough (100 grams, compared to 530 grams of flour); the baker's percentage is 19% sugar. I specifically keep SAF gold instant yeast on hand for sweet doughs, which can otherwise be very slow rising. I combined my SAF gold yeast with warm milk and sugar in the bowl of my stand mixer; let the mixture sit for about five minutes; added softened butter and more sugar; beat in an egg and an egg yolk; and added flour. I kneaded the dough in the mixer with a dough hook, put the dough in an oiled bowl, and let it rise until doubled. I had set the bowl in a warm spot and it took less than an hour to double.
I punched down the dough, divided it into two pieces, and rolled out each half into a large rectangle that I spread with Nutella. The dough didn't give me any problems; it was a breeze to roll out without sticking or shrinking. I rolled up the dough into a log with the Nutella inside, cut each log in half lengthwise, and twisted the two halves of the logs to form the loaf shape. My loaves looked nothing like the photos accompanying the recipe because I had Nutella spilling out everywhere.

I made a last minute call to skip the crumble topping in the recipe since the loaves already looked so decadent covered in Nutella. I let the loaves rise briefly before brushing the few bit of exposed dough with egg wash and putting them in the oven.
Because I had omitted the crumble, I brushed the loaves with simple syrup right after pulling them out of the oven, giving them a nice shine. I was afraid that the exposed Nutella was going to stick to the pans, but the loaves came out of the pans without any problem.

The babka was fantastic. The bread was rich and the generous amount of Nutella in every bite was just as delicious as you would imagine. I gave one loaf to a friend and after Tom and I ate a few slices from the other loaf, I put the leftovers in the freezer. The babka froze beautifully.

I thought this babka was as good as The Famous Chocolate Babka from Uri Scheft, and it required a lot less effort. I would definitely make it again.

Recipe: "Nutella Babka" from Sally's Baking Addiction.

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