Lemon Blueberry Babka – Sally’s Baking Dependancy

A summery tackle a bakery-favorite bread, this lemon blueberry babka appears to be like spectacular however is totally doable in your house kitchen. A wealthy lemon-hinted dough is fantastically swirled with a do-it-yourself blueberry filling, and topped with buttery brown sugar crumbles. A drizzle of lemon icing is the proper of completion! It’s also possible to reference my Baking with Yeast Information for solutions to frequent yeast FAQs.

This recipe is delivered to you in partnership with Pink Star Yeast.

Have you ever ever made do-it-yourself babka earlier than? Babka is created from a wealthy, buttery dough. It originated within the early 1800s with the Jewish group. Leftover challah dough was crammed with jam or cinnamon, rolled up, and baked in a loaf pan. The babka we see all over at the moment is richer and sweeter than its ancestor, sometimes crammed with chocolate or different fillings like pesto or almond paste. Food52 has an in-depth article all about babka if you wish to learn extra about its historical past and fantastic rise in recognition!

I’ve recipes for Nutella babka and apple cinnamon babka, and for at the moment’s model, I wished to introduce some contemporary summer season flavors to this distinctive twisted bread.

This Blueberry-Stuffed Babka Is:

• Buttery, moist, and flaky, with simply the correct amount of sweetness
• Swirled with blueberry filling created from contemporary blueberries
• Topped with brown sugar crumbles and a tangy-sweet lemon icing
• Well worth the effort, belief me!

Components You Want

These are the components you want for the filling, dough, and brown sugar crumb topping:

1. Contemporary Blueberries: Use contemporary blueberries to make the blueberry jam filling. In testing, the filling made with frozen blueberries was overly runny, which made for a really, very messy shaping expertise. I don’t advocate utilizing frozen berries for this filling.
2. Sugar: Somewhat sugar feeds the yeast within the dough, will increase its exercise, and tenderizes the dough. You additionally want sugar for the blueberry filling.
3. Milk: Liquid prompts the yeast. For the softest bread, use entire milk. Nondairy or low-fat milks work too, however entire milk produces one of the best texture.
4. Yeast: You need to use lively dry yeast or prompt yeast. If utilizing lively dry yeast, the rise instances will likely be a bit longer. I like to recommend Platinum Yeast from Pink Star, which is an prompt yeast blended with pure dough improvers.
5. Butter: Butter guarantees a flavorful and smooth bread. Be certain that it’s softened to room temperature. You additionally want butter within the crumb topping.
6. Egg + Egg White: 1 egg supplies construction and richness within the dough, and also you additionally want an egg white to brush on prime of the loaf earlier than baking.
7. Lemon: You want zest for the dough, and juice for the blueberry filling and non-obligatory lemon icing. 1 regular-size lemon ought to be sufficient for all of it.
8. Salt: You may’t make flavorful bread with out salt!
9. Vanilla Extract: Somewhat vanilla for additional taste.
10. Flour: You need to use bread flour or all-purpose flour on this dough. All-purpose flour is handy for a lot of, however bread flour produces a barely chewier babka. You additionally want flour (both form) for the crumb topping.
11. Brown Sugar: Somewhat brown sugar for the crumb topping.

Let’s Stroll By way of the Steps

The complete written recipe is under, however let me stroll you thru the steps so you possibly can perceive the method earlier than beginning:

Make the dough. This can be a smooth, wealthy, puffy, and buttery yeast dough. Should you want additional assist with the kneading step, see my detailed video tutorial on Methods to Knead Dough.

Let the dough rise in a heat setting till (roughly) doubled in measurement. Since this dough is so wealthy with butter, it takes fairly some time to rise. Don’t be alarmed in case your dough takes as much as 4 hours; that is fully regular.

In case your room temperature is on the cooler aspect, you should utilize your oven to assist with rising. Preheat your oven to 150°F (66°C), then flip the oven off and place the lined bowl of dough inside. Depart the oven door barely cracked open.

Time-saving suggestions: Because the dough rises, you may make the blueberry filling as a result of it wants to totally quiet down. It’s also possible to make the crumb topping throughout this time.

Straightforward Blueberry Jam Filling

We’re primarily making a fast blueberry jam (with out the pectin). You want simply 3 components: contemporary blueberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Mix all of them in a saucepan/pot over medium warmth. You’ll convey all of it to a boil till it’s considerably decreased (you probably have a sweet or instant-read thermometer, it ought to attain about 215–220°F (102–104°C).

It’s best to have about 1/2 cup, or round 160g, give or take.

Success Tip: Once more, the do-it-yourself blueberry jam filling should cool fully earlier than you unfold it on the dough. To hurry this up, pour the filling right into a shallow heat-safe dish (I take advantage of a Pyrex pie dish) and let cool. The filling will thicken because it cools.

Methods to Form Lemon Blueberry Babka

Word that it’s best to form the lemon blueberry babka on a floor you don’t fear about presumably getting stained, as a result of ought to the blueberry filling run over the perimeters, it would stain.

Punch down the dough to launch the air. You’ll be left with tremendous smooth and supple dough. Roll it out right into a 9×15-inch rectangle. Unfold the blueberry filling on prime:

Roll it up right into a log, as when you have been making cinnamon rolls. Fold log in half, then twist right into a determine 8. Like this:

Why am I shaping the dough like this? Babka dough could be rolled up after which sliced down the middle of the log so the filling is uncovered. It’s how I form Nutella babka, in truth. Nonetheless, at the moment’s filling and the filling in my apple cinnamon babka, are each fairly messy. Shaping it this manner, with out the filling uncovered, is far simpler and neater. (And once more, this filling can stain your work floor! So at the moment’s shaping methodology is right.)

Let the formed babka rise in a greased loaf pan for about 1–1.5 hours. After it rises, brush the floor with egg white, after which poke holes within the floor with a skewer or toothpick, to permit steam to flee. This helps forestall the layers from separating.

Fast Crumble Topping

Combine a bit brown sugar and flour collectively. (You might even embrace a bit lemon zest you probably have additional!) Add chilly butter and use a pastry cutter, fork, or your fingers to combine all of it collectively into crumbs. You can also make this whereas the dough rises, and retailer it within the fridge till you’re prepared to make use of it. Sprinkle it on prime of the babka:

The one factor higher than consuming babka is smelling babka because it bakes—simply you wait!!

The bread takes about 50 minutes to bake, give or take. Should you discover the highest browning too rapidly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. (I often set a timer for half-hour, tent with foil, then set a timer for 20 extra minutes.)

Let’s Eat!

Whisk collectively a easy lemon icing and drizzle on prime of the nice and cozy babka. That is an non-obligatory of completion, and the bread is loads scrumptious with out it.

Now comes one of the best half: slicing into your masterpiece, and getting your first take a look at these stunning blueberry swirls inside! Each single loaf appears to be like completely different. In truth, at the moment’s pictures have been taken of two completely different loaves and the swirls are vertical in a single, and horizontal in one other. I can’t wait to see how yours prove!

That is no lowly loaf of bread—that is lemon blueberry babka, and also you made it from scratch. 🙂

Print