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Babka

Servings: Makes one 10-inch Babka
Comments:
The highlight of the Polish Easter dinner is a dessert called babka (which means "old woman" in Polish), a sweet bread flavored with raisins and popular in almost every Polish home at Easter time.

Although families jealously guard their babka recipes, there are a number of popular variations. This recipe is for a basic Babka.


Ingredients:
2 tbsp. unsalted butter or margarine
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 packages active dry yeast
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/2 cup warm water
1/4 lb. unsalted butter or margarine
1 cup golden raisins
6 cups all-purpose flour (stir before measuring)
1 cup milk
9 egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Crumb Topping-Optional:*
Melt 2 tbsp. butter or margarine in a pan. Remove from heat and add 2 tbsp. sugar and 1/4 cup flour. Stir with a spoon to combine, then work with your fingers until you achieve a crumb topping. Set aside.


Instructions:
Pour yeast in a bowl and mix in 1 tbsp. sugar. Combine well. Stir in water. Set aside.

Combine butter or margarine with milk and heat to scald. Cool to lukewarm.

Use a large bowl to beat egg yolks with sugar and then add the milk mixture. Stir in the salt, raisins and yeast. Add the flour all at once. Beat with a wooden spoon until smooth.

Add additional 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 cups of flour and mix it in well with your hand. Knead on a lightly floured surface about 10 minutes.

Round up the dough in a greased bowl, turn greased side up. Cover with damp towel and let rise in a warm place for 2-1/2 hours, dough will double.

Punch down and let rise 1-1/2 hours or until double in size.

Grease a 10 inch tube pan. Punch down dough and place it in tube pan; cover, and let rise for an hour or until doubled in size. Brush top with 1 egg yolk beaten with 2 tsp. water.

Crumb Topping-Optional:
Distribute topping lightly over babka and bake at 300 degrees for 1-1/2 hours.

Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes. Invert babka onto serving plate, or let cool to room temperature, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate. Makes one (1) 10 inch babka, about 16 servings.

*NOTE: The Crumb topping is optional in this babka recipe.


Source: DianasDesserts.com
Date: April 15, 2002