Chocolate Babka is the Best Thing Ever

RECIPE HERE!

The best thing ever? Cake that masquerades as "breakfast bread". And my new favorite? Babka. Chocolate babka, to be specific.

Chocolate babka first entered my consciousness when it was the subject of a Seinfeld episode. It wasn't until a couple years later, when I lived in New York City, that I tried the stuff--from Zabar's, naturally. 

I'll tell you how I felt about babka: I liked it. 

Babka makes for sweet eating: a lightly sweetened yeast bread with a feathery texture which is weighted down to seriously sweet territory with an inner swirl of dark chocolate. It makes for an addictive combination, let me tell you. 

Apparently, the babka we eat stateside is a bit different from "the original", you know, from the old country. I'm willing to believe that one is good, too, but I am pretty sure I'd still prefer the American version, stuffed with chocolate. 

When I paired up with Colavita to make some recipes for their website using their olive oils, I was super-psyched to try out babka sans butter. I have to say, the olive oil works tremendously in this recipe--it has a smooth, lightly fruit-like flavor that brings out the best parts of the bread and chocolate, marrying them in the most delicious way. 

To read more about babka, check out the post on the Colavita blog. And here is my awesome babka recipe.

Comments

[Coco in the Kitchen]

Zabar's is a foodie's paradise! My fav uncle lives in Manhattan and Zabar's is always on the agenda any time I visit my family there.

I love saying Babka. Babka. Babka. Such a cute, Jewish-Russian-sounding word.
Not sure I have the skill to bake one, but I think it might be time to try my hand at it!

[The Ninja Baker]

Gorgeous! Now I want to hitch a ride on Santa's sleigh and hop off at NYC so I can taste Zabar's Babka...Still, very grateful to you for the recipe...Intrigued by the olive oil substitute =)

[Cakespy]

Ninja baker: I think I like it even better with olive oil!

Coco: You are so right. Babka is one of the funnest words I can think of. Babka (for good measure). Babka!

[Kate @ Babaganosh.org]

Babka! Being born in Ukraine, babkas hold a special place in my heart :)

I bet olive oil would be a great substitute for butter in this kind of recipe!

[Stacey @ Bake.Eat.Repeat.]

I have always wanted to try chocolate babka, ever since seeing that Seinfeld episode! Definitely going to have to try it, it looks amazing! And really, chocolate and bread? Can't go wrong with that!