Chocolate Hazelnut Babka - fluffy brioche dough is rolled out and spread with a homemade hazelnut chocolate spread, sprinkled with chopped toasted walnuts, and rolled into swirly chocolatey loaves. The result is perfect for a coffee break, or an indulgent wee breakfast.
Chocolate Hazelnut Babka
Hiiiiiii! I'm coming to you from the middle of a gross snow day to share this Chocolate Hazelnut Babka recipe. Somehow NYC missed the memo that it's daylight savings this weekend so it should be sorting it's shit out weather wise by now, but as someone who loves to stay inside, I'm not too mad.
Sorry sorry - I've been meaning to share this for the longest time, and I just haven't gotten around to it. This year has been really kicking us in the butt, in a super busy and stressful but also exciting kind of a way.
This Chocolate Hazelnut babka was the product of one of my fave ways to spend a day - a baking day with Jill. After both getting tied up in life and not seeing each other for close to a month (some sort of record which i'm more than happy not to ever break), we intended on baking a couple of times but ended up sitting on the couch lying under blankets talking (also a fave way to spend a day), so when we finally managed to bake, we wanted to make something super delicious. And oh man, we sure did.
I still had some of the chocolate hazelnut spread from these cupcakes leftover, so it only made sense to slather it all over a brioche dough. Babka is one of my favourite things to make - you can fill it with all sorts of things, and it keeps well, not to mention that it makes the best french toast ever. This Chocolate Hazelnut Babka recipe makes two loaves, so enough to make one, and share one, or one to pop into the freezer for later.
A few wee tips for Chocolate Hazelnut Babka
- If you would like, you can make this the night before and do the first proof in the fridge overnight. If you do this, you can skip the step where you chill the sausage of dough, as the dough will already be firm enough.
- We used pre chopped hazelnuts, but coarsely grinding some in the food processor or chopping them will work just as well.
- The recipe for the chocolate hazelnut spread does make a little extra - but I promise you it's worth having around for very little extra effort
More Babka Recipes:
- Apple and Cardamom Babka
- Dark Chocolate and Espresso Rye Babka
- Dark Chocolate, Tahini, and Halva Brioche Babka
❤️ Made this recipe and love it? ❤️
I would LOVE for you to leave me a review and star rating below to let me know how you liked it! Also, please make sure to tag me on Instagram!
Answers to your baking questions
Over the years, many of you have asked me questions about:
- baking in grams
- adjusting oven temperatures
- what kind of salt to use
- and many more!
I've curated and answered them all for your easy reference in this frequently asked questions post!
Chocolate Hazelnut Babka
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes plus rising time
- Yield: 2 loaves 1x
- Category: Bread
Description
Chocolate Hazelnut Babka - fluffy brioche dough is rolled out and spread with a homemade hazelnut chocolate spread, sprinkled with chopped toasted hazelnuts, and rolled into swirly chocolatey loaves. The result is perfect for a coffee break, or an indulgent wee breakfast.
Ingredients
Brioche Dough
- 1 envelope (2 ¼ tsp) active dry yeast
- ¾ cup (180ml) whole milk, lukewarm
- 4 Tbsp sugar
- 3 ¾ cups (565g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 115g (8 tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
- 280g (2 cups) raw hazelnuts
- 424g (1 ½ cups) melted dark chocolate (at least 70%)
- 200g (1 cup) sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Filling
- 1 ¼ cups chocolate hazelnut spread or nutella (recipe above)
- 1 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts (we used pre-chopped)
- Egg wash - 1 egg whisked with 1 Tbsp water
Instructions
CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT SPREAD
- Preheat the oven to 350˚f / 180˚c. Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet. Roast in the oven, shaking occasionally, for 8-10 mins, checking often, until the are golden brown. Allow to cool completely, then rub between your hands to remove the skins. Do not worry about any stubborn skins. Transfer to the work bowl of a food processor, and pulse briefly to chop.
- Add the melted dark chocolate, sugar, and salt. Pulse to combine, then mix on high speed for at least five minutes. Check, and give more time mixing if needed. Transfer to a container and store at room temperature until you are ready to use.
BABKA DOUGH
- In a small bowl, combine the yeast, milk and 2 Tbsp of the sugar. Mix well, and leave to sit for 10-15 minutes, or until foamy.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour, salt, and remaining 2 Tbsp sugar. Mix briefly to combine. Add the eggs, vanilla, and foamy yeast mixture to the bowl. Mix on low for 2-3 minutes, until the dough is starting to come together. It may look slightly dry but do not worry - it will mix together nicely in the next steps. Increase the mixer speed to medium, and mix for another 10 minutes, until the dough is soft and smooth.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low, and add the butter a little at a time, waiting until it is fully incorporated into the dough before adding the next piece. This process should take 3-4 minutes. Once the butter is fully incorporated, increase the mixer speed to medium, and mix for a further 5 minutes, until the dough is very soft and smooth.
- Transfer to an oiled bowl, and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place in a warm spot until doubled in size, approximately 1 - 1 ½ hours.
ASSEMBLY
- Lightly grease two loaf pans, and line with parchment paper.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 16" x 25" rectangle (40x64cm). Spread the hazelnut spread over the surface of the dough, and sprinkle with the hazelnuts. Starting with the long side, roll up into a tight spiral. Measure the length of the sausage of dough, then cut in half so it is in two sausages. Place these pieces side by side on the lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for an hour.
- Remove the dough from the fridge. Using a sharp knife, cut the first piece in half, lengthwise, and then cross the pieces over each other, and then cross over two more times to form a twist, as shown in the photos. (this video also explains well) Place into the loaf pan, tucking the ends under slightly if needed. Repeat with the second half of the dough.
- Lightly cover the loaf pans in plastic wrap, and place in a warm place to rise for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the dough springs back lightly when pressed. While the loaves are proofing, preheat the oven to 350˚f / 180˚c.
- Brush the loaves lightly with egg wash. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the loaves are golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool completely before slicing. Store leftovers in an airtight container, or wrap tightly before freezing.
Notes
Chocolate Hazelnut Spread from Dandelion Chocolate
Keywords: Babka, Chocolate Hazelnut, Nutella Babka, Hazelnut Babka
Comments
Hello! I was curious if you have any tips for mailing out babka bread as gifts for the holidays. I usually do cookie boxes but wanted to mix it up this year. Thanks in advance!!
Hi! I am so, so sorry that this slipped past me - so sorry for the delay in reply! I haven't shipped it before so I'm not too sure about how it would go! It's definitely best eaten on the same day so I would worry it might be stale!
What’s the size of the loaf tins you used?
These aren't mine (I made this at a friend's a few years ago!) but I usually use a 1lb capacity pan!
Hi there, regarding Asma's question of what size the loaf pans are. When you are saying you usually use a 1lb pan do you mean you are using two 1lb pans or one 1lb pan? It would be helpful if you can post the measurements 🙂 Thanks so much!
It’s an 8x4 pan but a 9x5 will work fine too. It’s two pans - please see method of the recipe where it instructs you to prepare two pans 🙂
I was following your cinnamon babka recipe from kane website and I was sooo impressed that I it became my go to recipe. Yesterday I was searching thier website and I it was gone!!!!! I was so devastated ! I used another babka recipe but I’m not so happy about the outcome. So I kept searching for your recipe every where until I found this one. I’m thinking the dough is similar here? Can you confirm it please.
★★★★★
Hi! Oh no! The base recipe is my basic brioche recipe, which I use in these apple cinnamon rolls
I just tried to email it to you! Can you email me at erin@cloudykitchen.com and I will send it to you? 🙂
This looks great! I don’t have a stand up mixer at the moment I’m afraid, would I be able to whisk this by hand? If so would I need to knead it for a certain amount of time?
I have made this in two 9 x 5
loaf pans as two loaves and as a single loaf (using all the dough) in a 9 x 5 and prefer the latter. The loaf pans I have are a bit too spacious for two smaller loaves so I end up getting a crispy outside and not enough moist bread inside. The recipe is great and makes for a great challenge for a home baker!
★★★★★
I made this recipe during lockdown, it turned out so pretty! (And yum) the brioche is really light, and I did the overnight rise to give myself more time on the day. I’m looking forward to trying out some of the other brioche twists.
P.S. the filling is so delicious on toast if you have extra!
★★★★★
My favorite first try recipe ever! I loved it, it was so soft and so delicious and my whole apartment smelled like HEAVEN
★★★★★
Hello! I line pretty much anything I’ve made from your website. Do you know if instant yeast would work in this recipe?
Hi! Yesss it should work!