Cinnamon Chocolate Coffee Cake - Or Babka

Total Time: 3 hrs Preparation Time: 2 hrs Cook Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• 260 g all-purpose flour (2 cups, unbleached)
• 11 g instant yeast (3 2/3 teaspoons)
• 96 g buttermilk (scant 1/2 cup)
• 48 g butter (unsalted - 1/4 cup)
• 48 g sugar (scant 1/4 cup)
• 4 g vanilla extract (1/2 teaspoon)
• 4 g salt (table salt, 2/3 teaspoon)
• 48 g egg yolks (from 2 large or jumbo eggs)
• 145 g semi-sweet chocolate chips (scant cup, frozen)
• 4 g cinnamon (ground - 1/2 teaspoon)
• 32 g butter (2 1/4 tablespoons, very cold)

Recipe

• 1 cream butter and sugar until smooth.
• 2 add vanilla and slightly beaten egg yolks and mix about 2 minutes until fluffy.
• 3 add flour and yeast and stir slightly.
• 4 add the milk and mix on low speed to make a soft dough, adding flour as needed or milk.
• 5 knead for 4 minutes before tipping onto counter.
• 6 stretch the dough into a rectangle and fold letter style top to bottom and side to side.
• 7 place dough in straight sided container, cover and rest 15 minutes.
• 8 stretch and fold again, resting 15 more minutes.
• 9 allow dough to rise 1.5 times its volume to double its volume.
• 10 roll dough out to a 12 inch by 12 inch rectangle.
• 11 make filling by placing frozen chocolate chips and cinnamon in a food processor and process to a grandular consistency. add cold butter and pulse until well mixed.
• 12 spread mixture on dough, leaving a 1/4 inch rim uncoated.
• 13 roll dough into a rope like cylinder without stretching the length beyond 15 inches.
• 14 cut the rope into 2 15 inch half-cylinders and braid to form a loaf, folding in the ends. place in an 8 inch x 4.5 inch loaf pan well oiled.
• 15 preheat oven to 350f while letting loaf rise to 1.5 times its volume.
• 16 brush with egg glaze if desired and bake for 50 minutes to an hour and 10 minutes, until the internal temperature is 180f to 200°f.
• 17 to prevent over browning due to the sugar in this recipe, cover loosely for at least half the time with aluminum foil while baking.
• 18 let cool completely before serving.