Babka

By west757

My mom gave me this recipe years ago for the Polish bread, Babka. I tweaked it a bit so now the dough is easily made by hand or in a bread machine. The resulting bread is a perfect sweet bread dough that I make into breads and most recently used for cinnamon buns with great success. We always bake the bread for Easter to be used in our baskets we bring to church to bless.

Ingredients

• 4 cups flour
• 1 package yeast or (2 1/4 tsp bulk yeast)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 5 egg yolk
• 1 cup golden raisins, soaked in brandy
• 1 large lemon, grated
• 1/4 cup blanched slivered almonds

Details

Servings 12

Preparation

Step 1

1. Sift and combine flour, sugar, yeast, salt and cinnamon.
2. Melt butter and add milk. Add 4 egg yolks.
3. Place wet ingredients in bread machine, followed by the dry.
4. Prepare in bread machine on dough setting.
5. Remove from machine and mix in lemon and raisins. Place in well greased baking container, like a tube pan or pyrex oven-proof bowl, brush with egg yolk mixed with two teaspoons water. sprinkle with almonds and let rise 1 hour uncovered.
6. Bake in preheated 350° F oven for 1 hour or until hollowed when tapped. Turn out of pan and cool on rack.