[Rainey]

Sour Cream Babka
from Los Angeles Times Food Section
makes 2 cakes/loaves or a number of smaller ones for giving

Dough
• 1 1/2 cup softened butter
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2 cups bread flour
• 2 packets (or about 5 1/2 tsp) active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 drops lemon oil
• 2 drops orange oil
• 1/4 tsp almond extract

FILLING
• 1/4 cup butter, cut into bits and softened
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 2 to 3 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• sugar
• 1 tbs water
• 2 tsp coarse sanding sugar

DOUGH: Rub butter into flours until crumbly using the dough hook of electric stand mixer.

Combine remaining ingredients. Stir into flour mixture. Mix to form a soft dough, adding more flour as needed. Knead 5-6 minutes, then place in a greased bowl and cover. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

Punch down dough. Divide into 2 portions. Roll each portion out onto a floured work surface into 14x10 inch rectangles.

ASSEMBLY: Sprinkle each rectangle equally with butter, brown sugar, cinammon, chopped nuts and raisins. Roll along long end into a jellly roll.

Carefully place each into a well-greased tube or angel food cake pan. Make slits in top of each cake, if desired.

Combine egg, yolk, a dash of granulated sugar and water. Brush dough with egg wash. Place cake pans in large plastic bags and seal. Let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. Brush again with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Place cake pans on a large baking sheet (this protects bottom crust) and bake aat 350 degrees until done, about 1 hour. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Rainey's Note: This also looks very nice if you form a free form circle on parchment paper and slide onto your baking pan. Cut into the dough before rising to create circles about 1 1/2" wide and cut almost to bottom of the dough. Spread one circle into the middle and the next out to the outside. Continue alternating. Then brush with glaze, allow to rise and continue as above.

Or separate dough into three pieces for each loaf. Stretch or roll these pieces into long thin rectangles. Place the fillings down the middle on each piece. Roll dough over to enclose filling. Braid 3 ropes together. Place the middle of the braid diagonally into a loaf pan. Curl each end into the empty corner and tuck under the middle section. Continue as above.

These can be baked in decorative paper pans for giving.
_________________
God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

[gingerpale]

[Rainey]

Sorry about the typo. That's why I soooo much prefer copying in from my DB!

Let's see if I can describe that shaping better. You have a circle formed by a rope of rolled dough. You cut into the circle nearly to the bottom to form round pinwheel radii sections all around the circle. Now you twist the sections, alternately, to one side and the other of the original rope circle. This will expose the pinwheels of filling and create a wider, flatter shape more like a coffee cake than a bread.

In a similar manner, you could probably slice all the way through the rope (without forming a circle) and lay the pinwheels into a baking pan and rise as sweet rolls and top with a glaze when they're baked and cooled.
_________________
God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor

[gingerpale]

LOL you'll never offer me a recipe again--I'll braid the thing--the braiding makes perfect sense, I can see it like clear light. But just for curiosity's sake, is this http://www.sondahl.com/tearing2.jpg what you are describing, sort of?

My yeast packets are 2 and 1/4 teaspoons each--is 5 1/2 teaspoons the correct amount?

Don't miss this guy-- http://scienceroll.com/2006/12/17/the-body-baker/

I found him while trying to find a picture of your babka!

[Rainey]

Yes, sorta. You've not only got the concept but you've located a nice photo! Well done! Only instead of cutting in from the outside to the middle, I recommend cutting down from the top toward the bottom. Then you rotate each section either (and alternately) into the middle or out to the outside while also twisting 90 degrees to expose the pinwheel effect of the dough and filling.

If you played with the dough you'd see it. But, at the same time, all this discussion illustrates that there are many things you can do to add interest to a simple shape. When it smells good, everybody's happy!
_________________
God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor