Chocolate Orange Almond Babka

Ingredients

Dough

• 34 oz bread flour
• 210 g granulated sugar
• 16 g salt
• 634 g whole milk
• 14 g instant dry yeast
• 100 g eggs
• 40 g egg yolks
• 8 g orange zest
• 242 g butter, unsalted, room temperature

Filling

• 1 lb bittersweet chocolate
• .5 lb Once Again roasted almond butter, crunchy
• .5 lb butter, unsalted
• 8 g salt
• 64 g cocoa powder
• .5 lb powdered sugar
• 160 g egg whites

Directions

1. Combine all the dough ingredients except for the butter in an all-purpose mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix on speed #1 for 3 minutes. Mix on speed #2 for 4-6 minutes or until medium gluten development. With the mixer still on speed #2, add butter in pieces and continue mixing until full gluten development. Bulk ferment dough until doubled in size. Portion dough into 4 equal pieces (550g/19.4oz/1.2lbs each), cover and rest 6-10 hours in the cooler.

2. Prepare the filling by melting the chocolate, almond butter, butter, salt and cocoa powder together. Let cool slightly and mix in the powdered sugar and egg whites. Set aside while preparing the dough.

3. Prepare loaf pans by applying pan spay to the bottom and sides.

4. Roll each piece of dough to a 10”x15” square. Spread ¼ of the filling (340g/12oz/.75lbs.) onto each rectangle leaving a 1/2” border along one 10” edge. With the short side facing you, begin rolling the dough into a tight spiral towards the other short side. Slice the log in half lengthwise to expose the inner layers. With the cut sides facing up, pinch two ends together and begin twisting the pieces over each other – trying to keep the cut side up. Place in the prepared pans. Let proof until doubled in volume

5. Bake in a convection oven at 340F (or conventional oven at 365C) for 30-45 minutes or until the internal temperature of the dough is 190F.

6. Cool for 15 minutes in the pan before removing and finish cooling on a rack.