Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Babka Recipe (video)

1 30 prep + 3 Proofing Time

servings (2 loaves)

An easy and delicious recipe for pumpkin chocolate babka! A soft and fluffy pumpkin bread filled with chocolate and glazed with sugar syrup!

Begin with the pumpkin dough. Start by warming your milk on the stovetop or in the microwave. It needs to be between 120 and130F to activate the yeast. Anything too hot will kill it! Pour the milk into a large mixing bowl and sprinkle the yeast over the top. Allow this mixture to stand for 5 minutes before adding anything else.
Next, add in the melted and cooled butter, eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla extract and pumpkin puree. Whisk everything together for a few minutes, until the eggs are well beaten. Start adding the flour into the batter gradually, whisking at first until the batter is smooth.
Continue adding the flour in increments, switching to a spatula or wooden spoon once the dough starts to come together. Once a dough ball forms, sprinkle the remaining flour over your work surface and turn the dough out.
Knead the dough for 4 to 6 minutes until it’s elastic and smooth. The pumpkin dough should be extra soft and just slightly sticky. If all 5 cups are not needed, save the rest for dusting for later. Return the dough back into the mixing bowl.
For the first proofing, fill a large pot of water with steaming hot, not boiling, water about a third of the way full. The mixing bowl should not touch the water!
Place the dough bowl over the top, cover it with a clean tea towel and set the dough into a warm corner of the kitchen. The dough needs to proof for about 1 to 1 ½ hours, or until its doubled up in size.

While the dough is proofing, prepare the chocolate filling. To make the filling, place the butter into a medium sized saucepan and turn the heat to medium. Once the butter starts to melt, add in the semi-sweet chocolate chips, cocoa powder and fine sugar. Stir everything together and heat the mixture just until the chocolate is completely dissolved.
Remove the chocolate filling from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
Place the filling into the refrigerator to chill while the dough is proofing. It will be easier to spread and work with once it’s been chilled.

Once the pumpkin dough has proofed and doubled in size, gently punch it down, then turn it out onto a lightly floured worksurface. Divide the dough in half and work with just one piece at a time. Do not knead the dough again. Lightly flour a rolling pin and roll out the dough into a large rectangle, approximately 17x14-inches in size.
Using a pastry brush, apply the beaten egg around the rim of the rectangle. This will help seal the dough. Add half of the prepared chocolate filling, spreading it evenly with an offset spatula, leaving about a ½-inch border around the edges.
Gently begin rolling the dough into a log, lengthwise, and pinching it along the edges. Pinch the seams together tightly, forming a closed log. Next, begin splitting this log in half using a sharp, serrated knife. Leave about 1 ½-inches at the end where the dough is sealed.
Next, twist the two halves of the split log together, forming a twisted log shape. Using a bench scraper, gently lift and transfer the twisted dough into a 9-inch loaf pan lined with parchment paper. Repeat this process for the second half of dough.

Cover the bread loaves lightly with clean tea towels,set the bread next to the stove top and allow the dough to proof for 1 to 1 ½ hours,or until doubled in size.
To create a proofing oven: Make sure the oven is off. Fill a large pot with boiling water and place it on the bottom of your oven. Arrange the oven rack about two-thirds of the way up and place the prepared loaves into the oven. Close the oven, trapping the steam inside. The warm steam will keep the bread moist and it will proof faster. Make sure to remove the bread before turning on the oven to preheat!!
For baking my easy pumpkin chocolate babka ,preheat the oven to 350F. Bake the bread for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches between 190F and 200F. Remove the bread out of the oven and cool it in the pans for about 30 minutes. Then use the parchment paper to gently lift the bread out of the pans and onto a wire rack to cool completely.

While the pumpkin chocolate bread is baking, it’s the perfect time to make the simple sugar syrup. This simple topping is what gives babka bread that shiny and glossy finish! Simply combine the sugar and water in a small saucepot without stirring. Heat the syrup over medium heat, until the sugar dissolves and comes to a simmer. Remove the syrup from the heat and cool.
As soon as the bread comes out of the oven, use a pastry brush to brush the syrup over the top of the bread. Be extra generous with the syrup and apply multiple coats! If desired, use a toothpick to poke small holes into the bread, which will allow the syrup to sink inside.

Fresh and warm babka bread is simply the best!!It’s going to be extra soft and fluffy when it’s freshly made! I recommend enjoying this pumpkin babka within 24 to 36 hours, when it’s still fresh. Once the bread has cooled completely, wrap it well with plastic wrap to prevent drying, and keep it stored at room temperature. The bread will become hard and cold in the refrigerator so keep it out of the fridge!