Chocolate Danish or Babka

Now that I've found the perfect yeast dough recipe, I can try my hand at the Danish! There's nothing better than a slice of fresh chocolate danish with a glass of tea or a cup of coffee. Whether it be shaped in a ring, or in individual swirls, when fresh, nothing beats it, except maybe a cinnamon sticky bun! Here's what you'll need:
(Makes 1 large ring or 12 large buns)


Dough
1 1/4 cups 2% milk, just above body temperature (105 F)
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 pkg) instant dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg at room temperature
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt

Filling & Assembly
(1 9x13 inch pan for buns or baking tray for the ring)
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar or regular sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 cup chocolate chips
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 egg + 1 tbsp water, whisked (for brushing on danish)

The syrup
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp butter or margarine

For the dough, measure all the ingredients into a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon, or blend in a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment until evenly combined. If mixing by hand, turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes, or if in a mixer, knead for about 3 minutes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, 90 minutes to 2 hours.

Filling & Assembly
For the filling, In a food processor, pulse the chocolate chips till have have broken up, then add the sugar and cocoa powder, pulse again and finally add in 2 tbsp of margarine or butter and pulse 2 more times, you will have a sandy coarse filling, set aside. Have the melted butter ready from the 2 remaining tbsp.

Turn the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle about 18-x-12 inches. Brush the entire surface of the dough with the melted butter and sprinkle all over with the cocoa mixture. Roll up the dough from the longer side and shape into a ring and place on a baking sheet or cut the roll into 12 pieces and place these into a greased pan, evenly spaced, (you could even use a muffin pan) cover with plastic wrap or tea towel and let rise for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Uncover the risen sticky buns or ring, brush the ring or buns with the egg wash sprinkle some coarse brown sugar or chocolate sprinkles over top and bake for 40-45 minutes, until a rich golden brown. Then in a small saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a simmer, then add the margarine, stir till melted and pour over or brush the glaze over danish or buns while they are still hot. This will give it a nice shine and an extra kick. It is recommended to cool the ring or buns for 10 minutes in the pan. The danish is best served the day it's baked.

Enjoy!


P.S. As you can tell by the pics, I went for a "torsade" loaf and buns instead of the ring I set out to make.