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December 2, 2020

Fermented Sourdough Babka

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I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited to share a new recipe with you! This recipe for Fermented Sourdough Babka will hopefully become a beloved recipe for you as it has for me and my family.

The babka dough is made from a buttery sourdough that is fermented for 48 hours, braided with chocolate and then baked. It’s buttery, chocolaty, and just about the best thing I’ve ever eaten! 

As I’ve mentioned before, a grain-free diet isn’t meant to be and doesn’t always have to be lifelong. Once you’ve taken the proper steps to heal, you can often slowly add properly prepared grains back into your diet with the help of your nutritionist or practitioner.

And, did you know that forty-eight hours of slow fermentation will destroy 97% of all the gluten in the bread? Wow! The fermentation process also breaks down the sugars and contains healthy resistant starch that doesn’t raise blood glucose levels as much as conventional white breads. How amazing is that?!

To learn more about the science behind fermenting bread, check out this podcast. 

I realize that the recipe is long, but keep in mind that you’ll make the dough on one day, let it sit in the fridge for two days, braid the dough, let it sit on the counter and then bake. It’s honestly not as complicated as it looks.🙂 

And, to make things even easier, I’ve got a video for you that walks through everything step-by-step.

If you give this loaf a try, please post it on Instagram and tag me at @carrievitt. I’d love to see it and share your photo with everyone! 

Carrie Vitt

Makes 1 loaf

Fermented Sourdough Babka

See the video above for step-by-step instructions.

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Ingredients

    For the Sweet Levain:
  • 100g organic all-purpose flour
  • 100g water
  • 125g bubbly starter ( here's a recipe to make your own starter)
  • 23g organic cane sugar
  • For the Dough:
  • 210g unsalted organic butter, melted and cooled
  • 250g spelt flour
  • 250g organic all purpose flour
  • 250g sweet levain (from above)
  • 4 large eggs, room temperature
  • 75g organic cane sugar
  • 45g whole milk, room temperature
  • 9g Celtic sea salt
  • For the Chocolate Filling:
  • 110g organic cane sugar
  • 75g unsalted butter
  • 70g bittersweet chocolate, chopped
  • 25g cocoa powder
  • For the egg wash:
  • 1 egg

Instructions

  1. For the Levain: The night before you want to make the dough, combine flour, water, starter, and organic cane sugar. Stir the ingredients together until combined. Cover with a clean cloth and let sit overnight for at least 8-10 hours.
  2. The next day: Place the butter, spelt, flour, sweet levain build (from above), eggs, cane sugar, whole milk and sea salt in the bowl of a standing mixer. Mix on low using the beater attachment for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove the beater attachment and put on the dough hook. Mix for 8 minutes on medium.
  3. Stretch and Fold: Cover the bowl with a clean cloth and let sit for 30 minutes. Stretch and fold the dough four times (see the video above at the 1:15 mark). After you stretch and fold the first time, place a clean cloth over the dough and let it sit for 30 minutes. Then, stretch and fold the dough again, place a clean cloth over the dough and let sit for another 30 minutes. Repeat two more times for a total of four times.
  4. After the stretch and fold process, cover the dough really well with plastic wrap (or a lid, if you have one) and place the dough in the refrigerator. Let the dough ferment for 48-72 hours. I've tested this recipe at both the 48 hour and 72 hour mark and they both turned out beautifully!
  5. To assemble the babka: Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the sugar, chocolate and cocoa powder. Let cool to room temperature, but still spreadable.
  6. Remove the dough from the fridge and cut about 1/4 of it off and set aside*. Roll the remaining 3/4’s of the dough on a floured surface into a rough 12x16-inch rectangle (if it's a bit bigger than this, it's ok). Using an offset spatula, spread the filling in an even layer over the dough within 1/2 inch of the edges. Tightly roll up the dough and transfer it to a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Place the dough in the fridge for about 20 minutes (I accidentally said 45 minutes in the video, and if you refrigerate for 45 minutes that's fine, but 20 will also do).
  7. Using a sharp knife, cut the log in half lengthwise. Twist to form a spiral and then transfer to a buttered, 9x4-inch loaf pan. Cover with a towel and let sit at room temperature for 4 hours.
  8. Preheat the oven to 350ºF and adjust the rack to the middle position.
  9. Whisk together the egg and 1 tablespoon water. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg wash on the top of the unbaked loaf. Bake for 50-60 minutes, until golden brown on top. Let cool for 10 minutes. Gently remove the loaf from the pan and cool completely on a cooling rack.
  10. *There will be a bit of leftover dough, so I like to divide it into 2-inch balls, put them in a buttered muffin tin and bake for about 20 minutes at 350. The rolls are amazing with some butter and jam!
7.8.1.2
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https://deliciouslyorganic.net/fermented-sourdough-babka-recipe-chocolate/
Copyright 2016 Deliciously Organic

Photo Credit: Becky Winkler 

Posts may contain affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Filed Under: Desserts, Holiday, Nut-free, Sourdough Recipes, Uncategorized | 9 Comments

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9 Comments

  1. Jill

    December 4, 2020 at 6:58 am

    Hello. This recipe looks amazing. I have not used the metric system when cooking, however. Do you have a conversion? There are two ingredients that the amounts were left off; butter and spelt. Thanks for your help.
    to Jill" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Jill'>Reply to this comment
    • Deliciously Organic

      December 7, 2020 at 9:56 am

      I do not have conversions for this recipe. Using a scale is actually very, very easy and is the best way to bake sourdough recipes. I'm not sure what you mean by "I left off butter and spelt".
      to Deliciously Organic" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Deliciously Organic'>Reply to this comment
      • Carolyn

        December 12, 2020 at 2:58 pm

        There are no measurements on the butter and spelt
        to Carolyn" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Carolyn'>Reply to this comment
        • Sarah C.

          January 7, 2021 at 8:37 am

          This is exactly what I was looking for! Thanks for sharing. Can’t wait to try it out! Quick question...are we using Whole Spelt Flour or White Spelt Flour? Just wanted some clarification before getting started. Thanks again!
          to Sarah C." aria-label='Reply to this comment to Sarah C.'>Reply to this comment
          • Deliciously Organic

            January 15, 2021 at 10:16 am

            I used the Arrowhead Mills organic spelt. I looked at the package and it doesn't say if it's "whole" or "white". I'm thinking it's whole since it's just spelt ground up into a powder. Hope that helps! This dough is very forgiving, and I've even made it with 100% all-purpose, or traded out the spelt for whole wheat and they all worked great!
            to Deliciously Organic" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Deliciously Organic'>Reply to this comment
  2. Mary

    January 3, 2021 at 6:19 pm

    This looks wonderful. Step 7 seems to have instructions regarding cooling, but perhaps those were intended to be included within Step 8?
    to Mary" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Mary'>Reply to this comment
    • Deliciously Organic

      January 4, 2021 at 11:45 am

      Thanks for catching that! I just moved those 2 sentences. :)
      to Deliciously Organic" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Deliciously Organic'>Reply to this comment
  3. Dana

    January 9, 2021 at 7:42 pm

    Hi! Do you think I could use coconut sugar (or date sugar) if I don’t eat cane sugar? Thank you!
    to Dana" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Dana'>Reply to this comment
    • Deliciously Organic

      January 11, 2021 at 9:17 am

      I haven't tested the recipe with alternative ingredients, so I don't know which ones would lend the exact same texture and flavor. I explain in this post why I sometimes use organic cane sugar in my recipes: https://deliciouslyorganic.net/pound-cake-recipe-gluten-grain-free-recipe/
      to Deliciously Organic" aria-label='Reply to this comment to Deliciously Organic'>Reply to this comment

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Hi, I’m Carrie Vitt, NTP
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Through unprocessed, organic food and detox I’ve reversed Hashimoto’s disease, chronic migraines, IBS and eczema.

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