Sourdough Babka Recipe with Dark Chocolate Filling

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Sourdough babka with dark chocolate filling is a gooey and delicious treat. It is a brioche dough filled with a decadent dark chocolate swirl. Perfect for special occasions, holidays, and any time you need to satisfy a chocolate craving.

It never ceases to amaze me how delicious sourdough bread can be. The more sourdough I bake, the more I love not just the process of making sourdough, but also all of the delicious varieties of sourdough breads and desserts.

This double chocolate sourdough babka recipe is currently my family’s favorite dessert (and breakfast). I made one for my family, and we ate it up within a day or two.

Then, I made another for when we had guests. It was gone almost immediately. And now there has been a request to bring one for a holiday dessert. That will be my third batch in two weeks!

It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve made sourdough babka lately; we just can’t get enough of it.

If you are looking for something sweet that will win over the hearts of any chocolate lover, this dark chocolate sourdough babka is for you!

What is babka?

This history of babka dates back to 19th century Eastern Europe. A traditional Jewish dessert, babka is a sweet braided bread that is considered both part cake and part bread

As a way to up extra challah dough, Jewish bakers would roll up the dough with cinnamon or other fillings and bake it.

Though babka is now popular throughout the United States, it was mostly unknown to the US until it was popularized in New York City Jewish communities.

There are practically endless recipes for babka fillings. But the most popular are usually cinnamon or chocolate. This recipe calls for an extra-gooey chocolate filling.

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Tips for Making Sourdough Chocolate Babka

Dough Tips

• This is a sticky dough – So even though you might want to add more flour, try to resist unless the dough truly won’t come together. Too much flour will yield tough bread. It should be tacky but not make a sticky mess of your hands. If the dough won’t come together, add flour one tablespoon at a time. But remember, you want a stickier and wetter dough than a traditional bread dough.
• Use room temperature butter – Cold butter won’t mix well, and warming the butter on the stove risks getting it too hot. I usually put mine on the counter a few hours before I need it.
• Use half for brioche – Double the dough recipe and make yourself brioche! If I’m already making dough, I like to get the most out of my time. Once your dough is finished proofing, use a bench scraper to cut it in half. Use one portion for your sourdough babka and the other for a quick brioche.
• Swap for all-purpose flour – You can use all-purpose flour if that is what you have on hand, but your bread may not be quite as fluffy. However, it will still be delicious.
• Use freeze-dried eggs (if you have them) – Freeze-dried eggs work great in this recipe! Two tablespoons of eggs and two tablespoons of water equals one egg.

Filling and Baking Tips

• Add chocolate for days – If you want EXTRA chocolatey babka, use all of the filling recipe for one half of the dough. Use the other half of the dough for an easy brioche loaf. This is how I make mine each time. But do keep in mind your babka will be really gooey, so be prepared for a lot of chocolate. I recommend baking it with a cookie sheet underneath to catch any overflow.
• Switch up the filling – If chocolate isn’t your thing, try a cinnamon and brown sugar filling instead. The filling for my sourdough cinnamon roll recipe would be perfect for this!.
• Use foil for browning – If the top of your babka browns before the center is ready, tent it with foil and continue baking. This tends to happen in my oven. Using foil to cover once it is golden has worked great.

How to Shape Babka

Divide your proofed dough into two portions. This will make two loaves, so follow these steps for each half:

Roll out one half of the dough into roughly a 10″ x 14″ rectangle. You can trim excess dough to make a straight edge. But I often find that I can neatly shape the edges with my hands.

Spread half of the filling on the dough using a silicone spatula. Leave about an inch of dough exposed on one short side.

Then, roll from one short end to the other. Pinch the seam and do your best to tidy the ends. I usually pinch them closed and fold them over.

Using a serrated knife, cut the rolled dough longwise. Be sure to cut it entirely in half to have two long sections.

Twist the two sections 3-4 times (or as many as you reasonably can). You can gently stretch the dough longways to help squeeze in an extra twist for aesthetics.

Place in a buttered loaf pan. Repeat the same steps for the other half of the dough.

Is allowing the dough to sit out with eggs in it safe?

When fermenting dough enriched with eggs, I have not had any issues. I usually use farm-fresh eggs I get locally, so I feel comfortable letting them sit out.

However, for the bulk fermentation, you can allow your dough to sit on the countertop for 4 hours and then put it in the fridge for the remainder of the time. This will, however, slow down the fermenting and rising process.

If you opt to let the dough ferment in the fridge, you won’t get the exact benefit of the fermented grains. And the flavor might be slightly different. Still, it will be delicious.

Sample Baker’s Schedule

Though this can be made in one day, I use this schedule for making my sourdough babka.

The night before making the dough

• 10:00 pm: Feed sourdough starter

The next day

• 8:00 am: Make the sourdough babka dough
• 8:20 am: Cover dough and allow to rise for about 8 hours or until doubled
• 4:00 pm: Place in the fridge overnight.

The following morning

• 8:00 am: Mix filling ingredients, roll out the dough
• 8:15 am: Fill, roll, cut, and braid the dough
• 8:20 am: Place in loaf pan and let rise for 4 hours or until doubled
• 12:20 am: Bake babka at 350° F for 40-45 minutes or until internal temp reaches 200 degrees.

Generally, I find it easier to bake the next day. It often works better for my schedule.

But you can definitely squeeze it in on a single day. If that’s the case, I recommend chilling your dough for a few hours after your bulk ferment. That can help with shaping.

Tools You May Need

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• Stand mixer – I use a KitchenAid Professional stand mixer. It can handle enriched dough like this really well.
• Bowl – You will need a large bowl for bulk fermenting the dough.
• Loaf pans -Standard loaf pans will do the trick.
• Rolling Pin – I prefer a French rolling pin because it is easier to control.
• Knife – Cutting through dough requires either a serrated knife or a very sharp knife.
• Measuring cups and spoons – If you prefer to measure your ingredients, grab your measuring cups and spoons.
• Kitchen Scale – I like to weigh my ingredients because it makes for much easier clean up and is a more precise way of baking.

Double Chocolate Sourdough Babka Ingredients

This recipe was adapted from Farmhouse on Boone’s Chocolate Babka.

• Bread flour – (plus a few tablespoons extra if needed) – Bread flour makes this sourdough babka light and fluffy.
• Sugar – This is a sweet bread, so it calls for a little more sugar than recipes like sourdough sandwich bread, for example.
• Salt – Salt adds flavor to the bread and highlights the sweetness.
• Milk – I use whole milk, but you can use whatever milk you have on hand.
• Eggs – Eggs make this dough rich and beautiful!
• Butter – Butter adds richness and flavor.
• Active sourdough starter – Make sure your starter is active and bubbly. If you don’t have a sourdough starter and want to make one, check out my sourdough starter tutorial on YouTube.

How to Make Double Chocolate Sourdough Babka

Get Started

1. Feed your starter 4-12 hours before you are ready to start the dough. The amount of time will vary depending on your starter. Just make sure it is active and bubbly when you are ready to get started.

Make the Dough

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add all of the dough ingredients. Mix on slow to gently combine.
2. Bump up the speed to medium and mix until the dough is fully combined and smooth. It should pass the windowpane test. For my mixer, this is about 10-12 minutes on medium speed. Note: This is supposed to be a wet dough, so try not to add flour. But if you really need to, add only a tablespoon at a time. But it should be wetter and stickier than a traditional dough.
3. Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, a lid, or a damp towel, and let the dough rest in a warm spot for about 8 hours or until doubled.

The Next Morning

1. Using a stand mixer, cream the cocoa powder, sugar, and butter on medium speed. Set aside.
2. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into two portions.
3. Roll out one half of the dough into approximately 10″ x 14″ rectangle. It’s okay if it’s bigger or smaller, but you’ll want it to fit in your loaf pan. Adjust accordingly.
4. Spread half of the chocolate filling on the dough using a silicone spatula. Leave an inch or so of dough exposed on one short end.
5. Roll from short end to short end. Pinch the seam together and pinch the ends together. Try to keep the filling on the inside (this can be a little tricky on the ends. I like to pinch and fold them under to help the filling stay put).
6. Using a serrated knife, cut the rolled dough in half longwise (from short end to short end).
7. Twist 3-4 times. I like to gently stretch the dough longways while I do this. That can help add an extra twist for aesthetics.
8. Place in a buttered loaf pan.
9. Repeat Steps 6-11 for the second half.
10. Allow both babkas to rise again for about 4 hours or until doubled.

Bake the Babkas

1. Once doubled, preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter two loaf pans or line with parchment paper.
2. Bake at 350° F for 40-45 minutes or until internal temp reaches 200 degrees.

How to Store Sourdough Babka

Honestly, we hardly make it to this point. This sourdough babka doesn’t last long in our house at all. But if you find yourself with leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days.

I do find that fluffy breads like this get stale quickly. So, if you find that your bread is a little stale but still edible, warming it up can help.

More Sourdough Recipes You Will Love

• Homemade Sourdough Cinnamon Toast Crunch Recipe
• Homemade Sourdough Pop Tarts with Strawberry Jam
• Sourdough Burger Buns Recipe – Soft and Fluffy!
• Simple Sourdough Flatbread Recipe – Quick and Easy
• Sourdough Donuts with Chocolate and Vanilla Glaze
• Sourdough Carrot Cake – (No-Wait Recipe)

If you tried this recipe and loved it, leave a review or comment!