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The Babka - Not just an old lady…

28 October 2015

For Rosh Ha’shana (Jewish New Years Eve) there is a yearning in me for a small, traditional, personal, sweet delight - the Babka.

Literally means “old woman” or “grandma”, it is a sweet yeast cake from the area of Russia and East Europe. Christian version is known to have no filling, while the Jewish version use many types of fillings (from chocolade, through different fruits and down to mixture of spices). Most versions use a kugelhopf baking form.

The Babka had such a strong mark on the Jewish East European cuisine, that immigrants from Poland who came to New York, brought it with them and today, you won’t find in the Big Apple many pastry shops without it.

Wishing everyone happy new year with lots of tastes and stories.

In the pic: a Babka being baked in a kugelhopf during my last workshop.

Wishing everyone happy new year with lots of tastes and stories.

Interested in making your own Babka ? click here for a traditional recipe.

by: Amit Rabin