Homemade Cinnamon Babka Recipe

How to make a Homemade Cinnamon Babka Recipe

Such an indulgent loaf with beautiful swirls of brown sugar cinnamon filling. Imagine a cinnamon roll in loaf form!

This Cinnamon Babka recipe has become a favorite in my house, especially as a Christmas breakfast treat!

Cinnamon Babka recipe ingredients

All-purpose flour – Whichever all purpose flour brand you have on hand works fine. To get the most accurate measurement of flour, use a kitchen scale. I like to do this with most recipes that require flour, too much flour isn’t very tasty.

If you do not have a kitchen scale, Fluff your flour and using a spoon scoop into a measuring cup, then scape excess off with a butter knife.

Granulated Sugar – A monk fruit sugar sweetener will also work. The taste is the most similar to regular white granulated sugar.

Instant dry yeast – To check if yeast is still good add 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 packet of yeast to a 1/4 cup of warm water. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes. If the mixture starts to get foamy and gives off a yeasty smell, then your yeast is still good.

Large Eggs – Room temperature eggs

Large Egg yolk – room temperature egg yolk.

Warm milk – The milk in this recipe can be replaced with water or any non-flavored dairy-free milk. If you’re unable to let the milk sit at room temperature, microwave in 10-second increments to warm milk.

If the eggs are still cold, add them to your warmed milk before mixing them into the dough.

Salt – Flavor enhancer!

Unsalted Butter – Room temperature butter is necessary for this recipe. I would recommend taking the butter out at least 30 minutes before to ensure a softened butter. This includes the melted butter for the cinnamon sugar filling.

Canola oil – Any tasteless and colorless oil works best. For oiling the bowl.

Vanilla – Pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

Ground Cinnamon – In place of ground cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice or even apple pie spice will work beautifully.

Dark brown sugar – light brown sugar works just fine as well.

*see recipe card for detailed measurements

Kitchen supplies you’ll need

• Stand Mixer with a dough hook
• Loaf pans x2
• Mixing bowls
• Parchment paper
• Saucepan
• Rubber spatula
• Baking sheet
• Rolling pin
• Plastic wrap
• Offset spatula
• Wire rack for cooling

Mix it, Roll it, & Bake it!

To prepare our Cinnamon Babka recipe, In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment sift together the all-purpose flour, sugar, yeast, and salt. Mix on low until the dry ingredients are combined.

Add the eggs, egg yolk, warmed milk, and vanilla extract into the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on medium for 2-3 minutes until the dough starts to come together.

Scrape the sides of the bowl when/if needed.

Turn the mixer to medium-low and add the softened unsalted butter one cube at a time. Allow each cube of unsalted butter to fully incorporate before adding the next cube.

After the unsalted butter has been added, turn to medium speed and mix for 10 minutes. Scrape bowl if/when needed.

The dough will come together, I promise, by the end of the 10 minutes. The dough should come away clean from the sides of the bowl and be smooth and stretchy.

Oil a large bowl. Dust your hands with flour so the dough doesn’t stick to you and move the dough from the mixing bowl to the oiled bowl. 

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1.5 – 2 hours at a warm room temp, a warm place, or a low oven temp.

*Rising in the oven: While mixing the dough, turn your oven to its lowest temperature, mine is 170. Let it preheat, then turn it off. By the time your dough is ready to let rise, the oven should have come down to a temperature perfect for the first rise.

After this dough rises place babka dough, covered with plastic wrap, into the fridge overnight. IF you need to make this wonderful recipe today, rest the dough in the fridge for at least 2 hours first.

Whether you’ve chilled overnight or just a couple of hours, let the babka dough rest and come to room temperature for 30 – 60 minutes before working with it.

Once chilled, grease two 8 x 4 x 2-inch loaf pans with oil, sides included. Line them both with a piece of parchment paper.

Make the parchment paper large enough for at least 2 inches to fold over the edge of each loaf pan. This will help you pull the loaf out of the pan after baking, icing, and cooling.

To make the cinnamon filling, in a small bowl combine room temperature butter, dark brown sugar, and ground cinnamon. Combine with either a wooden spoon, rubber spatula, or your hands until it combines fully and is easily spreadable.

Place your chilled dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the babka dough in half, and set one aside.

Roll the dough into a rectangle. Roughly 10 x 12 or 10 x 14 inches. 

Spread half of the cinnamon filling all over the dough with an offset spatula.

Starting with the shorter end, roll the dough tightly over itself creating a log.

Place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet seam side down, while you prepare your next loaf.

Cut the roll in half lengthwise down the center with a sharp knife.

Twist each roll around each other like a braid with the cut sides exposed. 

Pinch both ends together and place it in your greased loaf pan. 

Cover loaf pan with greased plastic wrap. Let the babka dough rise at room temperature for 1.5 hours.

This Cinnamon Babka recipe makes TWO loaves, so don’t forget to repeat the process for the second babka loaf.

Preheat oven to 350 F. 

Once the oven is preheated, Bake both of your loaves for 40-50 minutes or until the inside has reached an internal temperature of 190 F and the top is a beautiful golden brown. I use a meat thermometer for this. 

For the vanilla glaze, add melted butter to a small bowl, and add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk. Whisk together until combined.

Pour icing on top of your cooling babkas. Allow to cool in their pans for at least 10 minutes before removing. 

Best if served warm.

Is Babka dough same as Brioche?

Brioche dough is a lovely enriched bread. Both Babka and Brioche are yeasted sweet breads.

While this Cinnamon Babka recipe is ALSO an enriched bread, the process of filling, rolling, and braiding the enriched dough then makes it a Babka.

Is Babka supposed to be dense?

As stated above this Cinnamon Babka recipe is a yeasted sweet bread. Is Cinnamon Babka supposed to be dense? Yes, and no.

Because of its enriched dough and sweet cinnamon filling, it’s both fluffy and dense. A perfect mixture of the two makes this babka recipe a perfect tea or coffee companion.

Tips for Baking, Eating, & Storing

Baking

-This brioche dough can be used for your morning Cinnamon Rolls too! Use a piece of plain floss to cut the rolls 1 – 1.5 inches and bake in a greased 9×13 casserole dish or cake pan.

-A traditional Babka contains semi-sweet chocolate filling with simple syrup on top, check back for a recipe on that.

Check out these variations you can try out:

-For Nutella Babka, try a Nutella filling, replace the filling with 3/4 cup Nutella per loaf.

-Sprinkle 1/2 cup chopped nuts on top of your filling before rolling. Suggested nuts: Pistachios, walnuts, hazelnuts, or pecans.

-Slice the rolled babka dough into rounds for Cinnamon Buns. Baking time may vary.

Eating

-This brioche dough can be sliced and used for one of our family favorites, French Toast! If you find your bread has become a bit stale, this is perfect.

Storing

Store your homemade babka covered and at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Refrigerating your Cinnamon Babka isn’t recommended as it will dry out the loaves.

Freezing: Wrap babka loaf tightly in plastic wrap, then again in foil. Freeze for up to 1 month. Allow to thaw still wrapped. Warm the loaf in the oven, unwrapped, at 325 for 10 minutes until warmed throughout.

Tools I use

Loaf pan

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Stand mixer

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Rolling pin

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Try these other delicious recipes!

• Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
• The Best Pumpkin Bread with Streusel Topping
• The Best Cinnamon Coffee Cake
• Easy Homemade Garlic & Butter Dinner Rolls
• Easy Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake with Sour Cream
• Chocolate No-Bake Cookies