Moldova

MOLDOVA: Babka

YouTube below!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1.5 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp baking soda
1 cup neutral oil (such as light olive oil)
1 cup buttermilk
2 1/4 cups milk
2 tbsp vodka (rum or brandy will work)
10 large eggs

DIRECTIONS:

Combine dry with oil: In a large mixing bowl mix 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 1/2 tbsp baking soda and 1 cups oil with a mixer until the mixture is well mixed and the flour’s coated with oil, about 1-2 minutes.

Now add the buttermilk and milk gradually, whisking after each addition to prevent the batter from forming clumps. Lastly, whisk in the 2 tbsp of vodka. If you added the liquids too fast and the batter looks clumpy, you can pass it through a sieve to remove the clumps.
Whip eggs: In a bowl whip together 10 eggs until light and foamy, about 5 minutes. Then add the whipped eggs to the rest of the batter, mixing it in thoroughly.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400F° with the rack in the middle. If your oven runs a little hot like mine does, you can turn it down to 350F° or 375F°.

Butter the inside of an 8 or 10-inch round cast iron dutch oven or any heavy-bottomed pot**, then dust it with breadcrumbs; or line the bottom with parchment paper and spray the sides with non-stick spray.

Pour the batter into an 8 qt cast iron pot, cover with lid or foil and bake for 1 hour 30 minutes. If at any point it smells burnt, turn the oven down about 25 degrees, but do not open the oven or the lid of the pot (this is very important). 

After 1.5 hours, lower the temp to 200F° and bake for another 1 hour 30 minutes. Leave in the oven to cool for several hours if possible, if not, remove from the oven and allow to cool at room temp

TIP: If you’re baking overnight, you can bake for 1.5 hours at 350F°-400F° degrees then turn the oven off without opening the door and allow to cool overnight in the oven

• 

•