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A slice of gluten free chocolate babka on a white plate.

The Best Gluten Free Chocolate Babka

Sandi Gaertner
A delicious sweet gluten free babka with chocolate swirled throughout. This recipe is from the cookbook, "The Jewish Essential Cookbook" by Beth A. Lee and converted to gluten free by me.
5 from 9 votes
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 18 minutes
Course Gluten Free Bread Recipe
Cuisine Jewish
Servings 10 slices
Calories 317 kcal

Ingredients
  

For the Dough:

  • 2 cups gluten free flour blend * see notes
  • 2 teaspoons yeast * see notes
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs * size large
  • ½ cup milk warm (105-115º F)
  • 5 tablespoons butter room temperature

For the Chocolate Filling:

  • ½ cup chocolate chips * I prefer semi-sweet or dark chocolate
  • ⅓ cup butter
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ cup chopped nuts - optional

For the Glaze:

  • ¼ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup water

Instructions
 

  • For this recipe, I made the dough in my bread machine using the dough setting. I find dough rises best in my machine. You can totally mix this up in a bowl and then cover the bowl to let it rise on the counter.
  • Add the wet ingredients to your bread machine. Sprinkle the dry ingredients over the wet ingredients, then add the yeast on top.
  • HINT: If your house is colder, preheat your oven to 200º F. Turn it off and rise your dough in the oven. Crack the oven door open.
  • Let the bread machine run. I turned it off after the second mix cycle because there isn't a need to knead the dough. I kept the lid closed to keep the heat in after turning it off so that it stayed warm for the dough to rise.
  • Rise your dough in the bread machine, or let it rise one hour on the counter.
  • Carefully move the dough to a flour-dusted piece of wax paper. This dough is wetter than a normal dough so you definitely want to dust gluten free flour over the wax paper before putting the dough onto it.
  • In a saucepan, add the chocolate filling ingredients. Cook on low to melt the chocolate all together.
  • Remove from the stove and allow to cool so it is warm, but not hot.
  • Press the dough flat to about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Dust with gluten free flour blend as needed to prevent sticking.
  • Spread the chocolate mixture around the dough. Avoid the edges. Do not worry if this tears up the dough slightly. Because gluten free dough needs to be softer, it can happen so just keep gently spreading the chocolate.
  • Roll the dough just like you would in making cinnamon rolls. Place the roll onto parchment paper.
  • Use a serrated knife to cut the dough gently in half lengthwise.
  • This is where it gets a little tricky. The dough is soft and not easy to move. You need to move one half over so that the open-cut sides face outward. I used a spatula to gently help me lift one-half of the dough over. One fell apart slightly and this is okay.
  • Gently twist the dough. Again, this is tricky, and do not worry if it doesn't look pretty as a regular babka dough...gluten free dough just isn't as pliable as its gluten counterpart. Just do your best and the next rise will help sort out some of the odd bulges.
  • Gently lift the parchment paper with the twisted babka dough and set it with the parchment paper into a large loaf pan. Let it rise 30-45 minutes.
  • Preheat your oven to 350º F.
  • Bake at 350º F for 40-45 minutes. Baking time will vary depending on how tall your babka dough is.
  • In a pan, melt the sugar and water together and then brush this glaze over the baked babka.

Notes

  1. Gluten free flour blend - For this recipe, I used a combination of Better Batter Artisinal Blend and King Arthur Measure for Measure. I did this because King Arthur's Measure for Measure isn't great for yeat recipes. I love Better Batter flour, but it is gum free and my baking tends to turn out a dull beige color. I did the blend so this babka would turn out golden. Other gluten free flour blends will work, I just haven't tested them yet.
  2. Xanthan gum - Xanthan Gum - If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
  3. Bittersweet chocolate - I used Ghirardelli chocolate chips because I like how they melt.
  4. Cocoa powder - Most cocoa powder is gluten free. My favorites are Ghirardelli, Hershey, and Anthony's.
  5. Yeast - most brands of yeast are gluten free but do not use Red Star Platinum because that one variety has gluten.
  6. This babka will keep fresh for up to 3 days.

SPECIAL NOTE

Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn't test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 317kcalCarbohydrates: 41gProtein: 6gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 67mgSodium: 218mgPotassium: 74mgFiber: 4gSugar: 22gVitamin A: 452IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 54mgIron: 1mg
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Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.