White Chocolate and Cinnamon Babka?
And it has streusel crumbles on top? Hm, Zabar's doesn't have that one in stock now—or ever. But D.C.–based online bakery ShoeBox Oven does. Since pickin's are slim in the District, babka-wise, ShoeBox wants to become the missing Babka Buff. Sure, the Jewish delis out in the Maryland suburbs sell a good standard loaf, but within city limits, selection is limited to Dean and Deluca's one location.
Krishna Brown—the aproned, and more oftentimes overalled, lady behind ShoeBox—has been experimenting with recipes lately. At first, people told her babka and danish doughs were interchangeable. But Brown flat-out disagrees. "That's like comparing cat and man," she says. "They may have the same blood, brain and skin, but are completely individual creations."
Brown has a butter totem pole all sketched out, and babka dough sits at the bottom, underneath danish, croissant, and cream puff doughs (all way more buttery). After some fiddling, she's settled on a recipe she likes. Maggie Glazer's Lithuanian Yeasted Coffee Cake" recipe from the Blessing of Bread Jewish cookbook, but the coffee cake nomenclature is a bit of a turn-off for Brown.
