Now, maybe because I grew up in the suburbs of Houston and went to college in Oklahoma, but I'd never even heard of babka until watching Seinfeld. Remember Elaine wanting to bring a chocolate babka to a party...gets stuck with the "lesser" cinnamon babka...and Jerry breaks his no throw-up streak due to a black & white cookie?
That was my introduction to babka...and I've wanted to eat one ever since.
Trader Joe's describes this as "a sweet rich pastry layered with chocolate." An 18-ounce babka costs $4.99. In our Trader Joe's, I've seen this come and go. It's always right by the first register and nowhere else in the store that I have seen. Keep your eyes peeled.
A mom's (my) take: BABKA...where have you been all my life? Oh, y'all. This is my ultimate food. This is like a cross between bread and a croissant, all marbled and swirled with chocolate. The top is glazed and studded with chocolate chips. Bonus: babka is super fun to say. You know they have those forks by the door at Trader Joe's? (I'm sure they're for to-go salads.) I may grab one on my next trip and eat one of these in my car.
Overall rating: (a very enthusiastic) 5 of 5 stars
A teeanger's (kiddo's) review: I've never eaten any sort of babka before, but this particular one was amazing. To me, it tasted like several layers of crossiant-ish bread spaced by chocolate and all sorts of sugary goodness. The consistency was very interesting, as the outside and bread was sort of chewy but the inside, especially the chocolate, was very soft and rich. I could EASILY eat the whole thing.
Overall rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Trader Joe's Chocolate Brooklyn Babka:
Elaine wants you to have one. (So do we.)
Read all of our Trader Joe's sweet treats and dessert reviews!
Welcome to Bake at 350! I'm Bridget and I like all things sweet...especially cookie decorating. I hope you'll find some inspiration here. So, grab a chair (and a cookie) and let's get baking! [
Oh this looks amazing! I don't think I have ever seen it TJs though. I am going this afternoon. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can find it.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering when you were going to get around to reviewing this one. It is incredible! Have you tried the dark chocolate covered caramels? Also delish!
ReplyDeletenow i want to try babka!!!
ReplyDeleteyou know my love for chocolate croissants!
O. M. G. !!!!!!!
ReplyDeletehave to keep an eye out for it cause it sounds Amazing!
ReplyDeletewarm. it. up.
ReplyDeleteThe descriptions, from both of you, have my head spinning! I am dropping by T.J.'s tomorrow, for sure!
ReplyDeleteI voted!! Best blogger!
ReplyDeleteI've never been to Trader Joe's and now I feel a need to run to one.
ReplyDeleteDarling you have no idea what you've been missing.
DeleteBuyer/eater beware! This is no East Coast chocolate babka. If something gooey, gluey, ultra sweet and overloaded with chocolate is what you like, I have no issue with that. But having grown up in New York, this TJ's version is far from authentic and shouldn't be called a Brooklyn Babka. The real stuff is delicate, buttery, pull-apart sweet bread layers swirled/accented with chocolate. Everything delicately balanced. To see what it should look like (and get the recipe) go here: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/chocolate-babka-236707
ReplyDeleteDezi, thanks for the link. Im new to this stuff. The T.J.s heavy handed chocolate version is soooo wonderful. I had it for the first time yesterday. I love the texture. A bit of chewy and the crunch of chocolate. Its like fudge mixed with filo dough. But yes. Its a very different animal than what you have linked to.
DeleteTJs never advertises it as authentic Brooklyn Babka but it doesn't matter. It is absolutely delicious
DeleteMine was very good and no gooey gluey to be found.
DeleteOur Trader Joe's finally had it. Omgoodness!!! To quote my friend, "it's a cross between brownie and....heaven." Yum!!
ReplyDeleteI, too, knew of the chocolate babka only from Seinfeld. So when the TJ's Fearless Flyer came out advertising them, I had to try it. It's tasty, but as someone said a very heavy hand added the chocolate. So I have a whole babka minus one slice in the the frig and waiting to be consumed. Maybe I will try heating it up a bit.
ReplyDeletemake french toast with the old refrigerated babka
ReplyDeleteAlright, so I had the chocolate babka from Trader Joe's first and LOVED it. I read reviews and couldn't believe that people said it wasn't as good as authentic babka. Then I tried Smitten Kitchen's simple babka (she has 2 recipes, I tried the easier one) and fell in looooove. This is still super delicious, but if you have time, I definitely suggest trying the "real" thing, because it is the stuff of legends.
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful post.
ReplyDeletethanks,
Mcx Commodity Tips Free Trial | MCX Tips Free Trial
I just tried this today and it's delicious. It pairs great with coffee or tea bcoz it's very sweet.
ReplyDeletewaoo nice post about "SWEET ON TRADER JOE'S SATURDAY: CHOCOLATE BROOKLYN BABKA"
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Intraday Tips Free Trial
I have read through other blogs, but they are cumbersome and confusing more than your post. I hope you continue to have such quality articles to share with everyone! I believe a lot of people will be like to read this article!
ReplyDeleteThe cake is delicious and attractive.
ReplyDelete