Stay Warm! BABA au RHUM!

Baba au rhum is a cake popular in France and Napoli, Italy.

BABA au RHUM @ CHEZ GEORGES, PARIS

It was cold in Boston this weekend and it inspired me to make baba au rhum. I first had this delicious rum soaked dessert cake in Paris at my favorite restaurant Chez Georges.  Open since 1964, Chez Georges has been run by the Brouillet family for 3 generations. They are well known for their classic Lyonnaise cuisine and specifically Baba au Rhum. We enjoyed, "Sole Georges" and ordered the baba. 

Our waitress arrived to the table with a large baba cake and a big unmarked bottle (rhum). We watched in disbelief as she saturated the cake. She finally lifted the bottle, smiled and said, "fini, bon appétit." Minutes later, we were officially warm inside and "Baba-ded."

Baba History

"Baba cake is called "Bakka" in Poland and "Father's Cake" in Turkey.  Some say the word BABA in French means, "falling over dizzy,"  World renowned Chef Alain Ducasse serves baba au rhum as a signature dessert at his Michelin restaurants... 

It is said that baba cake was brought to Paris, France by the King of Poland, King Stanislas Leszczyunska, the father-in-law of King Louis XV of France, when he was exiled to Lorraine.  According to one legend, he found the customary kouglopf too dry and dipped it in sweet wine.  He was so delighted that he named the cake after his hero Ali Baba from his favorite book, A Thousand and One Nights.  Later, his chef refined the sweet bread by using brioche dough and adding raisins to the recipe..  The cake was then called, "Baba." 

The Julien brothers, famous 19th century pastry chefs, then redefined the baba cake and baked it in a ring mold, omitted the currants and added the rhum syrup.  They named the cake a "Savarin," in memory of renowned gastronomic philosopher, Brillat-Savarin (1725-1826)."

Whether you call it savarin or baba, you will enjoy this dish on a cold winter's eve or serve to a group of friends!

Home version BABA au RHUM

Preparation

Baba is forgiving to prepare because you will be saturating it in sugar syrup. I have had it at many restaurants and the plating is simple and not fancy. Using a simple muffin pan at home will do just fine.  The rhum syrup makes it memorable (or not). Children can enjoy baba with warm honey or maple syrup. This is a delicious recipe and it is worth the effort! 

You can use a food processor with the dough piece or standing mixer with the dough hook.  You can use large bundt, mini bundt, cannele, muffin, bread loaf or popover pans. This will require you to watch the baking process carefully.  Do not use non-stick pans for the baba as they will brown too quickly.  The cakes can be made a few days before serving.

Ingredients
Makes 10 medium babas
1 T dry yeast
3 T warm water
2 C all purpose flour or bread flour
1 t salt
3 eggs beaten
3 T dark rum
1/2 C unsalted butter, softened
1 t orange zest (OPTIONAL)
1 t lemon zest (OPTIONAL)
3/4 C currants, raisins or dried cherries (OPTIONAL) I love cherries!
Powdered sugar (OPTIONAL)
Vanilla pastry cream or whipped cream (OPTIONAL)
**High quality maple syrup or honey for children
Cake molds

Rum Syrup
2 C sugar
3 C water
1/2 C dark rum (or more to taste)
1 t high quality vanilla
** for children, use warmed maple syrup or honey in place of rum above.

Instructions
-Add the yeast to the warm water, stir and set aside.
-Sift the all purpose flour with the salt and sugar.  I use a tight strainer for this and shake up and down.
-Add flour to food processor with dough piece or standing mixer with dough hook.
 -Add the yeast mixture slowly. 
-Add the eggs.
-Mix until the dough is smooth and elastic about 5 minutes, scraping sides of bowl as necessary. 

**Dough will be sticky more like a batter vs dry like bread dough.  See below.

-Cover dough in the mixer bowl with damp towel, allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour until doubled in size.  

While dough rises:
-Take 1 stick of butter out of refrigerator to let soften.  You will add all this butter to the dough.
-Use additional butter and grease the molds liberally and place in refrigerator.
-Prepare the rum syrup. Boil water and sugar for 3 min and add the rum stir for 2 minutes.
**Prepare the vanilla pastry cream or whipped cream, and chill in refrigerator. (OPTIONAL)
**Soak the dried fruit in rum. (OPTIONAL)

After dough rises
-Preheat oven to 400.
-Dough should be doubled in size.
-Pulse mix the dough for about 1 minute to deflate the air.
-Add the softened butter and mix until dough is smooth again.
-Add the lemon and orange zest. (OPTIONAL)
-Add the dried fruit. (OPTIONAL)
-Using a spoon, fill the buttered molds half way with dough.
-I push a few rum soaked dried cherries to bottom of each with toothpick.
-Cover and allow to rise again in a warm place for 15 minutes.

Baking
-Place molds in oven and pay close attention to the baking process.  Baking time will vary according to what size mold you use so do not leave the kitchen during this time. 
-The baba is finished when the color is golden brown and the cakes separate from the sides of the molds.  

I used an everyday muffin pan. See below.

**If using a large bundt pan, leave baba in the mold and use long skewers to pierce cake to better absorb rum syrup. 

Serving
-Warm the rum syrup, take off heat and add the vanilla.
-Warm the maple syrup or honey if using in pace of above.
-Place each cake in the mixture and saturate.  Spoon the syrup over the cakes for 2 minutes to allow absorption.  The cakes will enlarge a bit.
-Fill pastry bag with chilled pastry cream or whipped cream to garnish the cakes. (OPTIONAL)
-Place extra syrup on plates before plating the baba. (OPTIONAL)
-Orange or lemon rinds for decor. (OPTIONAL)
-See my simple plating below! 

Enjoy & Stay Warm!  Bon Appétit!