Chocolate Almond Coffee Cake

Chocolate Almond Coffee Cake

Ingredients:

Dough:                                                                                                                                                                           

11/2 cup water
3 tablespoons (21g) Dry Milk or nonfat dry milk
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
3 tablespoons (43g) butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk (save the white), at room temperature
3/4 cup (71g) Whole Wheat Pastry Flour*

    *Also known as graham flour.

1 3/4 cups (210g) All-Purpose Flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast

Almond Filling

2/3 cup (170g) almond paste
3 tablespoons (35g) granulated sugar
1 large egg white (reserved from the dough ingredients)
Chocolate Filling

2 tablespoons (11g) unsweetened cocoa, Dutch-process or natural
2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons (43g) heavy cream
1/4 cup (43g) semisweet chocolate chips

Streusel

1/2 cup (60g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/4 cup (53g) dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons (57g) butter, softened
1/2 cup (85g) semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup (28g) almonds, chopped

Directions:

For the dough: Mix and knead together all of the dough ingredients, by hand, mixer, or with the dough cycle of your bread machine. The dough will be very soft and smooth. Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 1 hour, or have the bread machine complete its cycle. While the dough is rising, make the streusel toppings and fillings, and set them aside.For the almond filling: Crumble the almond paste into a medium bowl. Add the sugar and mix until the paste smooths out; add the egg white and mix until you have a lump-free, spreadable filling. Cover and set aside.

For the chocolate filling: Combine the cocoa, sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until simmering over medium heat on the stove or in the microwave. Pour the hot cream over the cocoa mixture, stirring until the mixture is smooth. Add the chocolate chips and stir until melted; reheat again over low heat as necessary. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

To assemble the coffee cake: Gently deflate the risen dough and divide it in half. Roll one half in to a 10" x 15" rectangle and spread with the chocolate filling, leaving a 1/2" border on one long side. Brush this edge with a little water. Roll up the dough from the opposite long side, pinching the dough together to seal the edge well. Set this log aside. Repeat with the second piece of dough, using the almond filling this time. Now cut both longs in half lengthwise; a large pizza cutter is handy for this task. Turn the cut sides up, so the filling stays put. Take one almond and one chocolate piece, and pinch them together well at the top, keeping the cut sides up. Gently place one over the other, making a two-stranded braid, keeping the cut side up as much as possible. Join the ends of the remaining two logs to the ends of the first, and continue weaving until all of the dough is used.

For the streusel: Mix together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter until the mixture forms large crumbs. Stir in the chocolate chips and nuts; set aside.

Last rise and bake: Grease a 10-inch springform pan. Place the braid into the pan, starting at the outside edge, and winding around to fill in the center. Sprinkle the top with streusel, cover the pan, and let rise for about 30 to 45 minutes, until puffy-looking. While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 325°F. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a pick placed into the center of the dough comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack in the pan for 15 minutes. Run a plastic knife or thin-bladed spatula around the edge of the cake, then pop open the springform. Transfer the cake to a rack to finish cooling before slicing.

Tips   You can make two smaller coffeecakes by baking making two braids, and baking each in a greased 8-inch round pan instead. They'll take about 25 minutes to bake.

The fillings and streusel can be made several days in advance and refrigerated (heat the chocolate filling slightly to make it spreadable before assembling), if you want to spread out the time it takes to make this cake.