This French pastry classic is a tender brioche soaked in sweet amber rum syrup, making it a sophisticated and indulgent dessert. With its airy texture and intoxicating aroma, rum baba is the perfect companion to coffee or champagne for impressing your guests.
⏱️180 min
📊Medium
👥8 servings
🍽️Dessert
festivefamily
Ingredients
300 gT55 wheat flour
4 pièceseggs
8 gfresh baker's yeast
100 gsoft butter
30 ggranulated sugar
5 gfine salt
150 mlamber rum
300 mlwater
250 gsugar for the syrup
8 piècescandied cherries
50 graisins
Instructions
1PREPARE THE STARTER: In a bowl, dissolve the crumbled fresh yeast in a little warm water (about 25°C) and let rest for 5 minutes until it foams slightly. In another bowl, mix the flour with salt and make a well in the center. Pour in the lightly beaten eggs and diluted yeast. Gradually mix, incorporating the flour until you obtain a homogeneous and elastic dough. This first stage creates the structure of your baba by properly hydrating the flour.
2INCORPORATE THE BUTTER: Work the dough for at least 10 minutes by hand or with an electric mixer on medium speed until it becomes smooth and elastic. Divide the soft butter into 3 or 4 portions and add it gradually, kneading well between each addition. The butter must be completely absorbed before adding more, otherwise the dough will become greasy. Once the butter is incorporated, add the granulated sugar and mix well. The final dough should be soft, smooth, and slightly sticky.
3FIRST FERMENTATION: Pour the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a damp cloth and let rest at room temperature (21-23°C) for 1.5 to 2 hours until it has doubled in volume. You will recognize proper fermentation when a light finger press leaves an impression that does not completely spring back. This slow fermentation develops the flavors and characteristic airy texture of the baba.
4SHAPE THE BABAS: Preheat your oven to 190°C. Gently deflate the dough, then pour it into individual baba molds (8 molds) that are greased or into a ring mold, filling them about halfway. The dough should fill about two-thirds of the mold to allow for rising. Cover and let rise a second time at room temperature for about 1 hour until the dough slightly exceeds the edges of the molds. Proper rising guarantees a tender and airy texture.
5BAKING: Bake at 190°C for 20 to 25 minutes until the babas are golden on top and a knife blade inserted into the center comes out without sticky dough. You will see a nice uniform golden color. Let cool for a few minutes before gently unmolding onto a wire rack to prevent condensation that would make them sticky. The crust should be crispy on the outside and the crumb tender.
6PREPARE THE SYRUP: In a saucepan, pour the water and sugar for the syrup, bring to a boil and let cook for 2 minutes to completely dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and let cool slightly for a few minutes, then pour in the amber rum. The syrup should be warm, not boiling, to preserve the rum's flavors and facilitate soaking. This sweet and alcoholic syrup is the signature of rum baba.
7SOAKING AND SERVING: Arrange the still-warm unmolded babas in the warm syrup and let them soak generously for 2 to 3 minutes on each side so they absorb well. You will see the dough progressively absorb the liquid. Arrange them on a serving platter, pour the syrup around them, and decorate each baba with a candied cherry on top and a few raisins. Let rest for 30 minutes before serving so the flavors stabilize. Served slightly warm or at room temperature, rum baba reveals all its aromatic complexity and incomparable spongey texture.