Wild Nettle Pesto Spiraled Babka

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I wandered down to the little Fairy Village in our Enchanted Walnut Grove and discovered a plethora of stinging nettles growing wildly all around their tiny moss-covered houses. It was like a little gift! Nettles are wonderful for your health, such as helping with muscle and joint aches. They can be foraged before they are flowering and turned into delicious sweet and savory recipes such as Nettle Pesto. Folded into a beautiful spiraled babka bread, this creates a truly wild treat.

what is babka?

Babka is a bread made with an enriched dough that is filled with either a sweet or savory filling and braided. This ensures that the filling is evening distributed through the bread when sliced, and it creates a gorgeous presentation! This bread originated in Eastern Europe in the 19th century, and it has become a popular recipe for celebrating ever since. Generally, the fillings are sweet with delightful inclusions such as chocolate, cinnamon, or fruit spreads.

cooking with stinging nettles:

Have you heard of stinging nettle (Urtica dioica)? This wild growing plant has a long medicinal history and has been used to help cure ails in humans for hundreds of years. This plant was quite popular in the Middle Ages to cure joint pain and as a diuretic to cleanse the body of internal toxins. The only downside to this plant is that it is covered in little stinging hairs, which are irritating to the skin and can be downright painful. When they come in contact with your skin, they leave you feeling itchy, red, and can cause swelling - literally like a sting! On the opposite hand, stinging nettles are entirely edible and the stinging hairs are easily taken care of after the nettles are boiled.

You can learn more about harvesting and cooking with lilacs in my Ultimate Cozy Guide to Foraging for Stinging Nettles.

gathering ingredients to make nettle pesto babka:

To make stinging nettle pesto and incorporate it into this savory bread recipe, you will of course have to forage for some nettles! If nettles aren’t available to you, you can easily replicate this recipe with another green like spinach.

• Nettles. To make this pesto turn a brilliant bright green, you will be using the power of pureed nettles! However, not everyone has access to nettles so you can easily substitute this ingredient for fresh spinach. Simply puree the spinach until smooth and replace for nettles in a 1:1 ratio.

• Parmesan Cheese. For a lovely burst of flavor, parmesan cheese can truly make this nettle pesto incredible! Other options would be Pecorino, Asiago, or Pecorino Romano.

• Pine Nuts. Pine nuts are typically recommended for making pesto, but they can be rather pricey. I have also used walnuts or almonds for this recipe and found they work just as well, only altering the flavor slightly.

• Olive Oil. For this recipe, I would recommend using a light flavored olive oil such as extra virgin olive oil.

• All-Purpose Flour. To make this bread, you will need all-purpose flour.

• Eggs. You will need three large eggs for this bread at room temperature.

• Butter. This dough is enriched with salted butter, giving it a depth of flavor and a super stretchy and soft crumb.

IDENTIFYING NETTLES:

If you are becoming more interested in foraging for stinging nettle where you live, then you will want to look out for the identifying signs of this plant to make sure that you are harvesting the correct one! Always be cautious when foraging and do your research before harvesting and consuming plants that you do not know well. For a more professional guide, please read this article from Oregon State University.

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) can be identified most easily by the small fibrous hairs, or spines, growing on its stalk and the undersides of the leaves. It is a native perennial herb.

It has opposite growing heart-shaped leaves with serrated edges, like a saw, and it grows tiny green-ish flowers that bud from the stalk. The stems are square and are covered with small white hairs, or spines. The undersides of the leaves also grow these hairs, but the tops of the leaves do not. They are dark green in color and can grow between 3 to 7 feet tall.

HOW TO BLANCH NETTLES:

If you would like to cook with fresh nettles, it’s imperative that you blanch them first. The boiling process destroys the tiny stinging hairs, making them edible and safe to eat. Simply lift the nettles with a pair of tongs into a large boiling pot of water. Boil them for 3 to 4 minutes, then transfer them to a bowl of ice water for 1 minute to stop them from continuing to cook. Then, strain the nettles in a colander and squeeze out as much water as possible. Store the blanched nettles in a plastic bag in your refrigerator until ready to use. They should last for 3 to 4 days.

how to make nettle pesto babka:

Step One: Begin by making the nettle pesto. After the nettles have been blanched and most of the liquid squeezed out, blend them with garlic, parmesan cheese, pine nuts, salt, pepper, olive oil, and a bit of lemon juice until smooth. This recipe will make a bit more pesto than you will need for the filling, so you can save it to use later for pasta, sandwich making, or something else!

Step Two: Next, begin making the dough. This dough is a brioche, so it needs a lot of time in the mixer. If you are kneading it by hand, grease your elbows! This dough should mix in your standing electric mixer for at least 20 minutes, or until you can stretch the dough thin enough to make a windowpane, where you can almost see through it!

Step Three: After the dough has mixed and had its first proving, which takes about an hour, it’s time to shape the dough. Begin by rolling the dough into a 10 x 20-inch (25 x 50-cm) rectangle. Before spreading the pesto, make sure that it is not seeping too much oil and strain it through a fine mesh sieve if necessary. Then, spread the pesto evenly over the surface of the dough, leaving a 1-inch (2.5-cm) border.

Step Four: With one of shorter sides, roll up the bread like a jellyroll. Pinch the seam and the ends closed. With a sharp knife, slice the roll in half, lengthwise, exposing the green center of the loaf.

Step Five: Gently braid the two halves together, with the green filling facing up. The ends may be a bit awkward to work with, but try to pinch them together as best as you can. Then, transfer the entire braid into a prepared loaf pan. Tuck the ends underneath the bread.

Step Six: The bread will now proof again for about 35 to 45 minutes, or until it has just started to dome out of the top of the pan. During the last 20 minutes of baking, cover the bread with some foil to prevent it from overbrowning.

final thoughts:

This savory bread recipe is the perfect treat to celebrate the stinging nettle season! I have been loving utilizing this incredible wild herb in my cooking the last couple of weeks. If wild stinging nettles are not available to you, this recipe can of course be made with any green or even as classic basil pesto! No matter which green you choose, you will be sure to love this green pesto babka recipe.

xoxo Kayla

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Yield: 8

Author: Kayla Lobermeier

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Wild Bettle Pesto Spiral Babka

I wandered down to the little Fairy Village in our Enchanted Walnut Grove and discovered a plethora of stinging nettles growing wildly all around their tiny moss-covered houses. It was like a little gift! Nettles are wonderful for your health, such as helping with muscle and joint aches. They can be foraged before they are flowering and turned into delicious sweet and savory recipes such as Nettle Pesto. Folded into a beautiful spiraled babka bread, this creates a truly wild treat.

Prep time: 3 HourCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 3 H & 40 M

Ingredients

Nettle Pesto

• 2 cups (100 g) fresh nettles
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup (50 g) parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup (50 g) pine nuts
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) extra virgin olive oil
• 1 to 2 tsp (10 ml) lemon juice

Pesto Spiral Babka

• 6 tbsp (90 ml) whole milk
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 3 1/4 cups (406 g) all-purpose flour, divided
• 2 tsp (8 g) active dry yeast
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 cup (77 g) salted butter, softened and sliced into 1/2-inch (1-cm) pieces
• 1 egg + 1 tbsp (15 ml) water, for egg wash
• Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling

Instructions

To make the Nettle Pesto:

1. Begin by the making the Nettle Pesto. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Prepare a large bowl of ice water and set this aside. Submerge the nettle leaves and stalks into the boiling water and cook for about 2 to 4 minutes. Strain the nettles from the hot water and immediately submerge into the ice water. Then, squeeze out the nettles over the sink, removing as much water as possible. At this point, you may chop up the leaves.
2. In a food processor or mortar and pestle, combine the blanched nettles, garlic, parmesan cheese, pine nuts, salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice. Pulse on high for about 4 to 6 minutes or until the pesto becomes smooth and creamy. Place the pesto in the refrigerator, covered, until ready to use.

To make the Babka:

1. Next, make the Babka. Lightly grease a large bowl and set this aside. In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the milk and sugar to 110° F (43° C), about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.
2. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together 1 cup (125 g) of the flour and the yeast. Pour the warm milk mixture over the flour and yeast and turn the mixer to low-medium speed. Add in the salt and the eggs, one at a time, making sure each egg is well incorporated before adding in the next, about 5 minutes. Gradually add in the remaining 2¼ cups (281 g) of flour until the dough becomes a bit stiff and no longer clings to the sides of the bowl. Knead the dough like this for 15 to 20 minutes.
3. After the dough has been kneaded, begin to add in the butter. Add the pieces individually, waiting for the first piece to be incorporated into the dough before adding the next piece of butter. This should take about 10 minutes. Once all of the butter has been added to the bowl, knead the dough on medium speed for another 20 minutes. The longer the dough is kneaded, the better the structure of the gluten strands will be and the more tender your brioche will be, as well.
4. Shape the final dough into a ball and place it into a large, lightly greased bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise on your countertop for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
5. Line a 9 x 5-inch (23 x 13-cm) loaf pan with parchment paper. Check your pesto. At this point, it may have started to separate. You will want it to be as dry as possible. Measure out 3/4 cup (180 ml) of pesto and place it into a fine mesh sieve. Press out as much oil/liquid as possible and set this aside for now.
6. Deflate the dough gently with your hands and place it onto the counter. Roll it out to a 10 x 20-inch (25 x 50-cm) rectangle. If the dough is bouncing back as you roll it, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rest for about 10 minutes before trying again.
7. Spread the pesto evenly over the surface of the dough, leaving a 1-inch (2.5-cm) border around the edges. Roll the dough like a jellyroll with the 10-inch (25-cm) side. Pinch the seams and ends closed. With a sharp knife, slice the loaf in half lengthwise. Then, braid the two pieces together, keeping the filling side exposed and facing up. Place the twisted loaf into the prepared bread pan and cover with plastic wrap. Let the bread rise until nearly doubled or is just about to dome out of the pan, about 35 to 45 minutes.
8. While the bread proves, preheat the oven to 400° F (204° C). When the babka is ready to bake, whisk together the egg and water to create the egg wash. Brush this all over the surface of the dough, begin careful to not overspread the pesto. Then, sprinkle the top of the loaf with flaky sea salt.
9. Bake the bread for 10 minutes. Turn down the oven temperature to 375° F (191° C) and continue baking for a further 25 to 30 minutes. During the last 15 minutes of baking, you can cover the bread with aluminum foil to prevent it from over-browning. The babka is ready when it sounds hollow when tapped upon with your fingers or it reaches an internal temperature of 190° F (88° C). Allow the bread to cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before transferring it to a wire cooling rack. Once the bread has fully cooled, about 1 hour, slice and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

506

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

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