Italian cuisine · Desserts & Sweets

Babà Napoletano al Limoncello

Airy Neapolitan yeast pastry soaked warm in lemon syrup with limoncello.

Ingredients · for 8 servings

• 300 g flour (type 550)
• 15 g fresh yeast
• 4 eggs
• 100 g soft butter
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 300 g sugar for the syrup
• 500 ml water
• 2 organic lemons
• 150 ml limoncello
• 200 ml cream

Instructions

1. Mix the yeast with 2 tbsp sugar and 3 tbsp lukewarm water and let stand for 10 min, until foamy.
2. Knead flour, salt, the eggs and the yeast mixture vigorously for 10 min into a very soft, glossy dough, then work in the butter piece by piece and beat for another 5 min.
3. Let the dough rise covered for 1 hour until doubled, punch down briefly and fill eight buttered molds one-third full each; let rise again for 40 min.
4. Bake at 180°C for 20–25 min, until the babà have risen high and are deep golden brown, and let rest in the molds for 10 min.
5. For the syrup, boil water, sugar and the thinly peeled zest of both lemons for 5 min, remove from heat and stir in the juice of one lemon and the limoncello.
6. Bathe the still-warm babà one by one in the lukewarm syrup for 1–2 min, until soaked through and releasing syrup when pressed, and serve with whipped cream.