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| Any day is special with chocolate babka, Earl Grey and a tiara |
This week, courtesy of recent house guests from NYC, I was gifted with a chocolate babka and a new tin of Earl Grey tea and both are connected to three of my favorite television/streaming shows: The Pioneer Woman, Seinfeld and The Crown. Let me connect the scrumptious dots. . .
First, the babka. My son, Matt and his girlfriend, Jenna visited us for three weeks during what we have affectionally referred to as "wedding season" (aka, "the summer of Gulley"). My oldest son, Rob, was married to Haley the beginning of September, and my daughter, Rachel affirmed vows with her husband, Sean last weekend - but more of that to come in the next blog!. In those three weeks packed with wedding events, Matt and Jenna stayed with us for several days and during one of our after-dinner conversations, they brought up babka, a tasty treat that's plentiful in New York. Although I've heard of it - my first encounter was the Seinfeld episode "The Dinner Party" - I had never sampled it, that is until this week.
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| Chocolate babka pairs well with Prime Minister's Tea |
This interesting new-to-moi dessert, sent me searching to learn more, especially since I so enjoyed my first babka experience. According to an OpenLab article (New York City College of Technology), babka can trace its origins to Eastern Europe, particularly Poland and the Ukraine. It's basically a sweet braided bread, which traditional Polish bakeries serve as is or with cheese. But, the European Jewish bakers upped the ante, making it more "rich and decadent" by adding chocolate or cinnamon.
Which gets us to Seinfeld's "Dinner Party". Jerry, Elaine, George and Kramer are invited to a dinner party and Elaine spearheads the effort to obtain hostess gifts: she and Jerry are to shop for a babka while George and Kramer are to secure a bottle of wine. Elaine wants a chocolate babka, but loses out to another couple (also dinner guests at the same party) and has to settle for a cinnamon babka, which she feels is second best.
Searching for how to create my own babka, I struck gold with The Pioneer Woman, my go-to Food Network show featuring Ree Drummond. Not only did I find a wonderful recipe on-line, but discovered, contributing writer to The Pioneer Woman's Food and Friends, Bridget Edward's first babka encounter was also from Seinfeld (a show that influenced a generation and introduced us to so many descriptive phrases including, "sponge worthy", "no soup for you" and "it's Festivus for the rest of us").
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| Chocolate babka, rated number one by BTS and Elaine. But is it really perfect for sharing? |
So, what does one pair chocolate babka with? Well, preferably "Prime Minister's Tea" - an Earl Grey variety from The Republic of Tea, part of "The Crown" collection based on the Netflix series which covers the reign of Queen Elizabeth II from the 1940's to current times. (I have openly confessed to binge watching in a previous blog (The Crown: My own degree of separation from Royalty, Lord Spencer).
Most friends and BTS followers know my favorite tea is Earl Grey. I love most varieties, but some of my colleagues like a little less citrusy blends. In that respect, I believe Prime Minister's Tea has broad appeal - it's a black tea blend with bergamot but the citrus flavor is not excessive. Plus, you have the bonus of John Lithgow's Churchill on the label to connect you to The Crown. As noted on the tea tin, Churchill's quote says it all: "I'm easily satisfied with the very best".
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| NYC guests, Jenna and Matt at rehearsal dinner with Rob, Chris and your tea blogger, Barb |
As the temperatures get cooler and the leaves begin changing color, like Seinfeld's "summer of George", our wedding season is over. It was a busy, but amazing time filled with special memories of friends and family gatherings. On the upside of having the weddings behind us, with this new found leisure time, I'm going to tap back into some of my favorite shows with babka and tea at the ready.
The label of my chocolate babka says it's perfect for sharing, but is it really? Pass me the remote, a cup of tea and that loaf of doughy-goodness all for me. Get too close and you may hear "no babka for you!".
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