Babka with Spinach Pesto

INSTRUCTIONS

• 1
  In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients and make a well in the center. Pour in the starter, egg and egg yolk, and pieces of butter. Knead the dough until it is beautifully soft and elastic (when you stretch it between your fingers, it shouldn't tend to crack, but rather hold beautifully and spring back. This takes about 10 - 12 minutes of kneading with a stand mixer on low speed (if you don't have a mixer, first mix with a wooden spoon and once the ingredients combine, knead by hand).
• 2
  First, make the starter – crumble the yeast and mix it in a bowl with a teaspoon of sugar. This will create an almost liquid paste. Then stir in all the warm milk. Cover with a cloth and let the starter rise in a warm place (you can help it by, for example, placing the bowl with the starter in a warm (not hot) water bath). The starter should rise within approximately 10 - 12 minutes. If it doesn't rise, it's better to make a new one.
• 3
  Let it rise in a warm place, in a bowl lightly greased with oil and covered with foil (a warm water bath will help again). It should roughly double (or even two and a half times) in volume.
• 4
  While the dough is rising, prepare the pesto. In a blender (chopper), blend fresh baby spinach, fresh basil leaves, nuts, salt, garlic, and olive oil to taste – add enough oil so that the pesto is nicely combined; it shouldn't be dry, but it also shouldn't be swimming in oil.
• 5
  Roll out the risen dough into a rectangle 40 x 35 cm (dough thickness approx. 1.5 cm), so the longer side will be directly in front of you, and the shorter side perpendicular to it. Spread pesto over the entire surface. Roll it up like a roulade (tighten gradually) and press the seam with your fingers to hold it nicely. Cut the rolled roulade lengthwise in half, leaving one end uncut (this will make it easier to work with). Twist one strand over the other until a spiral is formed (a two-strand braid). Lightly press the ends together and tuck them under the roulade.
• 6
  Place the braid into a loaf pan lined with baking paper, loosely cover with foil, and let it rise again for about 45 minutes to an hour in a warm place.
• 7
  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180° C (top and bottom heat). Brush the risen braid in the pan with beaten egg and place the pan in the oven. Bake for about 50 minutes. Watch the color; if the babka starts to brown too much towards the end of baking, cover it with aluminum foil.