It's Good to Welcome Back the Retro-Classic Rum Baba (2024)

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French Food
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Rebecca Franklin

Rebecca Franklin is a freelance lifestyle writer and recipe developer. Her expertise is in French cuisine, which she writes about and teaches.

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Updated on 02/29/24

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Tracy Wilk

Tested byTracy Wilk

Tracy Wilk is a professional pastry chef, recipe developer and chef instructor, and, most importantly, a firm believer in sprinkles.

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Baba au rhum (also known as rum baba) is a lovely yeast-risen cake studded with dried fruit and soaked in hot rum syrup. Once the darling of French cuisine, it fell out of favor, but it is so good to see it back and as popular as ever.

This recipe features the delicate flavor of citrus with just a hint of orange and lemon zest. Likewise, a small amount of warm vanilla has been added to the soaking syrup to cut down on the rum’s boldness. The result is a rum baba that's full of complex layers of flavor while still holding to the traditional French recipe.

To make this recipe, you'll need 12 baba molds, or you can use a muffin tin if you don't have the molds. Because it does include a hard liquor syrup, and the alcohol is not cooked off, it's best to avoid serving it to children or those who abstain from alcohol.

What You'll Need to Make This French Rum Baba Recipe

A Great Microplane

A Muffin Tin or Baba Molds

A Nice Pastry Brush

“These little rum flavored sweet cakes are such a tasty treat. They are quite rum-soaked, so maybe better for the adults at the party, they are a classic dessert for a reason. The dough can be sticky, but totally worth the effort.” —Tracy Wilk

It's Good to Welcome Back the Retro-Classic Rum Baba (6)

A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

For the Cake:

1 tablespoon dry yeast
3 tablespoons warm water
3 large eggs, beaten
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon salt
4 ounces (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened, more for greasing the molds
3/4 cup goldenraisins, or dried currants
3 tablespoons dark rum

For the Rum Syrup:

3 cups water
See Also
Baba au Rhum - A Guide to French Pastries
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 to 2/3 cup darkrum, to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2/3 cup apricot preserves, warmed
Vanilla Chantilly cream, for garnish

Steps to Make It

Make the Cake

Gather the ingredients.
Stir the yeast and the warm water together in a large bowl and allow the yeast to dissolve for 5 minutes. Lightly beat the eggs into the yeast and water.
In a small bowl, mix the flour, sugar, citrus zests, and salt together. Stir the mixture into the yeast and eggs.
Work the mixture in the bowl with a spatula until it holds together. On a very lightly floured surface, knead the dough with the softened butter until it becomes soft and elastic, about 5 minutes. The dough will be very sticky.
Transfer the dough to a large bowl, cover the dough, and allow it to rise until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
Meanwhile, soak the raisins or currants in 3 tablespoons of rum.
Once the dough has doubled, fold the rum-soaked fruit into it.
Grease the baba molds and divide the dough evenly among them. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 400 F.Cover the molds and allow the dough to rise until the dough has just started to rise above the molds’ edges, 30 to 45 minutes.
Uncover the babas and bake them until they turn golden brown and begin to pull away from the sides of the molds, 20 to 25 minutes
Immediately remove the babas from the molds and allow them to cool on a wire rack while you make the rum syrup.

Make the Rum Syrup

Gather the ingredients.
In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, bring the water and sugar to a boil until the syrup has thickened, 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove the syrup from the heat and stir the rum and vanilla extract into the mixture.

Assemble the Rum Baba

Place the babas into the hot rum syrup in batches, turning them several times, allowing them to soak up the syrup. They will swell and absorb most of the syrup. Continue to soak the babas until all the syrup is used.
Carefully transfer each baba onto a dessert plate and brush with a generous amount of warmed apricot preserves.
Garnish the rum babas with vanilla Chantilly cream to serve.

What Is a Baba Mold?

Baba molds are tall, cylindrical baking molds that create small, individual-sized cakes. They come in various sizes—4 ounces is typical—and are often sold in sets of six. It is a traditional way to bake French rum baba, though not your only option. Muffin tins work well, just make sure to fill them no more than halfway. Or you can make a large cake by pouring the batter into a fluted ring pan. Once baked, you'll have to pour the syrup over the larger cake, resulting in a rum-soaked cake similar to Polish babka, which inspired this French recipe.

French Dessert Recipes

French Desserts
Cakes
French Food
Fruit Recipes

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
405	Calories
9g	Fat
71g	Carbs
5g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories	405
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 9g	12%
Saturated Fat 5g	26%
Cholesterol 67mg	22%
Sodium 207mg	9%
Total Carbohydrate 71g	26%
Dietary Fiber 1g	5%
Total Sugars 49g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 2mg	12%
Calcium 24mg	2%
Iron 1mg	8%
Potassium 140mg	3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Recipe Tags:

Rum
dessert
french
birthdays

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