When the temperature drops there is just something that makes me crave a warm baked good. Usually it’s chocolate based but this time I had a craving for cinnamon. What’s a warmer spice than cinnamon? I think just about nothing.
So what happens when we get a snowy, cold night? I get a craving for cinnamon bread is what happens. I decided to put my oven to work so that fresh and delicious cinnamon bread was ready for me to devour in the morning. And that is exactly what happened.
This cinnamon bread is a favorite of mine to bake. I’ve always loved cinnamon bread but have never felt strongly about it when it comes accompanied by raisins. Don’t get me wrong I don’t dislike raisins, I just think that when they are in a bread or a cookie they fool you to think they are chocolate chips and that just makes me have trust issues…
But hey if cinnamon raisin bread is your jam go ahead and throw some in!
This recipe may look a little complicated but I promise it’s really not. If you have a mixer with a dough hook that will also make it much easier to whip up.
I unfortunately do not own a big mixer to help me with making bread but that’s just fine by me. I have always found something therapeutic about making bread by hand. If you have never done it I suggest you give it a shot!
Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup whole milk
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, divided
- 2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 3 whole eggs, divided
- ¼ sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Filling
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
- Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add in milk and heat just until mixture is warm to the touch, not hot. Pour into a small bowl or measuring cup and sprinkle in yeast. Stir gently and set aside for 10 minutes.
- In a large bowl mix together 2 eggs and ¼ cup sugar. Pour in the milk/yeast mixture and mix until combined.
- In a separate medium bowl combine salt and flour with a whisk.
- Add flour mixture into egg mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until fully incorporated.
- Turn out dough onto a floured surface and begin to knead dough for about 10 minutes, adding more flour as necessary to keep dough from being too sticky (I added no more than about ¼ cup extra flour). Dough should be smooth and not overly sticky,
- Add dough to a bowl greased with vegetable or canola oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place for 2 hours.
- Lightly flour a surface and turn out dough, shaping it into somewhat of a rectangle. Roll out dough no wider than your loaf pan and about 18-24 inches long.
- Mix together ⅓ cup sugar and cinnamon. Melt 2 tablespoons butter.
- Spread melted butter over the dough and then sprinkle with cinnamon mixture.
- Roll dough from the top down. Make sure to roll as tightly as possible.
- Place rolled dough into a lightly greased loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for an additional hour.
- Beat the last egg together with a splash of milk. Brush the top of the bread with the egg wash.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake bread for 40-45 minutes. Allow bread to cool in pan for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
