Sweet Swirls: Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Cinnamon Raisin Bread - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault

Soft interior, delicately crispy crust. Sweet {but not too sweet} cinnamon swirls throughout, and perfectly squishy raisins dotting the entire thing. Sold yet? Go ahead, enjoy. Make a loaf, eat it fresh. Or, toast a couple slices, slather them in butter, and sprinkle ‘em with brown sugar and cinnamon. Heck yes.

CINNAMON RAISIN BREAD
Makes 1 loaf

INGREDIENTS:
BREAD
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 ¼ teaspoons {1 package} active dry yeast
2 cups bread flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon sea salt
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
2/3 cup raisins

FILLING
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

INSTRUCTIONS:
Heat milk and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat until just warm. Remove from heat, stir in the yeast, and set aside for 10 minutes.

While the yeast is doing its thing, whisk the flours and salt together in a large bowl fit to a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Add the yeast mixture and butter to the flours and mix on low speed for 5 minutes. Add the raisins, and mix for another 5 minutes or so, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl and toss to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and place in a warm spot {out of direct sunlight} until it has doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Punch the dough down, and then transfer it to a clean countertop. Stretch it out into a rectangle about 8 inches wide and 14 inches long.

Combine the filling ingredients in a small bowl and spread the mixture over top of the stretched-out dough. Roll up the dough lengthwise and pinch the ends together, and then place the roll in a lightly oiled bread pan seam-side down. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let it rest until almost doubled in size, another 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and place the baking rack in the middle of the oven. When the dough has almost doubled in size, score the top of the loaf, as desired, and then bake for 35-40 minutes, until the loaf is a nice golden-brown colour and sounds hollow when tapped. Cool the bread in the pan for 10 minutes, and then remove and let cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

eatStephanie ArsenaultMay 20, 2019cinnamon, raisins, cinnamon raisin, bread, baking, recipe, yeast bread, yeast breads, brunch1 Comment