Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Honey Whole-Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Bread

"Cinnamon & Sugar", the theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC). Cinnamon and sugar, a perfect combination. And Ellie's Krieger's Honey Whole-Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Bread fits that perfect combination perfectly.



Ellie's recipe uses an equal amount of bread flour and wholewheat flour, but I wanted a lighter bread, so I've reduced the wholewheat flour slightly and increase the amount of bread flour. I've made half a recipe for one loaf of bread. The bread is very easy to make, instructions are straight-forward. While the the bread is baking, it smells so "cinnamony" nice. For the filling, I've used slightly more of the ground cinnamon than listed in the recipe.


This is a lovely and delicious loaf of bread. The bread is soft and smells so good with the cinnamon, sugar and the raisins. It stays soft on the next day too. I had slices of this bread with a cup of coffee, so nice!  This recipe is a keeper.


**my measurement for half a recipe to make one loaf, listed in blue
Honey Whole-Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Bread
(adapted from "Comfort Food Fix", Ellie Krieger)
Makes 16 servings
2 cups bread flour (1-1/2 cup)
2 cups wholewheat flour (3/4 cup)
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk (2 tablespoons)
1-1/4 cups very warm water (120F to 130F) (use slightly less than 1/2 cup)
1 large egg (lightly beaten, then use half the amount)
3 tablespoons canola oil (1-1/2 tablespoons)
3 tablespoons honey (1-1/2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon salt (1/2 teaspoon)
1-1/2 teaspoon instant dry yeast (3/4 teaspoon)
Nonstick cooking spray
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar (2 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (1 tablespoon)
1/2 cup golden raisins, soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes, drained and patted dry (1/4 cup)

Place the flours, dry milk, water, egg, 2 tablespoons of  the oil, honey, salt, and yeast into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook attachment, mix on the lowest setting ("stir") for 3 minutes, then increase to the next highest setting ("2") and mix 5 minutes more. The dough should be soft and fairly sticky. (I knead the dough in the stand mixer with the dough hook attachment for about 12-15 minutes).
Place the dough in a bowl sprayed with cooking spray, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let stand at room temperature until its size has nearly doubled, about 1-1/2 hours.
Spray two 9x5x3-inch baking pans with baking spray.
Transfer the dough to a well-floured work surface. Pick up one side of the dough, lifting about a third of the bulk and fold it across. With spread fingers, pat down on the dough to remove most of the trapped gases. Repeat with the remaining three sides of the dough.
Divide the dough in half and roll each half into a flat square, about 8x8 inches. Brush each square with some of the remaining oil. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, and 1/4 cup raisins over each square. Roll each square into a tight cylinder and place each one, seam side down, into one of the prepared pans. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to sit at room temperature for 1-1/2 hours, until the dough fills the pan and springs back slowly when touched.
After the dough has been sitting for about 1 hour, preheat the oven to 375F. Uncover the pans and brush the tops of each loaf with oil. Bake until the bread is golden brown and the sides spring back when pressed, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the breads to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.


I'm linking this post with I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), theme for this week,
Cinnamon & Sugar


and
 photo 77951578-1914-4b72-8eda-9e40a91183ac_zps331eb4b4.jpg


10 comments:

  1. When I saw the title HONEY , I just can't miss out on this post! LOL Love anything honey . This bread looks so soft with lovely swirl . And not forgetting the nice cinnamon frangrant .... sounds like a festive bread indeed ! YUM ;)

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  2. Nicely done bread with the honeycomb crumb structure. Plenty of whole wheat and lovely cinnamon swirl in the midst.

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  3. Oh this looks delicious...i could "smell" it as I was reading about the cinnamon, sugar and raisins within the bread...and it looks so fluffy !

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  4. I love the fragrance of cinnamon... yummy!

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  5. We love cinnamon bread. This looks very soft and delicious.

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  6. Such a perfect swirl! ;-) I love cinnamon bread, warmed and spread with butter and served with a cup of tea, so this bread would make me very happy.

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  7. The honey, whole wheat cinnamon raisin bread sounds wonderful and more healthy than the traditional. Great recipe, Joyce.

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  8. I'd love a slice of warm cinnamon bread please! :)

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  9. This recipe has been on my "to-make" list for a long time but I can never muster up enough energy or commitment to make it. Shame on me for sure because this bread looks wonderful. You've achieved a perfect texture! I'd love a warm slice with some butter - yummy! Or I bet this would make some wonderful french toast.

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  10. Yum, I love cinnamon raisin bread! This recipe looks great and will make it soon. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
    Regards from Myanmar!
    Ping

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