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Pinned this recipe this morning and just had to try it. It turned out fantastic. My parents, 1year old son and niece agree as half the loaf has gone
Helen Ellis
Okay, well, I guess I can eat cinnamon swirl bread all day if I must. Because when that smell speaks to me, game over.
Bjork and I have kind of a dysfunctional relationship with bread. I said WITH BREAD. Sheesh.
No, seriously though. There’s this thing about just having two people in this house, one of which does not like sandwiches. Sand-wich-es. Don’t even get me started on that. When we do buy bread, it goes straight into hibernation in its cozy home in the bread basket. And then I get my once-a-year peanut butter and honey toast craving and I go back to find it dying a slow, fuzzy death. Wahh.
Loaves of bread are just never in our house, ever, and it’s a little sad.
But it’s not like we don’t eat bread. Duh. We both love bread-y stuff (I think they’re called, like, carbs???) For example: donuts. muffins. cake. bagels. waffles. French toast – a Bjork all-time fave. and every other carb ever created.
As of lately, homemade cinnamon swirl bread with a gooey cinnamon sugar center has been added to that list. I just said gooey cinnamon sugar center.
If you’re thinking Cinnabon, you are my best friend. This is totally Cinnabon-esque in that it has that really soft white breadiness wrapped in gooey, sticky, cinnamon sugar love. Except it’s like a loaf of bread and it’s way more versatile than a Cinnabon.
- It’s highly toastable.
- It’s also highly French toastable.
- It freezes like a dream. Today I took a few pieces out of the freezer and in 15 minutes they were soft and oozing with cinnamon sugar filling. How does that even happen?!
I generally feel intimidated by making bread so this homemade cinnamon swirl bread was kind of a big deal for me. I’ve made it four times now and every single time I’ve had success. Is there anything worse than waiting for your dough to rise, punching it down, and baking it into flat, dense little rocks? No. I hate it and it’s a major reason why I don’t bake yeast bread often. But this was a winner! I’m never letting this recipe out of my sight.
If you are not a bread maker, you’re going to become one right now because this is a great foolproof starter recipe. Even if you are a little bit weird and have no interest in eating bread, or toasting it and smothering it with butter and honey, or frying it up into some kind of insanely delicious French toast soaked with maple syrup, just do it for the smell.
Now imagine I’m blasting that sweet cinnamon smell out of the computer screen and into your face. Just do it.
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Homemade Cinnamon Swirl Bread
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 2 small loaves 1x
Description
This homemade cinnamon swirl bread is so simple and has a gooey middle cinnamon layer that stays soft long after the bread has cooled. Perfect for toast!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup warm water
- 2 1/2 teaspoons yeast
- 2 1/2 cups high gluten bread flour (add extra as needed)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
- 1/2 cup white sugar
Instructions
- Mix the 2 tablespoons sugar with the warm water in a very large bowl. Add the yeast and do not stir. Let it sit until creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the oil, salt, and flour. Mix by hand, adding more flour as necessary until the dough forms a large, soft ball. Flour a table or work surface and knead the bread for 5-10 minutes.
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and brush the top with a little extra oil (I typically just use olive oil for this). Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let the dough rise in a warm place for 1 hour. It should be very puffy. Divide the dough in half and punch it down.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll each half into a large rectangle. For more tight rolls in the bread, roll the dough thinner. For thicker softer rolls in the bread, roll thicker. It’s up to you and it tastes great either way. Mix the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and sprinkle over each loaf. Be generous. Roll up the loaves tightly and let rest for a few minutes before putting in the oven.
- Bake on a cookie sheet or baking stone for 30 minutes, or until it sounds hollow. When in doubt, overbake this one. It might look brown on the outside, but that’s okay because the inside really needs to bake all the way to get the layers filled out. And it’s really really helpful to let the bread cool before cutting into it, otherwise it has a tendency to sink down where you cut it. Slice diagonally and eat plain, toasted, or as French Toast.
Notes
Regular all-purpose flour will work for this recipe, but I preferred high gluten bread flour (it was a specific kind I found at a specialty food store) because it seemed to fill out the loaf a little bit more. With the regular flour, I found that there were more gaps in between the cinnamon swirl layers. Still delicious, though. 🙂
- Prep Time: 1 hour 30 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Category: Breakfast
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: homemade cinnamon swirl bread, cinnamon bread, cinnamon swirl bread recipe
A quick thing! High gluten bread flour worked far better than any other kind of flour I tried. All purpose worked fine, but I like the rolls/layers to kind of stick together so there aren’t big gaps in each piece, and high gluten bread flour made it happen for me.
So nice to see a smaller recipe! I have a family recipe from I don’t know how many generations ago but it makes 100 loaves! Yes I have made it. A few times! I don’t have the space or the health or equipment anymore. But every time I have tried to make smaller batches it has turned out horrible! Can’t wait to try this one
This cinnamon swirl bread turned out amazing! The recipe was so easy to follow, and the smell while it was baking was heavenly. I loved the swirl of cinnamon and sugar – it’s perfect for breakfast or a snack. Can’t wait to make it again! Thank you for sharing such a delightful recipe!
I made this cinnamon swirl bread recipe yesterday and it turned out amazing! The swirl is perfect, and the aroma while it was baking was heavenly. Thanks for such a detailed recipe; it made the process so enjoyable! Can’t wait to try variations with different spices next time!
Can you make this in one bread loaf pan? Resulting in a regular loaf of bread?
We haven’t tested that out, but we’d love to hear if you give it a try!
have you ever used brown sugar in the bread
We haven’t tested that out yet. Let us know how it goes though if you give it a try!
Couldn’t you just add some Vital Wheat Gluten to bread flour to make it more high gluten? Also, why can’t you bake this in a bread pan???
Hi Donna! We’ve only tested this recipe as written, but feel free to use Vital Wheat Gluten and bake in a bread pan. We think it’d work out just fine!
Love this bread, best cinnamon bread I have ever made. I have always used all purpose flour and now I know the secret to no gaps and better texture. Thank you so much, I need a great cook book with all roll and breads is there such a cook book?
I have made this recipe more times than I can count in the past year and a half. Easily one of mine and my family’s favorites.
Hi
I was wondering if this recipe can be made with the kitchen aid stand up mixer? I just received one from my kids for my birthday. The Artisan one 🤩
Hi Vicki! We haven’t tested the recipe using a stand mixer, but we think it’s worth a try!
I was excited when I saw your recipe for the cinnamon bread. I also am from Minnesota. I live in a small town north of Duluth. Anyway we use to have a bakery that sold cinnamon bread, just like your bread, but it closed down several years ago. I was always on the lookout for similar breads without any success. I was really excited to see your cinnamon bread on Pinterest. I have recently started making bread, not always successfully. I have a Kitchen aid mixer and I would like to know how long to knead the dough with a mixer. Thanks for sharing. I will be trying the bread this week.
Hi Joan! I bet my family and I drive through your town on our way up to our cabin in Lutsen! We’d suggest following this tutorial for kneading dough with a mixer: https://www.americastestkitchen.com/articles/374-Bread-Baking-101-How-to-Knead-Dough We hope you enjoy the bread!
this bread looks amazinggg! quick question – can you be more specific on how you rolled it or possibly provide pictures/video? when i just made it, they look like 2 long cinnamon rolls with the cinnamon/sugar mix / ends of the rolls jutting out. i’m sure it’ll taste great, but it definitely doesn’t look like a loaf of bread, haha.
Love this recipe!! Made it a for the first time last week and have made it 3 times since!!!
Yay! So happy to hear this, Kathy!
Hi Lindsay,
Can this be made in a stand mixer? I thought that is what you suggested at the beginning of your post but the directions are by hand? Thank you!
Yep, that should work. 👍
How do I alter the recipe if I only have instant dry yeast please?
We haven’t tested this out with dry yeast yet, but it should be the same amount. Let us know how this goes for you, Maude!
Very good recipe! My family and I used to make cinnamon yeast bread frequently while I was growing up, and unfortunately I do not have that particular recipe. This one sounded similar. It was easy, quick, and absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Glad you enjoyed this, Staci!
I only have instant yeast. Do I still need to mix it with water ahead of time?
Nope, you shouldn’t need to.
This loaf is in the oven right now and I can’t wait to try it later! A few tweaks I made: Instead of 2 mini loaves, I kept the dough as 1 large loaf. I rolled it out, added the cinnamon sugar, rolled it up, placed it in a loaf pan and let it rise again for 60 min. It rose beautifully. Baking it for 35-45 min at 350 (using the same cues to know when it’s done- hollow sound when tapped or will test the interior temp with a thermometer). So easy to make!
Enjoy, Jessica!
Hey. Just making this today. I was a little confused about the size of the rolled out rectangle and how exactly to roll it. More photos of the process would be much welcomed. In the oven now.
What kind of yeast do you use for this recipe instant or active?
We used active dry yeast.
I just got done making this.
I only needed 2 cups of flour and a wee little bit for kneading. I used regular all purpose flour aka AP flour.
I rolled it up relatively loose and then I crimped the edges.
At 350F I needed to tent the loaves before they were finished which took the prescribed 25-30 minutes. No overbaking necessary.
I was using an Oster XL digital convection oven with french doors.
SO very good and soft. A bread knife is necessary. It will be turned into french toast later on this evening.
No need to cut on the bias if smaller slices work for your needs.
Next time I will double the recipe and have 2 proper loaves and I might gift one of them. Takes discipline to surrender a loaf.
Thank you!!!!
Thanks for sharing!
How do you keep the “seams” from popping open while baking? Mine opened up and lots of cinnamon sugar goo oozed out and burned on the pan. It also got really dark around the 15 minute mark. I’m not sure what I did wrong? Also, dumb question, but should ALL of the cinnamon sugar mixture be used between the two loaves? I didn’t use it all because it seemed like a lot and I could still barely even roll it up, it kept trying to come undone. Haven’t had a chance to try it yet, it’s cooling, but it smells amazing!
I crimped the edges, along the bottom and on the ends, together by pressing them with my fingers. I do the same thing with my cinnamon rolls.
I loosely tented the loaves with a sheet of aluminum foil about halfway through when I noticed they were already a light golden brown.
You can use as little or as much(within reason) cinnamon and sugar you desire. I probably used more than the suggested amount but I also didn’t measure. Roll it up a little tighter and remember that it won’t stay rolled if you let go at all after you begin rolling. Help it along and it’ll work, regardless. After it is rolled up you can then immediately crimp the edges to protect the shape and hold in the cinnasugar.
Can this be made in a loaf pan?
I started this recipe in my bread maker on dough cycle. Did the rest by hand awesome! thanks.
I’m making your bread not. Can I put it in a loaf pan instead of a cookie sheet?
I will try it this weekend. Can’t wait…