BREADS - CINNAMON SWIRL BREAD

Makes one 9-inch loaf

DOUGH

½ cup whole milk

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces

1 envelope (about 2 ¼ teaspoons) instant yeast

½ cup warm water (about 110F)

1/3 cup (2 1/3 ounces) sugar

2 large eggs

1 ½ teaspoons salt

3 ¼-3 ¾ cups (16 ¼ to 18 ¾ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface

FILLING

¼ cup (1 ¾ ounces) sugar

5 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Milk for brushing

GLAZE

1 large egg

2 teaspoons milk

FOR THE DOUGH

Heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan or in the microwave until the butter melts.  Cool until warm (about 110F).

Meanwhile, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle.  Beat in the sugar and eggs and mix at low speed to blend.  Add the salt, lukewarm milk mixture, and 2 cups of the flour; mix at medium speed until thoroughly blended, about 1 minute.  Switch to the dough hook.  Add 1 ¼ cups more flour and knead at medium-low speed, adding more flour sparingly if the dough sticks to the sides of the bowl, until the dough is smooth and comes away from the sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes.  Turn the dough onto a work surface.  Squeeze the dough with a clean dry hand.  If the dough is sticky, knead in up to ½ cup more flour to form a smooth, soft, elastic dough.  Transfer the dough to a very lightly oiled large bowl.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until doubled in size, 2 to 2 ½ hours.  The ideal rising temperature for this bread is 75F.  After the rise, punch down the center of the dough once.  (The dough can be refrigerated, cover, up to 18 hours.)  Making sure not to fold the dough, turn it onto an unfloured work surface; let the dough rest about 10 minutes.

FOR THE FILLING

Grease the bottom and sides of a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan.  Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.

Press the dough neatly into an evenly shaped 8 by 6-inch rectangle.  With a short side of the dough facing you, roll the dough with a rolling pin into an evenly shaped 18 by 8-inch rectangle.  Brush the dough liberally with the milk.  Sprinkle the filling evenly over the dough, leaving a ½-inch border on the far side.  Starting at the side closest to you, roll up the dough, pinching the dough gently with your fingertips to make sure it is tightly sealed.  To keep the loaf from stretching beyond 9 inches, push the ends in occasionally with your hands as you roll the dough.  When you finish rolling, pinch the seam tightly to secure it.  With the seam-side facing up, push in the center of both ends.  Firmly pinch the dough at either end together to seal the sides of the loaf. 

Place the loaf, seam-side down, into the prepared pan; press lightly to flatten.  Cover the top of the pan loosely with plastic wrap and set aside to rise.  Let rise until the dough is 1 inch above the top of the pan, about 1 ½ hours, or about 1 hour longer if the dough has been refrigerated.  As the dough nears the top of the pan, adjust an oven rack to the center position and heat the oven to 350F.

FOR THE GLAZE

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk.  Gently brush the top of the loaf with the egg mixture.

Bake until the loaf is golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted at an angle from the short end just above the pan rim into the center of the loaf reads 185 to 190F, 30 to 35 minutes.  Remove the bread from the pan and cool on its side on a wire rack until room temperature, at least 45 minutes.  The bread can be double-wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for 4 days or frozen up to 3 months.

HAND-KNEADED – use a wooden spoon to incorporate all the ingredients.  Knead for 12 to 15 minutes.   

From Baking Illustrated by The Editors of Cook’s Illustrated.