Bread Recipes Cinnamon

Adapted from my orange cranberry bread, this vanilla flavored cinnamon swirl quick bread is moist and soft with a thick ribbon of cinnamon sugar swirled inside. You only need a handful of very basic ingredients and there’s no mixer required. This cake-like bread will remind you of cinnamon rolls, but takes a fraction of the time to prepare!

Do you ever get the baking itch? (Of course you do, why am I even asking?!) But what about the desire to make something truly warm, cozy, and comforting? Where not only that first bite soothes the soul, but the smell of it baking is satisfying too. My cinnamon swirl quick bread checks all those boxes.

In terms of texture, it’s not quite as dense as pound cake, but it’s definitely heavier than vanilla cake. I like to compare it to apple cinnamon bread and cinnamon swirl banana bread, only without the apples or bananas.

The Best Bread Machine Cinnamon Raisin Bread With A Secret Ingredient

Have you ever made my cinnamon swirl chocolate chip bread? Today’s recipe is a lot like it, only minus the chocolate chips.

I swapped the 1 cup of buttermilk for sour cream and milk. I wanted a slightly denser crumb, while keeping each bite totally tender and soft. Sour cream is a magical ingredient in cakes, cupcakes, breads, muffins, and more. I found that 1/2 cup sour cream and 1/2 cup milk made the bread a little too dry and dense, but 1/3 cup sour cream and 2/3 cup milk was perfect. Brown sugar can weigh down the bread, so I used all regular white sugar. I also increased the vanilla extract and the amount of sugar in the cinnamon swirl. (Thicker swirl!) All of these small changes made a very big difference and you can see similar variations with my orange cranberry bread and peach bread recipes!

To assemble the cinnamon swirl, layer half of the bread batter into your greased loaf pan. Top with almost all of the cinnamon sugar (as noted in the written recipe below, reserve 2 Tablespoons for the topping). Pour and gently spread the remaining batter on top. Sprinkle with remaining 2 Tablespoons of cinnamon sugar, then use a knife to swirl.

Cinnamon Sugar Swirled Apple Butter Bread.

Yes! For an extra thick cinnamon sugar swirl inside, we need an extra amount layered in. There’s A LOT. If you’re looking to spice up the flavor, try using a chai spice blend instead. Check out my white chocolate chai snickerdoodles and use the sugar/chai spice “topping” as the filling here. (Still reserving 2 Tablespoons of it for this bread’s topping.) There are more flavors and variations listed in the recipe notes below.

One of my favorite parts is the cinnamon sugar around the edges. Some of the cinnamon sugar from the center may seep out, creating an irresistible crisp/chewy crust.

Baker’s Tip:Two layers of wrap is key! The first layer keeps the bread fresh and the aluminum foil ensures no condensation will seep in. Double layer = maximum freshness and no freezer burn. Moisture is the enemy, so don’t be afraid to add another layer of Press & Seal or aluminum foil.

Moist Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread

This vanilla flavored cinnamon swirl quick bread is moist and soft with a thick ribbon of cinnamon sugar swirled inside. Feel free to turn this recipe into muffins or mini loaves. See recipe notes below.

Sally McKenney is a professional food photographer, cookbook author, and baker. Her kitchen-tested recipes and thorough step-by-step tutorials give readers the knowledge and confidence to bake from scratch. Sally has been featured onJuicy rationalizations aside, there are few things yummier than homemade cinnamon bread. Eat it sliced off the loaf, toasted and smeared with butter…or step things up and use it to make French or cinnamon toast. And take delight in knowing that no storebought version of this stuff will ever, ever compare.

I left the raisins out, as I wanted to keep things simple. But I’ll tell you down below where you can add them in if you’re in the mood.

Vegan Cinnamon Bread

Heat the butter in a saucepan or pot with 1 cup of milk. I used 2%, but if I’d had whole milk in the fridge, I would have used that.

I love using whole milk in baking. It makes me feel like a rebel, which makes me feel dangerous, which makes me feel like a brunette.

Now, let the milk/butter mixture cool until it’s warmer than lukewarm but not overly warm. Then grab 2 1/2 teaspoons of active dry yeast…

Gluten Free Cinnamon Swirl Bread

…And sprinkle it over the liquid. Stir it around just a little bit, then let the mixture sit for about ten minutes. That’ll wake the yeast from its deep sleep.

Active dry yeast is sold in either packets or jars; I usually go for the jars, because then I can measure whatever quantity I need. The packets are exactly 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast, and if I need a little more than that, I have to open another packet, use just a little of it, then try to be organized and neat enough to close the packet and store it without spilling it all over the cabinet.

Now throw some sugar and eggs into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. The reason I’m using the paddle attachment is that this is a dough. If it’s a dough, I use the paddle attachment.

The Best Cinnamon Swirl Bread Recipe

It’s best if your eggs aren’t straight out of the fridge for this recipe, because if the egg/sugar mixture is too cold, it’ll stop the yeast magic from continuing. So just remove the eggs from the fridge a couple of hours before you want to make the dough, and you should be fine. (I’ll also show you another trick for helping your yeast along here in a second.)

Next, switch out the paddle for the dough hook attachment. I hardly ever use this thing, but when I do, I’m always thankful for its existence.

Knead the dough on medium speed for about ten minutes. It’ll slowly slap around the bowl and make all kinds of weird noise. If, after the ten minutes, the dough seems overly sticky—as in, you even think about sticking your finger in the bowl and your fingers will be covered with dough—add in 1/4 cup of flour and knead for another 5 minutes or so. Note that the dough should be slightly sticky and should stick to your fingers just a little bit…just not overly sticky/messy.

Cinnamon Streusel Bread

Meanwhile, I’ve been warming up my metal bowl by filling it with hot, hot water and allowing it to sit for a few minutes. (You can also stick a glass bowl in the microwave for a couple of minutes to get it nice and warm.)

Cover the bowl in plastic wrap, then set it in a spot in your kitchen that’s slightly warm and definitely draft-free. You’ll want the dough to rise for at least 2 hours. If you have time to let it go longer, even better.

About this. I have found, through much trial and error, that in my kitchen, I have to actively create a warm, yeast-friendly environment when I make bread products. First of all, Marlboro Man and I are warmnatured and keep the thermostat in our house at 68. Yes, we’re freaks. But 68 degrees just isn’t a warm enough environment for yeast to do its thing. So I have all kinds of weird tricks where I heat an iron skillet or griddle on my stove, turn off the heat, then set the bowl on top. Often, I’ll cover the plastic wrap-covered bowl with a tea towel to “trap” the heat in. You don’t want to go overboard, of course—you’d never want to get the bottom of the bowl hot to the touch. But you definitely want things to be on the slightly warm (not room temperature) side.

Cinnamon Sugar Bread

Interestingly, the kitchen at the Lodge has proven to be quite hospitable to yeast situations. And it’s just a couple of miles away. Go figger!

Roll it out into a rectangle. Stick your loaf pan in the front of the rectangle and make sure it’s not too wide. After this stage, I used my hands to straighten and mold the sides of the rectangle so it became very uniform and symmetrical. At the end, I placed the loaf pan in front of the rectangle to make sure the dough wasn’t wider than the pan.

And sprinkle it evenly over the top. This is where you could also sprinkle on raisins if you’re into that sort of thing.

Cinnamon Swirl Raisin Bread Recipe

Starting at the very back, roll the rectangle toward you carefully, until you wind up with a neat, tight roll of dough.

Now, butter the loaf pan generously (I always have a softened stick of butter sitting out on the counter for this reason!)

Cover with plastic wrap, then do whatever little tricks you have to do to get that warm environment back. I heated up this little iron grill pan, turned off the heat, then set the loaf pan right inside. I also covered it with a big tea towel to trap in the warmth.

Homemade Cinnamon Bread

Incidentally, the times I’ve failed miserably at bread products have been the times I’ve gotten impatient