Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

My first official recipe is the one I tried tonight, Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread is something I literally stumbled upon on the web on evening. (No, seriously, I was playing on stumbleupon.com, I get alot of my recipe ideas from there, randomly generated information does wonders for boredom!) It comes from http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2011/03/cinnamon-sugar-pull-apart-bread/, and if the name doesn’t already have your drooling, the picture will!

The recipe is a really long, and time consuming one, considering you have to mix things, let them rise, prepare, wait, and then actually bake it, all in all, you are looking at somewhere around a 2 1/2 to 3 hours in totally for the finished product, but let me tell you, it is just as amazing to eat as it is to look at! I hope you enjoy trying this recipe as much as I did!

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

(Makes one 9x5x3-inch loaf)

For the dough:

• 2 3/4 cups plus 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 ounces (4 tbsp) unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tsp  vanilla extract

For the filling:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 2 ounces (4 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted until brown

 

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast, and salt. Set aside
2. Whisk together eggs in a seperate bowl, set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, melt togeter milk & butter. Remove from the heat, add water and vanilla extract. Let mixture stand for a minute or two.
4. Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula. Add the eggs until the eggs are incorparated in the dough. (on the orignal site I got this from she had some really good words of advice, the eggs will be soupy, and it will seem like the dough and the eggs will never mix I gotta say, I had my doubts, but she was right, the eventually did mix!) Add the remaining 3/4 cup of flour and stir with spatula for about 2 minutes. The mixture will be sticky!
5. Place the dough in a large, greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel. Place in a warm space and allow to rest until  doubled in size. (Approx. 1 hour)
6. While the dough rises, whisk together sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside . Melt 2 ounces of butter until browned. Set aside. Grease and four pan. Set aside.
7. Delate the risen dough, and knead about 2 tbsp of flour. Cover with a clean kitchen towl and let rest for 5 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, using a rolling pin, roll dough ou to approx. 12-inches by 20-inches. Brush the melted butter across all of dough and sprinkle with the sugar/cinnamon mixture. (MAKE SURE THE SURFACE IS FLOURED! My strips you are about to cut it into stuck to the counter, I was able to salvage it, but it could have been disaterous!!!!)
8. Slice the dough into 6 equally sliced strips, stack the strips and slice the strips into 6 equal squares. Stackik the squares in the pan like a flip book. Place a kitchen towel over the pan, and set it in a warm place for 30-45 minutes, until it has doubled in size.
9. Cook on 350 degrees for approx. 30-35 minutes or until the top is very golden brown. (I ended up baking my bread for closer to 45 minutes, in an attempt to get the middle done. Really, you just need to pay close attention to it, and DON’T BURN IT!!!!)
10. Allow it to sit, you don’t wanna burn yourself!

Its amazing warm, and I have it in a ziploc bag in the fridge, every intention of enjoying it in the morning for breakfast!

Stay Hungry!

–your blogstress, SMCOMBS