Spelt Cinnamon Swirl Bread
A similar recipe to this spelt cinnamon swirl bread first appeared on my former blog, The Culinary Jumble. You might find yourself here after clicking on one of my old links, and a little confused as the recipe, instructions and images have been changed.
This spelt cinnamon swirl bread makes the best toast. Now, that’s not to say that it isn’t divine right from the oven, all squidgy and warm, but I prefer it toasted. And believe me, this loaf toasts like an absolute dream.
Have you ever made a cinnamon swirl bread and noticed that when you slice it, you have massive holes? The taste is there, absolutely; but if you’re out to impress, you may prefer not to have gaps that are a little unsightly. I’ve made cinnamon bread many times, using both bread flour and spelt, and they often had these gaps:
As you can see, there is virtually no bread around the cinnamon filling, and you always want as much bread as possible. Good news is, there is a way to reduce the gaps. I found great advice from King Arthur, with different ways to reduce the gaps in your cinnamon swirl bread.
One of the suggestions was to use egg instead of butter before spreading over your cinnamon and sugar, and it seemed to work. I also tried hard to keep the dough tight when rolling it, which also helped. That being said, I wasn’t able to eliminate all the gaps, and you can see where I was a little loose at the beginning of rolling. Plus, my swirl is not dead centre either, but who cares? None of the afore-mentioned things affect the taste at all.
I’ve mentioned in several posts about how spelt behaves in bread. I don’t notice anything different at all in cookies, cakes and pies, but bread can be a little trickier. I’ve never noticed it with bread that is pushed together, for example my super soft hotdog buns, but loaves most definitely need a little more attention. Spelt bread needs a long proofing to prevent it bursting when baking. I also like to bake it a little slower, too.
I didn’t cut into this spelt cinnamon swirl bread until the morning after baking, and although it was still soft, it had a denser crumb. For those of you who bake regularly, it’s not so strange to notice that freshly baked bread quickly loses its freshness. Also, spelt can have a denser feel in breads, too. I wanted to have firm slices for my images, but I am certain that this bread would be absolutely soft and delicious straight out of the oven.
Make sure to tag me @thespeltkitchen on Instagram if you make this cinnamon swirl bread (or any of my other recipes). I get such a kick out of seeing you make them!
Spelt Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Ingredients
Dough:
- 1 small egg
- 160ml (½ cup + 2 tbsp) milk
- 35g ( 2 tbsp + 2 tsp) butter (cold and chopped into small pieces)
- 350g (2 + ¾ cups) spelt flour (see note 2)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Filling:
- 1 small egg
- 60g (¼ cup) brown sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons cinnamon (depending on how much you like it)
- pearl sugar (optional)
Instructions
- In a bread machine, stand mixer or bowl, add the egg, milk and butter.
- Add in the dry ingredients, and set the bread machine or stand mixer going (or use your hands, if you prefer) until you're left with a fairly sticky dough. If you feel you need more flour, add just a touch, but the dough is meant to be on the sticky side. Knead for around 10 minutes, until the dough is elastic.
- Cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave in a warm place to proof for around 90 minutes. If you are not using spelt flour, you may only need 60 minutes. The dough is ready when it has doubled in size, and if you push your thumb into the dough, the indent remains for a while but springs back.
- Pre-heat the oven to 175℃ (350℃). Grease and line a fairly small loaf tin (mine was 23cm x 13cm / 9" x 5"). I don't line the whole pan, just the middle, which I leave with a little overhang, making it easier to remove the bread from the pan.
- Roll out the dough to a rectangle of around 23cm x 30cm (9" x 122"), with a depth of around 1cm. Have the shorter edge facing you.
- Whisk the egg well, and brush all over the dough (keep the remaining egg).
- Mix the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the dough, using your hands to spread it evenly.
- Taking the shorter edge (facing you) tightly roll the dough. Finish with the seam facing down.
- Tuck the sides underneath to fit the pan you are using, and place in the pan. You can either leave the roll as it is (to create a rounder loaf) or press it down to fit the whole pan as I did.
- Cover with a tea-towel and leave to rest for a further 30 minutes.
- When ready, brush over more of the egg, and sprinkle with pearl sugar (if using).
- Bake for around 20-25 minutes, then remove from the oven, and allow the bread to cool for a while before removing from the pan. Enjoy warm, or the next morning as toast.
Notes
