Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

I love cinnamon. It has a spicy, delicious scent and flavor that are enhanced when it's heated.

When cinnamon is paired with sugar, the greatest invention (after butter), magical things happen. Babies laugh. Fireworks explode. Angels sing.

All of my favorite things come together in this cinnamon sugar pull-apart bread. It's buttery, cinnamony, and sugary. It pairs perfectly with cream cheese glaze. 

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

Yields: 1 9x5 loaf

Dough:

2 3/4 cups flour (I used half bread flour and half AP flour)
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp butter
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup water
2 eggs (room temperature)
1 tsp vanilla extract


Filling:
1 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
4 tbsp butter, melted

***I just put all the dough ingredients in the bread machine and let it mix and rise***

1. Whisk together the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. 

2. In a medium saucepan, heat the butter and milk together. Once the butter is all melted together with the milk, remove from heat and add the water, vanilla, and eggs. Let it cool until it is pretty warm to the touch. Add this to the flour mixture and mix. 

3. Place in a greased bowl, covered and in a warm place, for 40-45 minutes. 

4. Mix the cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg in a small bowl. 

5. Once the dough is done rising, roll out on a lightly floured surface to be about 25x20. Spread the melted butter across the dough and then spread the cinnamon sugar mixture across. Cut into six strips then each of those into six squares. 

6. Put these squares in a greased 9x5 pan in small bunches to make it easier. Preheat oven to 350. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place for 20 minutes. 

7. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Eat it hot out of the oven! Enjoy with some cream cheese drizzle glaze. 

Cinnamon Roll Pull Apart Bread

Pinterest is the devil.

Do you need reasons why?

It leads me to sit at the computer, hypnotized by its sinful desserts, for hours on end. 

I've been spending way too much time on Pinterest and I think it's quite time for a Pintervention. 

A few days ago when I was on Pinterest, I found this recipe. I HAD to try it. I honestly didn't have a choice. As soon as I saw it, I had no control over what I did from there on out. PINTEREST WAS POSSESSING ME. 

It's cinnamon roll pull apart bread so it's basically the best thing ever. I tweaked it from My Chocolate Therapy. 

Cinnamon Roll Pull Apart Bread

Yields: 1 9x5 loaf (12 servings or 1 serving if you're me-- anything is a single serving if you put your mind to it)

Dough

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp cornstarch
3/4 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp dried active yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup water
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cornstarch

1/4 cup butter, softened

Glaze
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
cream or milk

1. So I used my bread machine for this. I put all the dough ingredients in my bread maker starting with all the wet ingredients (I heated the milk and water so they were slightly warm). I then added all the dry ingredients, ending with the yeast on top. I put my bread machine on the dough cycle and went to class. When I came back, it was gloriously puffy and beautiful! I'm in love with my bread machine (Thanks, Aunt Tam!)

If you don't have a bread machine, just do it like the original recipe tells you to. 

2. Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface into about 18x18 inches. Spread about 2/3 of the softened butter on it and then mix together the filling. Spread the filling on top of the butter. 

3. Roll up and use dental floss to cut the dough into 1 cm thin cinnamon rolls. Brush a little of the leftover butter on top of each one and cover with plastic wrap. Roll them out until they're about 1/2 their original thickness. Stack them in about stacks of 5. 

4. Grease a 9x5 pan and put the stacks of flattened cinnamon rolls into it. Cover again with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place (oven at 170) for about 30 minutes. 

Before rising

After rising-- wow!

5. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until the top is golden. Let it cool for 10 minutes then remove from pan and put it on a cooling rack. Whisk the glaze ingredients together and pour it on the still warm loaf. Bon appétit!

Look at that perfect swirly-doo!