Hier geht’s zur deutschen Version dieses Posts
Our ABC April project came just in time to alleviate a bout of winter blues. While my mother in Hamburg told me about blooming forsythias and crocuses, we hunkered down for yet another blizzard.
Usually not the greatest fan of sweet breads, I even might have skipped Hanaâ’s pick, 100% Whole Wheat Cinnamon Swirl Bread, but there is something warm and soothing about cinnamon, and, looking at the snow outside, it was:
TIME FOR COMFORT FOOD!
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| Looking out into our snowy garden |
King Arthur’s original recipe uses a few tricks to temper the somewhat harsh taste of 100% whole wheat: a small preferment, and orange juice.
I know that whole wheat mellows considerably by long fermentation, but with only a quarter of the flour in the starter, most of the wheat didn’t have time to undergo this softening.
And would half a cup of orange juice (though it would add a nice flavor,) really be able to fix the problem?
Using milder white whole wheat was an option, but I had plenty of regular whole wheat in my pantry, so that was my obvious choice.
I decided to give the whole procedure a makeover, working with my preferred stretch and fold (plus overnight rest in the fridge,) to allow for a longer fermentation and mellowing of the wheat.
With this method I could also safely reduce the amount of yeast. What I didn’t cut down on was the sugar – 100% whole wheat needs the full dose.
One more finishing touch: I thought the sweet, cinnamon infused bread could benefit from having a little nutty bite, so I added some walnuts.
And the result? The bread was wonderful! Wheaten goodness without a hint of harsh or “too healthy” taste, pleasantly sweet and cinnamon-y. Just what the doctor prescribes for late winter blues.
BreadStorm-Users (including the free version) can download the formula here.
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| Wheaten goodness, mellow and cinnamon-y |
100% WHOLE WHEAT CINNAMON SWIRL BREAD (adapted from King Arthur Flour)
Dough
28 g/1 oz/1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
46 g/1 5/8 oz/1/4 cup potato flour (or 1/2 cup instant mashed potato flakes)
425 g/15 oz/3 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
6 g/0.2 oz instant yeast
113 g/4 oz/1/2 cup lukewarm water
113 g/4 oz/1/2 cup lukewarm milk
113 g/4 oz/1/2 cup orange juice
71 g/2 1/2 oz/5 tbsp. melted butter
9 g/0.3 oz/1 1/2 tsp. salt
35 g/1 1/4 oz/3 tbsp. sugar
85 g/3 oz walnuts, coarsely chopped
Filling
1 egg, beaten (for brushing the filling and shaped loaf)
67 g/2.4 oz/1/3 cup sugar
7 g/0.2 oz/2 tsp. cinnamon
11 g/0.4 oz/1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
sugar in the raw (for sprinkling)
DAY 1
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| Dough waiting for the next S&F |
Remove dough from refrigerator at least 2 hours before using. It should have grown about 1 1/2 times its original size.
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| Cinnamon filling |
For the cinnamon filling: whisk together sugar, cinnamon and flour in a small bowl.
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| My dough was quite elastic and easy to roll out |
Transfer dough to a lightly oiled work surface (or use a lightly floured silicone mat). Roll into a long, thin rectangle, about 16″ x 9″ (40 x 23 cm).
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| Brush dough with egg and sprinkle with cinnamon filling |
Brush dough first with egg, then sprinkle evenly with filling.
Beginning with a short side, gently roll the dough into a log. Pinch seam and ends closed. Gently shape it into a smooth 9″ (23 cm) cylinder, and place it in lightly greased 9″ x 5″(23 x 13 cm) loaf pan.
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| Brush the loaf with some of the leftover egg and sprinkle with raw sugar |
Brush loaf with leftover egg, and sprinkle with raw sugar. Cover, and let it rise until it has grown over the rim of pan by about 3/4″/2 cm, about 90 minutes, and stays dimpled when gently poked with a finger. (Don’t forget to preheat your oven).
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| The loaf has grown about 1 1/2 times its original size |
Preheat the oven to 350°F/175ºC.
Bake bread for 10 minutes. Lightly tent it with aluminum foil, and bake for an additional 45 – 50 minutes (check the browning – I removed the foil during the last 10 minutes.) It should be dark golden brown and register 190°F/88ºC on a instant thermometer.
Turn loaf out onto a wire rack to cool.
Stored in a paper bag, the bread keeps 3 days fresh. It also freezes well.
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| Not a hint of spring – even Ruffi the Ruffian feels the blues |
If you would like to join the Avid Bakers and take part in the monthly challenge, check here. New members are always welcome!
Brot & Bread 
Just like you, I am not the biggest fan of sweet breads, but with your masterpiece and an Irish coffee while a blizzard is blowing outside I might be convinced otherwise. Very nice bread but that one won't be allowed in the Ploetziade so there is still chance for me haha 🙂
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Wow it looks incredible ! Soo delicious 😉 Unfortunately I´m not quite sure whether I´ll find time to make the swirlbread this month because I´m quite buissy at the moment , but It would definately be a same if I wouldn´t becaue yours looks amazing!
Best wishes Chrissi
by http://chrissitallys.blogspot.de/
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I love cinnamon! But I don't know if I would have the moral strength to combine it with a pure whole-wheat dough…. yours does look good, and surely is nice for breakfast. Maybe some raisins into the filling… so maybe I coud do it too.
I find the avid baker's challenge challenging, indeed- but looking at my timetable prevents me from joining.
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Your bread looks wonderful, Karin. Love that you added walnuts throughout rather than just in the with the swirl.
I've not paid much attention to baker's percentages until recently when I started converting some of my favourite recipes from volume measurements to weights; BreadStorm looks as though it would be very helpful…thank you for the link.
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Somehow I don't think Lutz is too much into American sweet breads/pastry 🙂
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Thanks, Christin, I'm sure I have more time at hand, especially since we are still cooped up here. And this is a nice recipe that you can make any time – or even turn into a pretty cupcake version 🙂
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Ninive, I used to dislike 100% whole wheat breads, when I sometimes bought them at a Reformhaus or Demeter store. They were always brittle, and had this really crude, slightly bitter taste. But, after I started baking my way through Peter Reinhart's “Whole Grain Breads” with long soaking or fermentation of most of the flour, I learned that this doesn't have to be that way.
On the whole, I like the taste of spelt or einkorn better than whole wheat.
Maybe you could join us next time?
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Thanks, Zosia, I like nuts very much, and just cinnamon seemed a bit lame 🙂 I was a beta tester for BreadStorm, but bought the professional version later. I started to enjoy playing around with the parameters, you can visualize the results so fast, if you want to change hydration, or the ratio of different flours. Now, if I find a recipe with much larger amounts than I want to use, I don't have to recalculate every single ingredient, I just put the formula in BreadStorm and change the yield/weight of the loaf, and everything converts.
And when I have questions, I email them, and get an answer very quickly.
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Karin, your loaf looks great. I like to convert most recipes into baker's percent too.
Love that you used the stretch and fold method to knead. My dough was too wet and I am kicking myself for not thinking of this, but then I am not so experienced yet and try to follow the recipes to a T. Next time though I know what to do :-).
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Thanks, Sunita! I think the whiter dough doesn't absorb as much liquid as the regular whole wheat dough. But they should have mentioned that in the recipe, since many people had problems with it.
I usually try to stick to the recipe, too, especially if it's something I never made before, but I bake so many breads that I learned certain things – usually by trial and error.
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