Rise Up: Cinnamon Raisin Wonderland

I didn't have plans to bake bread today, having several loaves left over from Monday.

And I had planned to have my grandmother Bammie's bread be my first all-by-myself, from-scratch, homemade loaf of the bread pledge.

But after school, Sis wanted Cinnamon Raisin Bread. From the store. Except we're not doing store bread right now. So, I said I'd make her some. She was actually excited by the prospect (having rejected such offers before). And so we went to the grocery store and bought raisins. And buttermilk powder, just in case. Because I had no idea what recipe I would be using.

I turned to my new, obviously trustworthy King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook and immediately found a recipe. Which we all tackled together (well, the truth is, they abandoned me once the dough was all mixed and didn't reappear). For my first from-scratch loaf, I was probably in over my head, what with there being whole wheat flour, mix-ins, and three loaves! But we do nutsy things for our kids and I just embraced the recipe, including the real possibility of failure. At least we were starting early enough that it would be done before playgroup, so I could hide it if necessary.

Except it wasn't. Either done or necessary. The bread came out--great flavor, excellent texture--just after friends arrived. I was disappointed on three counts (though I think two are related): it stuck to the pans (had I undergreased? used the wrong stuff? Oil, not butter or shortening); it didn't expand much in the pans (were my pans too big? was the dough too stiff?); and the seams never really merged so there were funky breaks in it (which is probably related to the fact that it didn't expand/coalesce). I tried not to dwell, especially because the flavor and texture were excellent and everyone at playgroup thought it was great (it was even better toasted with cream cheese!).

But I've already researched what might have gone wrong and I figure two things: I think the dough was too stiff and didn't rise like it should and, since it was too stiff, I didn't shape it as well as I could. Plus, of course, the pans weren't properly greased. It was a lot of dough and it was hard to knead, which I am still new at (note to self: don't knead on my silicon dough sheet because it slips), and perhaps it wasn't as elastic as it could have been. But it passed the finger-poke elastic test (I didn't know about the second "punch-in" test).

So maybe I shouldn't say it was "wrong." Because it really is fantastic bread. And I made it all by myself.

Though, I think I'm going to tackle something simpler next time.

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Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Fruit

1 cup raisins

apple juice (or water), warmed

Preparing the Fruit:

Cover the raisins with warm water or warmed apple juice and set aside to plump while you proceed with the following.

Proofing Sponge

2 tablespoons or packets active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1 teaspoons sugar

1/2 cup KA unbleached AP flour

Making the Sponge:

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add the sugar and flour. Stir to combine, cover and set aside until bubbly, about 15 minutes.

Dough

1 1/2 cups milk, scalded (heated just to a boil)

1/2 cup sugar, brown or white (or honey)

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

2 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons cinnamon

3 eggs, beaten

3 cups KA Stone Ground Whole Wheat Flour

5 to 6 cups KA unbleached AP flour

1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water (for wash)

Mixing the Dough:

In a large bowl, combine the milk, sweetener, butter, salt, and cinnamon. Stir and let cool to lukewarm. Add the beaten eggs, the sponge, and the whole wheat flour. Combine well. Drain and add the raisins. Stir in 5 to 5 1/2 cups of flour until the dough comes cleanly away from the sides of the bowl.

Kneading and Rising:

Turn the dough onto a board where you've sprinkled the remainder of the flour. Scrape the bowl and add the bits to the bowl. Lightly oil the bowl and set aside.

Knead the dough, adding only enough flour to keep it from sticking to the board. When it's smooth and elastic, after about 10 minutes, place it in the oiled bowl. Turn to oil all surfaces, cover with plastic wrap and a clean towel and set aside in a warm place to rise until doublled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Shaping and Rising:

Punch down the dough, divide into thirds and let it rest for 10 minutes. Shape into loaves and place into greased bread pans. Cover with plastic wrap and a clean towel and let rise until doubled in bulk, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Baking:

About 15 minutes before you want to bake your bread, preheat oven to 375F. Brush tops of the loaves with the egg wash.

Bake 35-45 minutes or until the loaves are a rich brown color. They should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook