Cinnamon Raisin Bread

A winter blizzard, my cute kids running around playing and a cinnamon scent floating out from my oven... what could be better! This bread was perfect and beautiful. My sister-in-law passed this bread machine recipe along to me and it quickly became a family favorite! I made a few changes from the original recipe simply because it called for some ingredients I didn't have. It sliced perfectly, raised nicely and was soft and moist. For wheat bread, it was not heavy or dense at all. I have decided that, besides being this delicious sweet bread, it would also make a great all purpose sandwich bread simply by leaving out the raisins and backing down to 1/2 TBSP of cinnamon. I am looking forward to making it again!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup plus 2 TBSP hot-ish water (I know, not an official baking term!)

3/4 cup milk

1 TBSP yeast

3 TBSP brown sugar

2 cups unbleached flour

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

2 TBSP olive oil

1 1/2 TBSP cinnamon

2 tsp salt

1 cup raisins

Heat the water. You want it to be a bit hot to the touch because of the cold milk being added. The end liquid result should be a wamer luke-warm temperature. In a stand mixer, mix the water, milk, yeast and sugar for a few seconds. Add in the flour, oil, cinnamon and salt. Mix on medium/low for 5 minutes. Add in the raisins and mix for another 5 minutes. Grease a loaf pan. Remove from mixer and put directly into the pan. Press lightly to form it to the pan. Cover with a towel and raise, in a warmer area, for one hour. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-37 minutes. Allow to cool for a bit in the pan and then remove onto a cooling rack.

This made a larger standard looking bread loaf. For 2 small loaves, divide the dough in half and place in pan. Raise for 30 minutes or so and bake for 30 minutes.

If you don't have a stand mixer, just follow the steps in a bowl with a wooden spoon. Knead on a floured surface for the same amount of times. This will take some effort but it will give you a light end result. For a bread machine, choose the dough setting. Add in all the ingredients at once starting with the water and ending with the salt. Salt inhibits the yeast. When the dough setting is done, remove and put into loaf pan. Resume directions from that step.