CINNAMON RAISIN BREAD MIX RECIPES

Steps:

• Warm the milk in a small sauce pan on the stove until it just starts to bubble, stirring occasionally.
• Remove from heat.
• Let cool until lukewarm, about 120-125 degrees.
• Dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside until yeast is frothy, about 10 minutes or so (make sure your water is at the correct temperature or the yeast won't activate.) Then mix in eggs, sugar, butter salt and raisins (stir in the cooled milk slowly so you don't cook the eggs.) Add the flour gradually to make a stiff dough.
• Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for a few minutes until smooth.
• Place in a large, buttered, mixing bowl and turn to grease the surface of the dough.
• Cover with a warm, damp cloth and let rise (I like to let my bread rise in the oven with the light on. It has just the right amount of heat and keeps the bread out of drafts.) Allow to rise until doubled, usually about 1 1/2 hours.
• Roll out on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle 1/2 inch thick.
• Moisten the dough with 2 tablespoons milk and rub all over the dough with your hands.
• Mix together 1 cup of sugar and 3 tablespoons cinnamon and sprinkle mixture evenly on top of the moistened dough.
• Roll up tightly (the long way).
• The roll should be about 3 inches in diameter.
• Cut into thirds, and tuck under ends and pinch bottom together.
• Place loaves into well greased (you can use Crisco or butter for this) 9 x 5 inch pans and lightly grease tops of loaves.
• Let rise in warm place, uncovered, again for about an hour.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until loaves are lightly browned and sound hollow when tapped.
• Remove from oven and let cool on rack.
• Take melted butter and spread over tops of loaves.
• After about 20 minutes, lay loaves on their sides and remove from pans.
• Allow to cool before slicing.

Steps:

• Combine milk, brown sugar, and yeast in a bowl or measuring cup. Let sit for 10 minutes, until foamy. This indicates that the yeast is alive and well. Pour the yeast liquid into the bowl of a stand mixer, and add oil and eggs. Whisk to combine the wet ingredients, then add flour and salt. Use the dough hook or a spatula to roughly combine the wet and dry ingredients into a shaggy dough. Add the raisins, then fit the bowl and dough hook to the stand mixer. Knead on medium low speed for 10 minutes. Remove the dough hook, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise for 1 hour, until doubled in size.Flour your countertop as lightly as possible, then spread and stretch the dough into a rectangle that is the length of your loaf pan, about 9 inches by 18 inches. I prefer to use a 9x5 loaf pan.Make the cinnamon filling by stirring together brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Spread this mixture all over the top of the dough rectangle, then roll the dough up as tightly as you can, rolling the long way. Place the roll seam-side down into a greased loaf pan, then cover with plastic wrap to let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375ºF, then bake bread for 40–50 minutes until the inside reads 190ºF to 200ºF with a thermometer. Let the bread cool completely on a wire rack before slicing. Enjoy!Notes:1. The 2 tablespoons brown sugar won’t make the bread very sweet. If you want a sweeter loaf, double the brown sugar.2. I use grapeseed oil, but you could also use canola oil, vegetable oil, a light olive oil, etc.3. The dough will be sticky, but resist the urge to add more flour, as it will make the bread more dense.Storage: Since there are no preservatives, the bread will only keep for a few days at room temperature. I recommend freezing any unused bread.