Fresh Milled Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Prep
30 min
Bake
40 min
Total time
1 hr 10 min
Hydration
68%
Fresh milled cinnamon swirl bread is an enriched sandwich loaf rolled around a cinnamon-sugar filling, baked in a loaf pan for clean slices and a tender crumb.
Key Takeaways
- Sifting bran once gives the smoothest swirl and lightest crumb.
- Brush the dough with water (not melted butter) before sprinkling sugar — butter creates gaps.
- Roll tight and pinch the seam shut to prevent air pockets.
- Tent with foil at minute 25 if the top is browning too fast.
About this recipe
Soft sandwich loaf with a bold cinnamon-sugar swirl, made with 100% fresh milled flour. Yield 1 (9x5) loaf. Prep 30 min, proof 2 hours, bake 40 min.
Ingredients
- Fresh milled hard white wheat flour500 g (about 4¼ cups, sifted)
- Warm whole milk (100°F)310 g (1⅓ cups)
- Honey30 g (1½ Tbsp)
- Instant yeast7 g (2¼ tsp)
- Egg, room temp1 large (50 g)
- Unsalted butter, softened45 g (3 Tbsp)
- Fine sea salt9 g (1½ tsp)
- Brown sugar (for filling)75 g (⅓ cup packed)
- Ground cinnamon (for filling)2 Tbsp
- Water for brushing1 Tbsp
Instructions
- 1
Combine milk, honey, and yeast; rest 5 minutes until foamy.
- 2
Add flour, egg, butter, and salt. Mix to shaggy, autolyse 20 minutes.
- 3
Knead 10 minutes until smooth, soft, and tacky.
- 4
Bulk ferment 75–90 minutes until nearly doubled.
- 5
Roll dough into a 9x18-inch rectangle. Brush evenly with water.
- 6
Mix brown sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over dough leaving a 1-inch border on the far long edge.
- 7
Roll up tightly from the short edge into a 9-inch log. Pinch the seam.
- 8
Place seam-down in a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan. Proof 45–60 minutes until 1 inch above the rim.
- 9
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 38–42 minutes (internal 195°F). Tent with foil at 25 minutes if browning fast.
- 10
Cool in pan 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack. Cool fully before slicing.
beginner home milling guide — hydration, gluten development, and grain choice tips that make this recipe work.
Learn about this grain: Spelt guide — flavor, milling notes, baking tips, and four in-depth guides on hydration, storage, and common mistakes. Or browse more Spelt recipes.
Learn a technique
All guides →- How to Autolyse Fresh Milled FlourCombine flour and water and let it rest before adding yeast and salt. Bran softens, gluten develops passively, and the final dough is dramatically easier to handle.
- How to Sift Fresh Milled FlourPass freshly milled flour through a 50 or 60 mesh sieve. Reserve the bran for porridge or rebake it in.
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Related Techniques
How to Autolyse Fresh Milled Flour
Combine flour and water and let it rest before adding yeast and salt. Bran softens, gluten develops passively, and the final dough is dramatically easier to handle.
How to Sift Fresh Milled Flour
Pass freshly milled flour through a 50 or 60 mesh sieve. Reserve the bran for porridge or rebake it in.
Related Troubleshooting
Why is the crumb of my bread gummy?
Cut crumb feels sticky or doughy in the center.
How do I know if my dough is over-proofed?
Recognizing dough that has fermented too long, before it ruins the bake.
Why is my crumb too tight and dense?
Bread with a uniformly tight, small-holed crumb rather than the open, airy structure you wanted.
Related Conversions
Store Whole Wheat to Fresh Milled Flour
Store-bought whole wheat is often months old and has lost volatile flavor compounds. Fresh milled tastes brighter and rises better with the same recipe.
Bread Flour to Fresh Milled Flour
Bread flour is refined, high-protein endosperm. To replace it you need a grain with comparable protein, which means hard red wheat at 13–14%. The swap is 1:1 by weight; add 7–10% more water and autolyse 30–60 minutes so the bran softens before you build strength. Fermentation runs 10–25% faster, not slower — check the dough early rather than extending bulk. Bread Flour to Hard Red Wheat carries the detailed figures. If you want a lighter loaf and can accept slightly less strength, Bread Flour to Hard White Wheat runs +5–8%.