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Flip It and Smack It

February 4, 2009 · 40 Comments

Cinnamon Raisin Pecan BreadBoth members of the Duo recently received KitchenAids during the holiday season. Take a look at your calendar. You will notice that is currently February, and we’re just brushing off the dust and plugging them in. Funny how you can spend years and years pining for something, and then when it arrives, you’re so used to antiquated methods (like stirring cookie batter with a wooden spoon) that you forget you’ve been gifted with technological advances. But we digress.  Whipping up homemade bread has been on the to-make list for the longest time, and now that our respective kitchens have been bestowed with what can only be seen as one of the foodie’s number one appliances, it is now time to get to bakin’. We do not profess to be mavens in all things culinary, so it can be a little nervewracking to tangle with leavening agents like yeast and the thought of having to beat down a sack of dough. But everyone else has done it, and so like a lemming, we followed the crowd.  Lucky for us, the KitchenAid did all of the arm work.

After reading a million recipes and finalizing our own plan of action, we finally came up with something that we hoped would work.  And it did!  We are firm believers in the transformative wonders of homemade bread slathered with your topping of choice. Nothing can compare!  As for all of that flipping and smacking, well, if you don’t have a KitchenAid, prepare to roll up your sleeves and get to work!  If you’re interested in joining the baking challenge as well, check out the Bake Your Own Bread (BYOB) Challenge for 2009 here.

Cinnamon Raisin Pecan Bread – Makes 2 loaves
2 cups warm water
2 packets active dry yeast
5 -6 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting
3/4 cup nonfat powdered milk
1/2 cup grapeseed oil plus more for oiling bowl
3 tablespoons brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
5 tablespoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup dark raisins
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup pecans, toasted & chopped
1 egg white, whisked

1. In a small bowl, combine warm water, vanilla and brown sugar until dissolved.  Add yeast. Let sit until foamy, approximately10 minutes.

2.  In electric mixer, add 4 cups flour, powdered milk and salt. Mix using the dough hook on low speed for 1 minute. Slowly pour in oil and yeast mixture and continue mixing at medium-low speed, approximately 7 minutes.  Add 1 cup flour, raisins and pecans, and mix on medium-low speed until dough clings to hook, approximately
3 minutes.  Add more flour if necessary, but no more than 6 cups total.

3. Transfer to an oiled bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, approximately an hour.

4. Spray two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans generously and set aside. In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface, and cut in half.

5. Roll one half of dough into a rectangle.  Brush dough with melted butter and sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar.  Starting at a short end, roll up dough and seal along crease. Turn the ends under. Transfer to pan, seam side down, and cover loosely. Repeat process with second piece of dough, making sure to leave a bit of cinnamon sugar mixture left. Let loaves rise again, approximately an hour. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

6. Brush tops of loaves with egg white, and sprinkle each loaf with any remaining cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake 15 minutes; lower oven to 350 degrees, and bake 30 minutes more or until top is golden brown. Remove from oven.  Allow to cool before slicing.

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Categories: Breads, Muffins and Rolls · Nuts
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