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This Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread is sweet and indulgent with all kinds of great textures going on. Made with layers of yeasted dough, it's a bit rustic and wild, but still extremely awesome.
One of the things that I love about witchcraft is that it leaves lots of room for messy exploration. Unlike science or psychology where things can feel clinical and oppressively ordered, a witch's space is known for being disordered. Overflowing with drying herbs, bubbling cauldrons, jars waiting to be filled with magic, and heavy book open to random pages.
As a kitchen witch, I've learned to let go of perfection. This is one of the reasons why I fantasized about opening a bakery or cafe but never actually did it. In my own kitchen, I can make a bit of a mess if I want to. I can experiment without the need for things to always work out. There's no expectation that cakes are perfectly iced or portions are precisely the same size or lines are exactly straight. If I want to lick some chocolate off my fingers, no one can stop me. I'm free to create in any way I please.
What makes this Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread so awesome?
This Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread is not for people who like things to look perfect whether they taste good or not. This cake is for people who love delicious flavors, varying textures, and sensual sweetness. It's for people who aren't afraid to get a little bit messy and let nature have her say in the kitchen. This sweet treat is made with yeasted dough, and yeast is a living thing that seems to have a mind of its own. Your layers may burst out in strange shapes in the oven, but the ensuing chaos tastes so great.
So when you need something sweet and spiced and rustic and indulgent. This is the cake for you. It does take a bit of time, but it's easy enough to make. It's also at peak loveliness when eaten warm, so consider making it for friends and pulling it out of the oven about 30 minutes before you're ready to dig in. If you wanted to get really messy, you could just let everyone get right in there, tearing apart layers with their fingers and fully immersing in the sensual experience. Just provide plenty of napkins.
Magical Properties of Cinnamon
Cinnamon is a powerhouse in the metaphysical world. Used for spiritual connection, prosperity, love magick, and as a spell accelerator, its fiery energy is definitely powerful. Ruled by the Sun, cinnamon is sacred to Aesculapius, Aphrodite, Helios, Ra, and Venus. Cinnamon's magical properties include:
- purification
- raising magical vibration
- peace
- healing
- blessing
- lust
- money
Source: The Hearth Witch's Compendium by Anna Franklin
For more on the magical properties of the ingredients in this recipe, check the Kitchen Magick page.
Ingredients
Here's everything you'll need for this delicious treat. You'll find all the details in the recipe card below.
- Flour - all-purpose or plain
- Sugar - caster or granulated for the cake and icing or powdered sugar for the glaze
- Yeast
- Salt
- Milk - whole milk is best but use what you got
- Butter - unsalted
- Vanila extract
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground nutmeg
- Lemon juice
Tips for making Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread
We're making an enriched, yeasted dough, so you'll need to work your dough together with an eye to it being rich without it being too sticky to handle. Add extra flour as you mix if needed, but don't go overboard or your cake will be too dry. You can always knead in a bit more dough after the first rise.
This is very similar to making cinnamon rolls. You'll roll your dough out into a bit rectangle and spread it with butter, then scatter over your cinnamon sugar. But rather than rolling, you'll slice your dough into squares, then stack them horizontally in a loaf pan. Let your layers rise again before baking. They might squish into weird shapes as they press together and rise in the oven. Just let the yeast do its thing.
Let you cake cool for a bit, then mix up your glaze and drizzle it over your cake, letting gravity decide where it wants to pool and flow. Then just dig in and get messy.
I hope you enjoy this Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread with wild abandon. There's no need to be sterile or polite here. Just dig in and be awesome.
Looking for more awesome cinnamon treats? Try this Chocolate Cinnamon Cake of some Mini Chocolate Cinnamon Croissants.
PrintCinnamon Pull Apart Bread
This Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread is sweet and indulgent with all kinds of great textures going on. Made with layers of yeasted dough, it's a bit rustic and wild, but still extremely awesome.
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 240
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
For the dough
- 3 cups plain flour, plus a few tablespoons more for the counter
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2-¼ teaspoon yeast
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- 2 ounces unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
For the filling
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
For the glaze
- ¾ cups icing sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon whole milk
Instructions
For the dough
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 2 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt until well combined.
- In a small sauce pan over medium low heat, add the milk and the butter and heat until the butter is melted, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from the heat and add ¼ cup water and the vanilla. Check the temperature of your liquid mixture with a candy or instant read thermometer. It should be between 115 and 125 Fahrenheit. You may need to let it cool or put it back on the heat depending on how cold your water was.
- Once your wet ingredients reach the right temperature, add them to your dry ingredients, and stir both together with a spatula. Add your eggs and continue to stir. It will seem very wet, but it will eventually start to come together. Finally, stir in your last cup of flour until your dough comes together. It will still be very sticky.
- Transfer the dough to a greased mixing bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel, and stash it in a warm place in your kitchen to rise for about an hour or until doubled in size.
- When your dough is risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured counter and knead an additional 2 to 4 tablespoons of flour into it until you have a smooth dough. It should take about five minutes. Form your dough into a ball and cover it with a clean kitchen towel. Allow it to rest for about five minutes before rolling it out.
For the filling
- While your dough is resting, gently whisk together your sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl and melt your butter for the filling.
- Also butter and flour a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
- Once your dough is rested, you can begin gently rolling out your dough in a lightly floured surface until you have a rectangle that's about 12 inches by 20 inches.
- Use your pastry brush to spread the melted butter evenly over the dough. Try to brush it right to the edge without going over. Next, sprinkle on all the cinnamon sugar. You can use your pastry brush again to spread it evenly over the dough, again up to the edge.
- Now it's time to slice and stack. Start by cutting six equal strips vertically. I use my pizza cutter for this. You'll then need to stack these strips on top of each other. I use my small offset spatula to slice under the strip to make sure it's not stuck to the counter anywhere. Start with the strips on each each working your way to the middle until all six are stacked on top of each other.
- Next slice your stack of strips into six rectangles horizontally. Line up your piles of dough squares into your loaf pan.
- Place your clean kitchen towel over your dough and allow it to rise again for about half an hour until it's filled up your pan.While your dough is rising, be sure to preheat your oven to 350 F (175C).
- Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes until beautifully brown on the top. Allow to cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before turning out onto your desired destination.You'll obviously need to gently turn it upright after you get it out of the pan. Also, it can't hurt to run a butter knife around the edge of the pan before attempting to turn it out.
For the glaze
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the icing sugar, lemon juice, and milk until smooth. Gently pour evenly over your cooled cake. Allow gravity to do it's thing and drip over the cake.
- To serve, gently pull or cut apart a few layer at a time.
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