Baking with yeast is addictive. I prepared by reading as much as I could on the subject before gathering the courage to bake my very first bread. Happy to report it was a success! I may have tried but a simple focaccia but it was an exhilarating experience. Nothing like instant success to nudge you toward baking in unknown territory! And look at me now: sharing a step-by-step process of baking this sweet Cinnamon Wreath!
At a glance the recipe is simple, but as we go along there will be a few things that need you need to focus on. A mystery for me was the addition of milk in place of water, and using butter and egg yolk. But ingredients at hand, I went ahead and embarked on my little kitchen adventure.
I’ve made my own notes in this recipe, detailing it as much as I can and I hope they help you when you give this wonderful bread a try.
Step 1: Get ingredients together, make sure everything including the yeast is at room temperature. The recipe defines the milk at luke warm but if you’re a beginner like me, then I recommend you use a thermometer and ensure it doesn’t cross the 110F mark. Add yeast and sugar to the milk and wait for it to work its magic. It doesn’t take more than 5 minutes.
Step 2: In a large bowl add the yolk, butter – it should be melted, don’t mistake that for room temperature, ensure its pourable consistency – flour, salt and knead it till it forms a ball. In case you feel it’s not coming together or the liquid content is too much, feel free to add in some more flour working it in tablespoon by tablespoon.
Step 3: Go read a book, make the filling and wait for the dough to rise and become double in size.
Ah… now this is where I deviated from the recipe, it calls for the entire dough to be rolled out and that would generate one huge wreath and I wasn’t very comfortable with this, so I divided the dough into 2 making smaller wreathes, making the rolling and shaping easier to handle. Back to the recipe now…
Step 4: Dust the work surface, divide the dough into 2 equal parts and roll the dough out till you achieve a 1 cm thickness. Tip: Use your scale to be precise while dividing the dough.
Step 5: Spread the filling and gently roll up the dough into a log. Leave a tablespoon to brush on top of the bread too.
Step 6: Using a sharp knife cut the log into half, length-wise.
Step 7: Twist the two halves together, keeping the open layers exposed as seen in the photo tutorial. Roll it up into a round shape and then transfer on a baking tray.
Step 8: Brush the remaining filling on top and bake for 30 to 35 minutes in a preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 350F after 5 to 10 minutes so it doesn’t over brown.
Let it cool. You could give it a cream cheese glaze, dust it with icing sugar or warm it up and dip it in a little butter like I did.
There you go. A magnificent bread – buttery, cinnamon-y, a bite of which will make you feel everything in the world is right again.
- 2 cups flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup lukewarm milk
- 0.6 Oz fresh yeast or 1 envelope active dry yeast
- ⅛ cup melted butter
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tbsp sugar
- ¼ cup softened butter
- 4-5 tbsp sugar
- 3 tsp cinnamon
- Mix the yeast and sugar with the lukewarm milk and let it sit a few minutes while the yeast bubbles and foams up.
- Add the egg yolk, the melted butter, the flour and the salt, then knead the dough and shape into a ball.
- Place the dough in a large, greased bowl, then cover and place in a warm space and let rise until doubled in size (about 1 hour).
- Preheat oven to about 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Divide your dough into half and dust your work surface with flour, and roll one part of dough out to a thickness of 1cm.
- Spread the melted butter across all of the dough, then sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar mixture.
- Roll up the dough, and using a knife, cut the log in half length-wise.
- Twist the two halves together, keeping the open layers exposed as described in the photo tutorial. Give a round shape, then transfer to a baking tray (buttered or covered with cookie sheet). Repeat with the second part of dough.
- Top the remaining butter and sprinkle some sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is golden brown.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit after 5-10 minutes to stop it burning. Top with icing sugar mixed with water if you want, just sprinkle some sugar or eat it dunked in butter.
Happy Baking!
Did you notice a small piece of my bread broke? It was still warm and I wanted to get done with the pictures so while transferring, a little piece fell off and instead of adding it back, I just ate it.
This is gorgeous, I love the swirls of cinnamon!
Yeast makes me happy, and raw dough smells amazing!!!! Love your recipe, and it looks really fun to make:-) Hugs, Terra
Love working with yeast, and love the smell of raw dough!!!! Your recipe looks wonderful, and really fun to make:-) Hugs, Terra
This looks really great. That is also the kind of baking I would try or do.
I love baking with yeast and you my dear look like a seasoned pro with this recipe! Beautiful and I bet delicious too!
This is amazing, and THANK YOU for pictorial tutorial – for someone who doesn’t bake much, these step by step is SO helpful!!
Wowzer! I just love how you’ve made this delicious bread into a wreath….such a clever design. Looks beyond delicious…..have never used yeast but this looks like the perfect recipe to start with! Thanks :-)
Wowzer, I love the way you made this bread into a pretty wreath design, looks great. I haven’t used yeast before but this recipe looks like the perfect reason to give it a try! I’m a cinnamon lover too, so beyond excited about giving this a go! Emma :-)
These are so lovely and I’m thinking the perfect recipe to add to my Christmas baking!! x
ooh tht’s a winner; loved the tutorial for shaping the wreath; bookmarked
looks easy enough might be good for a Sunday breakfast :)
That is so impressive! What a gorgeous treat to serve!
That is a very pretty way to make these cinnamon treats!
oh my gosh… u made that!!! love those layers!!! very very impressive… the kitchen must have been smelling amazing.. what with the cinnamon and the bread… i can’t get over those layesr!! :)
What a clever idea this is and honestly, I would have eaten every bit not in the photo :)
This is not an easy bread recipe to dive into and you did it! I love the step-by-step photos-really helpful for trying a new recipe. I bet this smelled so nice while it was baking-great job, An:)xx
Talk about gorgeous! I have never seen a wreath like this with cinnamon bread. Your step by step instructions are fantastic. :)
Oh man this looks good! I love cinnamon bread and yours looks gorgeous!!! I have to try this recipe! It looks like the perfect Sunday morning treat!!
This turned out just gorgeous! I love baking with yeast, too – isn’t it addictive? and almost magical how it rises + transforms? I would treat myself to a big ol’ piece of that wreath if i had it in the house this morning!
Wonderful recipe…!!! I love how it looks…!!!
This is so pretty- and looks pretty delicious, as well!!
How beautiful! It looks like you’re off to a wonderful start with yeast breads! i wish my kitchen smelled as good as yours must have while baking this beauty. Holly
Beautiful! I made this bread a few weeks ago and it was such a hit! Thank you for sharing. What a wonderful start to my Wednesday. I hope your day is full of good food and laughter. We need more of both in this world!
I love your detailed pics & steps … I love yeast baking, too :-)
Oh, I am melting over here… this is such a gorgeous bread, I must make it and bring to our lab, the students will love me forever and ever!
nice job, if I have a chance I’ll try it this weekend and let you know….
soooo, I see you are just about ready for some sourdough starter fun? ;-)
Beautiful! Completely perfect for Christmas time.
This look so so fabulous and very nice on how you twisted the bread. I have never used yeast before too and now after seeing what you did, I should feel confident to use for my baking too.
Simply stunning my friend, I don’t know what else to say :D
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Beautiful! No, it’s PERFECTION!
This looks amazing and intimidating. You are a baking goddess! :)
I completely agree, baking with yeast IS addicting…in fact that reminds me to go out to the store and pick up some more. Especially with the cooler weather I always enjoy making my own bread. Your wreath looks beautiful and I am sure it is delicious as well. Have a wonderful afternoon. Blessings my dear. Catherine xo
sometimes i can have real trouble in the kitchen, esp when it comes to breads. THANK You for the step by step photos! I learn through visuals and truly appreciate you adding these! I can literally smell all this wonderful bead baking up in my tiny kitchen!
OMG baking with yeast is SO addicting!!! This cinnamon wreath is absolutely beautiful. It looks so yummy too!! I would love to make one of these for Christmas!!
This is beautiful and it looks delicious!
This is very impressive, An. It’s almost too beautiful to eat…almost! Who can resist bread? Not me.
I needed your tutorial before I made mine :) Beautiful!
Wow! That is beautiful. What a great tutorial!!
Wow, this is such a beautiful bread! I could make this for the holidays and impress everyone:) Thanks for sharing and for making it look so easy Anuradha:)
How pretty! Looks really nice. My wife has been baking bread lately – she’ll love this! I’ll definitely share this with her (I bake bread, too, but she wants to really master it so she’s doing it a lot). Good post – thank you.
Your swirled loaf reminds me of Christmas with my family, my mom would make a wreath every single Christmas day
Wow,
This looks wonderful!
Your picture tutorial would be very helpful for people like me who do not bake very often.
Incredibly gorgeous and creative!
this is absolutely gorgeous!!
Wow for your first try this looks like one a pro would have made. Great job and it looks beautiful. I bet it tastes incredible! Thanks for sharing the recipe and tips.
See this it’s hard for anyone to believe that you are new at working with yeast breads. What a beautiful wreath and I know it’s delicious!
What a beautiful wreath! I would love to try this too! Baking bread is one of my favorite passtime:D
I love working with yeasted dough! It is a wonderful way to release stree
Love your beautiful cinnamon wreath
What an incredible recipe! And such lovely shots too!
Beautiful! This wreath most taste divine.
Cheers,
Rosa
Isn’t it fun to see how far we’ve come with something we were unsure of at the start. I love the concept of this bread; it’s so unique and beautiful. Your step-by-step instructions are just what I need (the thought of working with yeast dough can still give me hives). Many thanks!
wow!! I am so in awe of your recipes. so pretty!
Making things this intricate terrifies me…. this is such a great tutorial I’m tempted… at the very least I’m going to pin it. It can be my stretch project! :)
Love that you ate that piece from the back. Taste-testing is key.
Butter and milk must made this wreath exploding with flavor and to add to the deliciousness. . . there is your cinnamon. This is just gorgeous and it’s worth the wait.
Just stunning! This would make a perfect presentation for any holiday breakfast!
I love baking with yeast, its almost like therapy to me LOL! The cinnamon wreath looks very comforting during this chilly weather!
Recipes that can be photographed with bites taken out are my favorite :) This looks fantastic!
You have mad baking skills! I’ve never seen this technique before – the results are beautiful!
This is just so so so gorgeous!
That is my favorite way to “fancify” sweet rolls. The wreath turns out looking like it took an intricate amount of braiding and folding…..So pretty!!
This looks amazing! I love the twisted wreath look. Your photos are gorgeous.
I do not consider myself a beginner bread maker, but that wreath is way cooler than anything I ever attempted. Pinning!
Oooohhh I want this, and I want it now! It sounds delicious, and the step-by-step photos are really helpful. Thanks!
These look delicious!
I can’t help but wonder something… 1 envelope of active dry yeast, that’s about 7 gram universally (I think so at least, please correct me if I’m wrong), to convert that to fresh yeast you multiply it by 3. That makes 21 grams of fresh yeast, you’ve written 6 oz.. That’s 170 g of fresh yeast! That would go with almost 2,5 kg flour!! o.o
Something must be wrong? And I really want to bake these, so I’d very much like to know (;
Hey Anna! Its 0.6oz, I added the zero because the point was not all that visible I guess. In picture it shows as 0.6 oz too. One package dry yeast is 21/4 teaspoons which is about 0.375 ounces. Hope that helps.
Happy Baking!
A
Ohh thank you so much for quick reply and good reply!
I will definitely try and bake them now ^^
Delicious (:
You’re welcome, Anna! Let me know how it turned out. :)
Using yeast is therapeutic. This is beautiful. I would eat it right up but I would feel bad with each bite ruining the swirls.
OMG what an impressive undertaking. Always wanted to attempt to make this wreath! Kudos girlie!
I am sure I wouldn’t manage to twist it like that! Looks incredible!
This bread is absolutely stunning!
The wreath looks great.
WOW! I want this. I love the pleats in this, its so beautiful and looks yummy. I’m making this for the holidays.
This post is a prime example of why I love your blog so much: I want to eat every delicious creation coming out of your kitchen; your photos are absolutely gorgeous; and I love and appreciate the step by step photos and easy to follow instructions. Seriously, this cinnamon wreath looks amazeballs!
Pingback: CINNAMON WREATH | Bewitching Kitchen