please help develop a fluffy stretchy texture, cinnamon chip bread
Hi everyone,
I want to make a bread that I am intrigued about. I have never had it or seen it in person. But of course I have heard huge praises. Great Harvest's Cinnamon Chip Bread.
Its a white sandwich type bread with cinnamon chips in it. The ings are listed as white flour, water, cinnamon chips, honey, yeast, sugar, salt, eggs, ground cinnamon. There is also a cinnamon swirl version of it which states, same dough but 'spread out on the table, covered with brown sugar and cinnamon, rolled into a swirl and topped with melted butter sprinkled with more brown sugar and cinnamon'.
The recurrent praise is for its flavor but more for its utterly soft, luscious texture.
I know I cannot make IT but I want make a bread that tastes like that.
I have some pictures of it.
(I still totally do not get how to post and manage pictures on this site so...)
There is a picture of the whole cinnamon chip bread cut into a few slices. A picture of the cinnamon swirl loaf cut down the middle. And close up of a slice of the cinnamon swirl including crust.
All this to ask, hot to achieve this soft, shaggy, stretchy (kind of like challah or brioche) texture? The edges and the domed top kind of buckle softly.
The ings do not list milk or fats and eggs are way down on the list.
I am ok with using some dairy and fats.
Should I use the TANGZHONG method?
Or do you know a simple white bread recipe that produces this kind of texture that is easily tweaked to make a cinnamon chip bread?
lastly, really, if I just spread the top of the unbaked loaf thickly with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar I will get the crunchy, sweet crust and it wont burn?
Thank you so much!
It's all about the kneading, refer to this post by txfarmer. I learned a lot from her when it comes to soft breads which are the preferred breads here. Now, I knead my dough longer than I used to before reading her post. Oh, I really miss the Empress, I hope to see more from her soon.
I think you're right on target with the tangzhong method. You can make soft and fluffy bread without it by kneading intensively and incorporating lots of fat, but those breads go hard quickly at room temperature. Tangzhong breads stay fluffy even without reviving in a toaster.
I've also found that cooked oatmeal porridge makes bread very soft and stretchy. It's the same principle as the tangzhong method - you incorporate cooked, gelatinized starch into the dough to make it softer. If you use instant oats, the grains almost melt completely into the dough. The flavor of oatmeal would work well in a cinnamon bread as well.
As for the crunchy crust, as long as you're baking at a lower temperature (no higher than 375), you shouldn't have problems with burning. In any case, have aluminum foil handy to stop the browning process if necessary. As an alternative, you could brush with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar after the bread finishes baking.
@palwithnoover: thank you so much for links to her posts. I spent quite a while reading them. Its remarkable her window pane tests! I am aware how much the right technique which includes timing makes the texture....I am just trying to figure out what I need. and big kneading is important.
@yy: With your endorsement I think I will go for the Tangzhong method for the first try. The idea of oatmeal porridge sounds incredible! Please, if you don't mind can you start me off with incorporating oatmeal porridge in a white bread recipe? Approximately how much oat + water to use for a given amount of white flour, etc? Instructions or examples? Sounds like you have used it? I would definitely, definitely want to try that!
Thank you!