I am not a morning person. No one who has ever interacted with me before about 8AM would even think about disputing this fact. Without fail, whenever my alarm goes off I am bleary eyed, disoriented and usually mumbling something including the words “why me” or “it cannot be that time already.”
But there’s one thing that makes me fight the desire to hit the snooze button, roll over and cocoon myself in my down comforters for just a few more minutes. It makes me get up and face my cold bedroom with a dazed smile because I know that it is waiting faithfully for me in the kitchen. This wonder of humanity that makes a person like me do something like that is… toast. Yes, dry bread. I don’t know what it is about it but as I slide a slice of the wheaty-est whole grain variety down into it’s little warming chamber I can’t help but smile. And when it pops jauntily up, browned to perfection I eat it straight, nothing on it.
The other week I decided it was time to branch out a little and maybe try bread with something else in it. Like raisins. So I searched and found and tweaked the recipe you find below. It’s really a great one, just the right sweetness and really quick and simple. I hope you enjoy it. I certainly do.
Whole Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Bread
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 1/4 cups water (120-130 degrees)
- 1/2 cup honey
- 3/4 cup raisins
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 cup oatmeal
- In your mixer, combine 1 1/2 cup bread flour, yeast, cinnamon, and salt.
- Heat water and honey in a saucepan over low heat until it reaches 120-130 degrees.
- Using low speed, slowly add water mixture to flour mixture. Mix on medium speed until there are no lumps, about 2-3 minutes.
- With your mixer on low speed, add wheat flour and oatmeal half a cup at a time. Then add remaining bread flour half a cup at a time until dough clears the side of the bowl. Dough will be sticky.
- Turn onto a floured surface and knead until dough is smooth (apx 5 minutes, but the longer the better) adding the raisins as you go along. Add more flour 1 tablespoon at a time as necessary.
- Turn into oiled bowl and flip dough so that top of dough is oiled. Cover and let rise until double, approximately 60-90 minutes.
- Turn out dough and roll into a large rectangle, or two if you want two smaller loaves. Drizzle with just a bit of honey and sprinkle with additional cinnamon and raisins. Cover and let rise 60-90 minutes.
- If you like a softer crust, brush tops of loaves with oil.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake for 40-45 minutes. Check bread after 30 minutes and cover with foil if its getting too dark on top. If making two smaller loaves, they may be done sooner.
- Remove bread from pans and cool completely on a wire rack.
What!!!!???? You aren’t a morning person??!!
I may be the only person who knows how deep your devotion to toast goes…. do you happen to remember a certain morning in Ireland at that B&B when you ate 36 pieces of toast???? Or was it 37?
Oh man I don’t even remember. That was some good toast. Still in love with it. ok that sounds a little pitiful…
Just fyi, toast is good — toast with a stick of butter on top is great…get yourself some butter up on that toast!
I love toast too, but I try not to eat it naked. Thanks for the recipe!
I remember that morning in Ireland too. I didn’t know until then just how popular toast could be :)