Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread

This Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread has got to be a part of your holiday baking! Well, I guess that is a bit limiting. I make this for weekend breakfasts, brunches and for desserts with coffee . So, let me say this again. This Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread is perfect anytime you want a wonderful, sticky, nutty, filled, tender bread. It is gorgeous and it is delicious!

Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread is a delicious combination of cinnamon, brown sugar and walnuts, twisted into a beautiful loaf and baked until golden brown. Gorgeous!!

My mom used to make a similar twisted sweet roll when I was a kid and I LOVED it. I think she may have forgotten about it as I grew up, because I only remember eating it as a kid. I did however, manage to go into her recipe box and make a copy of it. So, that delicious sweet roll will be on my list to make one day in the future. When I do, I will share it with you as well. However, one of my most popular blog posts is for my kid friendly Cinnamon Rolls. It is a perfect and yummy reason to get in the kitchen with your kids or grandkids.

In my humble opinion, when you make holiday breads, cinnamon breads or sweet rolls, a tender, slightly sweetened dough is very important. It wouldn’t really matter how much brown sugar, nuts, cinnamon or maple syrup you have running through it, if the bread portion is tough and dry. That would be a let down! This recipe for Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread meets my holiday requirement for SCRUMPTIOUS!!

Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread tastes fantastic! It fills the house with the wonderful aroma of cinnamon sugar and is beautiful enough to be a centerpiece for your table.

If you are familiar with making homemade bread, you recognize this recipe as a very tasty, sweet dough. This looks like it would be a difficult bread to make, but it’s not. If you are new to making cinnamon rolls or breads, I want you to be able to make this too. So, buckle up, I am going to take you through the process. Let’s do this together and I know you can get it done perfectly! I just want you to focus on one thing at a time, not the end result just yet. We need to start by making a basic sweet dough, so let’s do that first.

Deep breath, here we go. Start by placing 1-1/2 cups lukewarm water in your stand mixing bowl. You don’t have to use a thermometer to know it’s the right temp. Dip you finger in the water, if it is neither hot nor cold, almost like you can’t feel the water, it is correct. If you are still not sure, error on the side of cooler water.  Sprinkle the yeast and sugar over the top of the water, give it a quick stir and let it sit there doing its thing for a minute or two. Be sure you have the dough hook on your mixer. To the lukewarm water, you will now add the honey, cinnamon, vanilla extract, powdered buttermilk, salt and softened butter. Then start mixing this with the dough hook. Let it go for a minute or two, then start adding bread flour and let it mix and get well incorporated. When the dough has come to a ball, let the dough hook knead it for an additional 5 minutes.

Remove the dough ball from the mixing bowl and place in a greased bowl. Give it a little swirl and flip it over, so it is coated and doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl as it rises. Cover the dough ball with a clean dish towel or a piece of kitchen plastic wrap. Set the bowl in a place that is warm, without drafts. You are going to let this rise for about an hour. You will want to have the dough rise to at least double in size, before the next phase of, shaping the bread.

Once the dough has risen for an hour, you will then turn the dough out onto a clean counter that is dusted with flour. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle or square. This will be about 1/3″-1/2″ inches thick. Spread the 6 tablespoons of softened butter over the dough, then sprinkle with brown sugar, then cinnamon and the chopped walnuts. It will look loaded with fillings and that is perfect!! Next, you will roll this dough up into what looks like a big pinwheel. Start from one of the long sides. Try and make the rolls as tight as you can. Pinch the seam of dough onto the pinwheel to seal when done rolling. Pinch the ends and with your finger, now push the pinched end inward and pinch end again to seal dough. 

Now you will take a sharp knife and carefully cut this long pinwheel in half, lengthwise. Most of the time, I do leave about an inch at the top that is still connected, or not cut. However, on occasion I forget and I end up with 2 separate sections. If you cut it into to 2 seperate sections, you will just pinch about an inch of the 2 halves back together, so the sections are attached at the top. This connected section at the top, will allow you to twist the dough easier.

Now you will lift up the far side piece with two hands and bring it up and over the other section and set it back down. Then, pick up the piece you just crossed and bring it up and over the top of the other piece that is laying on the counter. You will repeat this until you get to the end of the loaf. Then pinch the ends together at the bottom. I then place this in a greased Pullman Pan and tuck the ends in, trying to maintain the shape. A Pullman Pan, is a long, rectangular loaf pan. If however, you do not have this loaf pan, you can place this on a baking sheet and bake it, or divide the dough into 2 and make 2 smaller loaves of Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread. Cover this and let rise another 30 to 45 minutes. Then place the bread in a preheated oven for approximately 30 minutes or golden brown on top.

Twisted Cinnamon Walnut Bread will quickly become a family a favorite! This is such a beautiful and delicious loaf of bread, that I like to give it as gifts during the holiday. After the bread is cooled, I wrap it in a pretty bread bag, add ribbon and a gift tag and give it to those I know will enjoy it. Not only is this special because it is homemade, it is a frugal option when you have many people you want to to give gifts during the holiday. For a quicker and simpler show stopping baked good, try my Quick and Easy Monkey Bread. Enjoy the season, the cooler temps, your family and of course, homemade baked goods. Enjoy!

Remember to leave a *Star Rating* and tag me on your Instagram posts if you make any of my recipes. I love to see your creations!