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Start your morning off right with a gorgeous quick bread, made with fresh milled flour and cinnamon sugar! This fresh milled cinnamon swirl bread is as lovely as it is tasty, with a moist crumb and plenty of sweet, spicy flavor.
Cinnamon pastries have been a major theme in our kitchen recently, and it’s because I just can’t help myself! The simple decadence of cinnamon and sugar adds such a wonderful touch to a delicious treat.
I’ve made plenty of fresh milled cinnamon sugar muffins and whole grain cinnamon sugar bagels, where the cinnamon sugar is on the outside of the baked good (sometimes I even indulge in cinnamon sugar donuts!).
For this recipe, I decided to mix it up a bit with a swirl of cinnamon sugar going through the middle of the bread.
Baking into the crumb of the loaf, the cinnamon sugar caramelizes and melds into the bread, making a beautiful and mouthwatering treat that the whole family craves.
A wonderful thing about quick breads, like fresh milled blueberry bread, and fresh milled banana bread, is how versatile they are when I’m crafting meals.
You can serve this cinnamon swirl bread as a quick and easy snack when the kids are hungry NOW, enjoy a slice for dessert, or incorporate it into a full breakfast. It’s filling and yummy served with chili scrambled eggs or sheet pan eggs and some homemade moose breakfast sausages.
However you serve your fresh milled cinnamon swirl bread, you are going to absolutely love its nutty, whole grain flavors and gooey cinnamon sugar layer.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Moist and tender: Like any good quick bread, this cinnamon swirl loaf is soft, moist, and has the perfect bite. It isn’t dry or crumbly, and it’s tender while still holding its shape.
- Beautiful bread: The cinnamon swirl in this bread is such a delight! This is a loaf I always feel proud to serve when we have guests, because it’s just lovely.
- Quick to make: I absolutely love quick breads because they are so easy to make! Just a few minutes to mix up the batter is all it takes, then you can move on to other tasks while the oven does the work.
- On-the-go snack: This bread is such a great thing to have on hand for busy days when you need something quick to eat.
Ingredients
- Soft white wheat flour: This is my go-to wheat berry to mill for quick breads, because it makes a soft and tender loaf.
- Butter: Melted butter is the fat in this bread because it adds such a rich and buttery flavor, which is especially important with the simpler loaves like my whole wheat sweet bread. I recommend softening some extra butter to spread on a slice when it’s done cooling — it’s so good.
- Cinnamon: The star of the show! We are mixing it with melted butter and sugar, which will caramelize in the oven and make that gorgeous swirl in the bread.
You can find a full list of ingredients with measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
How to Make Fresh Milled Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Step 1. Preheat the oven
Preheat to 350°F. Grease a 9×5 cast iron loaf pan or standard 9×5 loaf pan.
Step 2. Mix the dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk together the freshly milled soft white wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Step 3. Mix the wet ingredients
In a large bowl, whisk together all wet ingredients: butter, sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla.
Step 4. Combine
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently stir just until combined. Do not overmix.
Step 5. Make the cinnamon swirl
In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter.
Step 6. Layer the batter
Pour about 3/4 of the batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle most of the cinnamon sugar mixture over the batter, reserving about a tbsp or two for the topping.
Add the remaining batter, then sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon mixture evenly over the top.
Step 7. Swirl
Use a knife or skewer to gently swirl the cinnamon mixture through the batter. I start at one end and do a ribbon pattern to the other end.
Step 8. Bake
Bake for 50–55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. After about 45 minutes of baking, I like to tent it with foil to keep the top from browning too much.
Step 9. Cool
Let the bread cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Tips + Notes
- The cinnamon flavor is quite pronounced in the swirl mixture. I’ve found that about 2 tablespoons gives a visible swirl and strong flavor. If you prefer it milder, you can reduce it to 1 tablespoon, but the swirl won’t be as visible.
- To prepare your loaf pan, lightly grease it with butter or a neutral oil.
- If your cast iron loaf pan is seasoned well, you won’t need to preheat it in the oven.
- It’s very easy to overmix quick breads, which can negatively affect their texture and density. Aim to stir as little as possible while still getting everything incorporated.
- New to freshly milled flour? This recipe is a great place to start! Be sure to also check out my tutorials on how to mill your own flour and baking with whole grains.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store your loaf in an airtight container or plastic bag at room temperature. It should last around 5-7 days, or you can freeze it for longer-term storage (see below).
Yes! Quick breads freeze very well. In fact, I like to make a double or triple batch whenever I bake, so I have something to pull out quickly on busy days. Let the loaf cool completely, then wrap it in plastic wrap and store it in a freezer bag. It will last in the freezer for up to 6 months, and you can thaw it at room temperature and reheat it as desired.
Absolutely! Walnuts or pecans would be delicious in this loaf; just mix them into the batter before pouring it into the loaf pans. I use cinnamon, sugar, and pecans on top of my fresh milled blueberry muffins and it’s a delicious combination!
Once you taste this lovely cinnamon swirl bread, you are going to wish you’d made a double batch! I’m going to go have a slice for my afternoon pick-me-up.
If you want to try more treats made with freshly milled flour, check out my list of all of my favorite fresh milled flour recipes, or take a peek at the highlighted ones below:
Related Recipes
- Fresh Milled Strawberry Sweet Rolls
- Cranberry Bread With Fresh Milled Flour
- Gingerbread With Fresh Milled Flour
- Pumpkin Roll with Freshly Milled Flour
- Cinnamon Rolls with Fresh Milled Flour
If you tried this Fresh Milled Cinnamon Swirl Bread or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Fresh Milled Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Equipment
- 9×5" loaf pan
Ingredients
Bread
- 2 cups freshly milled soft white wheat flour (244g)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
- ½ cup butter melted and slightly cooled
- ¾ cup pure granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon swirl
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp ground cinnamon see notes
- 2 tbsp melted butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven. Preheat to 350°F. Grease a 9×5 cast iron loaf pan or standard 9×5 loaf pan.
- Mix the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the freshly milled soft white wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together all wet ingredients, butter, sugar, eggs, milk and vanilla.
- Combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently stir just until combined. Do not overmix.
- Make the cinnamon swirl. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter.
- Layer the batter. Pour about 3/4 of the batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle most of the cinnamon sugar mixture over the batter, reserving about a tbsp or two for the topping. Add the remaining batter, then sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon mixture evenly over the top.
- Swirl: Use a knife or skewer to gently swirl the cinnamon mixture through the batter. I start at one end and do a ribbon pattern to the other end.
- Bake: Bake for 50–55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. After about 45 minutes of baking, I like to tent it with foil to keep the top from browning too much.
- Cool: Let the bread cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
everything about this recipe is fantastic! i think the amount of cinnamon is perfect i. the crumble.
That makes me so happy to hear! Glad you loved it!
Oh my goodness! I love all your freshly milled recipes and this one here looks like it might just take the cake!
Well, you just made my day! So happy to hear!