Cinnamon bread is something that always makes me think of my childhood. Both of my grandmothers made it regularly around the holidays and for special occasions. Now that they're gone, I had to figure out how to make cinnamon bread on my own since I'm always craving it.

I looked through my gram's recipe cards but had no luck, so I combined recipes I found online to get a recipe that was close. :D

You can make your cinnamon bread just with cinnamon and sugar, or you can add chopped pecans to make it even yummier!

Step 1: Ingredients

for dough:

2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup warm water or milk
2 1/2 teaspoons yeast
2 1/2 cups AP flour (plus more for dusting/kneading)
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons melted butter

for filling:

2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional but yummy!)

Step 2: Making the Dough

The first thing you'll want to do is combine the warm water, yeast and two tablespoons of sugar in a measuring cup. Stir well and let it sit while you measure out the flour.

Measure out your flour and salt into a large bowl. Mix together with a fork.

Melt two tablespoons of butter in a small bowl.

Once that's done, your yeast should be starting to bubble. Stir again and then pour the yeast mixture into the flour along with the melted butter.

Use a wooden spoon or spatula to mix everything together until it forms a shaggy dough. :)

Step 3: Kneading the Dough + Rising

This dough comes together pretty quickly - you'll only have to knead it for a few minutes.

Flour your work surface and dump the dough out onto it. Knead the dough, adding more flour as necessary until it becomes smooth and elastic.

Once it's kneaded, add some flour to the bottom of your bowl, put the dough on top and cover with plastic wrap. Leave it to rise for a half hour or until doubled in size. Once it's doubled, punch it down gently to remove some of the air bubbles.

Step 4: Rolling Out + Adding the Filling

Roll out your dough on a piece of parchment until it's about 1/4 inch thick. Don't worry about getting it into a perfect rectangle - it'll taste just as good if it's a little bit wonky.

Combine 1/2 cup sugar with 2 tablespoons of cinnamon and sprinkle on top, leaving a little empty space around the edges. Dot with butter and add chopped pecans if you'd like. :)

Step 5: Roll It Up and Let It Rise Again

Now we'll want to roll the dough up so it forms a loaf. :D Try to make it fairly tight - the motion will be more of a roll-and-tuck.

Once it's rolled up, pinch both ends of the loaf closed - this will keep too much of the filling from leaking out.

At this point, preheat your oven to 350 F and let the dough rise one more time until doubled - I typically leave it on the baking sheet on top of parchment and put a clean towel over it.

Step 6: Baking!

You'll be baking your cinnamon bread for 30 minutes or so at 350 F.

It's better to under-bake than over-bake in this case because you want it to be a little soft. I judge this bread more on the color of the outside than anything else. :)

Once it's done, let it cool for 10-15 minutes minutes before slicing. See the bottom where some of the filling leaked out? You want that to cool down, as well as the filling on the inside. Otherwise it will be a little too runny - it needs to set up a bit!

Enjoy on its own or with a bit of butter - it's perfect to go along with breakfast or coffee in the morning. :D