World's Best Cinnamon Raisin Bread (Not Bread Machine)

WOW! This bread definitely lives up to its title! I made it last night and my husband was still raving about it as he was leaving for work this morning. Don't let the long list of directions scare you off-it's really pretty simple if you just take it step-by-step and follow the directions.

I had read that the stickier your dough, the fluffier and moister it will be once baked. I didn't use all 8 cups (about 7 instead) and the dough was still a bit sticky but elastic and in one piece. Loved the tip about letting the bread rise in the oven with the light on- worked perfectly in my old, cold kitchen! How have I not known about this before?? Also, when you roll your rectangle up, I found mine to be approximately 24 inches long (in addition to 3 inches thick) if that helps. I also didn't use the whole cup of sugar, only about 1/2 cup, and we found it to be be plenty sweet.

This is a fantastic recipe and I can't wait to try it, as one reviewer suggested, in bread pudding! Yum!!!

3 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

Oh My Stars! Ya'll weren't kidding about the "World's Best Cinnamon Raisin Bread" recipe! I took the advice of some of the others who wrote in and added a couple of my own. It is easier to divide the dough into thirds before you roll it. I did, however, "plump" up my raisins with some hot tap water and a little vanilla extract. And step 18, I just took a stick of butter with a piece of paper towel and lightly rubbed it on the hot bread when I took it out of the oven. This is by far, the BEST cinnamon-raisin recipe ever! Thank you very much!

3 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

I made this bread today, and it is amazing! I read all the reviews, and I did make some additions based on the helpful suggestions of others: I added 1 Tablespoon of sugar to the water that the yeast was proofing in, and I also added 1/4 c. white sugar, 1 Tablespoon cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp. salt to the dough. I also added 2 cups of raisins to the overall recipe (so there are 3 c. TOTAL), and put half of them (1 1/2 c.) in the dough, and half of them in the filling. I was a little worried that the chunks of softened butter would screw up the dough, but they were fine, and it didn't matter that they were all chunky before I put the flour in. I guess the kneading took care of them. It took me about 9 cups of flour to have a dough that was manageable. I also changed the filling a bit. I used 2/3 c. brown sugar (packed), 2/3 c. white sugar, 1/4 c. cinnamon, and I mixed it all together and sprinkled 1/3 of it in each loaf with the remaining raisins. The baking temperature was right on, and my loaves were done in 30 minutes. I'm sorry I messed with your recipe so much, but thanks so much for posting it! I am SO glad I took the time to try it and for all the others who have tried it and made the suggestions that made mine such a success. Thank you Lydia. :)

3 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

Just finished making my first batch of loaves using this recipe. I used half whole wheat flour, 2 tsp. salt and 2 cups of raisins. Otherwise followed as written. Next time I will use half the amounts of sugar and cinnamon for the filling. I had a hard time rolling the loaves tight enough and mine tend to want to come apart at the swirls. I think less sugar will help, and it is supposed to be cinnamon bread...not a huge cinnamon roll. LOL

2 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

This was a very good recipe. I would have given it 4 stars if I had not read all 54 reviews and decided to add more salt and sugar. I also was very mindfull of how quick it might cook. I did need to cook the whole 45 min but after just 20 I had to tent it with tin foil or it would have looked burnt. I did not use raisins in mine (personal pref) The ribbon of cin and sugar was gooey and nummy! I did wing the amounts of filling and instead of wetting it with the milk I rubbed a couple of tablespoons of butter on the triangle before adding the cina nd sugar. That might have been the reason for the yummy gooey center. Great recipe with the changes!

2 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

This is really good! I scaled it back to make one loaf and DH and DS have just about devoured the whole thing! I used 1/2 bread flour and 1/2 white wheat flour, and that seems to have worked fine. I am not fond of raisins so I skipped them, and I decided to make a longer squat loaf on a cookie sheet so I only baked about 35 minutes. I thought there might be too much cinnamon/sugar for the filling so I used about 2/3 of it and I wish I had used it all; don't be fooled by how it looks before rolling. DS had a great idea; he asked me to make it into french toast for his lunch yesterday LOL. It really worked! Thanks for posting! Made for Best of 2010 tag.

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

WOW I don't like raisin bread, but I love this recipe! We used splenda for baking, as we are diabetics, and it turned out deliciously. A keeper.

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

This is an amazing recipe! I have made this a few times, and I also had to add a couple of cups of flour. There weren't quite enough raisins for my taste, too sparse, so after the first batch I doubled them and it was just right. The bread is the perfect amount of sweetness and great texture. I suggest giving 2 of the loaves away to friends, otherwise will end up eating ALL of them very quickly!

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

Excellent made it last night. Don't start this at 7pm. Whew its a long process but worth it. I messed up one roll by not rolling it tight enough, the cinnamon sugar mixture distribution swirl is imperative,because it gives the bread its sweetness. I almost wish it was a touch sweeter.... Next time more sugar swirl! Also if you have a standup Kitchen Aid mixer, it will save you time, adding 8 cups of flour by hand was a bit messy. Good luck, we already ate one loave,the others are going as gifts. PS I have now made this THREE times and my neighbors rave its the best they have ever had!

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

I had an end piece right out of the oven and it was so good! The kids and I enjoyed it for many a breakfast! I love that it makes 3 loaves, so you can freeze one or two for later!

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

I made this with all whole wheat flour and it turned out pretty dense, but smelled, looked, and tasted wonderful. Thanks for posting. Rolling it up and getting the swirl was way worth not just throwing it in the bread machine. However, I found that I had way way way enough sugar cinnamon mixture to coat the rectangle like three times over though. Oh well...I'm not going to complain about more sugar!

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

Great recipe! My only change will be to add another cup of raisins into the DOUGH and not the swirl. This ensures that almost every bite will have a delicious raisin in it. Also, 45 min cooking time is WAY too long - try 30-35 maximum! Check out my pics.... this is my first attempt at raisin bread.

1 person found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

This is a great recipe. I used my Kitchen Aid Mixer to handle all the kneading. My family just loved it and best of all it impressed my MOTHER-IN-LAW, who always claimed to be the best bread maker!! KUDOS! Loved it.

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

I made this bread today and it is the owrld best!!! Its easy to make and fun too. I sent the kids off to school and blasted my soft rock and wen to town. I got 3 huge yummy loaves and I have 9 more to make. I cant wait till sunday when my hubby makes breakfast and uses this bread to make french toast. I added some brown sugar and soaked my raisins in a small sauce pan to plump them up a bit before starting the bread. I used about a cup and a half more flour ,but I livein the deep south and it was very humid today. I let my kitchen aid mixer do all the work ,all I had to do was roll it out. You will needs lots of room for that!!! I hope you enjoy this bread as much as my family did.Thanks to who ever shared this !! God Bless

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

Awesome! I've made this bread before and it was soooo amazing even though I'd never made bread before. Was craving some good bread for this weekend and am just now making another batch so I figured I owe it to the greatness of the bread to finally review it :)) I put a little suger in the water before i add the yeast - that makes the yeast proof a LOT better. Also added more raisins and a lot more cinnamon with brown sugar; I just add more until it "feels" right. Oh, oh, and if you have leftovers these make a GREAT bread pudding. Actually I'm putting aside one loaf from tonights' baking just so I can have some yummy pudding later in the week.....

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

This turned out great! I got in my once a while cooking mood and decided to look recipes for bread. Google led me to this and I'm glad I did, I'll post pics later. The only part I didn't like was the waiting, took about 3.5hrs as predicted but then, kitchen patience is not a typical man's virtue, lol! My girlfriend is in for a surprise when she comes home!
THANK YOU!

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

I NEVER leave a review for a recipe but I had to for this one. This truly is the Worlds Best Cinnamon Bread! It just came out of the oven 15 minutes ago and the 1st loaf is 3/4 GONE. So glad I made the 3 loaves. I didnt have any problems. I also (like some of the other reviews) added 1Tbsp of sugar to the yeast and water and I followd the suggestion of 2/3 cup brown sugar and I did a 1/3 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup of cinnamon. This will be a regular item in our house. I cant wait to make french toast and bread pudding with this bread! Thank you so much for the recipe!

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

Truly an amazing recipe. The loaves (except for two fat slices ...) are still warm on the counter but I felt I must put in a review. The bread is soft, lightly sweet, and of a superb texture. It's lovely to look at and the kitchen smells divine. I doubled the raisins (after reading other posts) and I made an important change: I covered the raisins with water and a splash of vanilla (because it makes me feel like a gourmet chef) and brought the water/raisins to a boil, then turned off the flame and let them sit for 15 minutes. Drained them well and then put them into the dough mixture. Plumping the raisins makes them soft and not too chewy--just like the soft raisin bread you buy from a good bakery. This recipe is one I know I will make again and again. I'm so glad I found it.

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

I almost never write reviews. I consider myself to be an ok cook. My family and friends call me betty crocker. I have read all of the reviews before baking this bread. I had trouble in the past with my bread not rising enough or not at all. So I got a bread machine scared to try again on my own. I studied this recipe for days before I actually conquered it....... It came out GREAT!It did RISE! TWICE! words could not express how I felt. I will never buy raisin bread aqain, and my bread machine may collect dust. For now on i'm doing all my breads by hand. I will always use this recipe. Thank you sooooo much for sharing it with us.
Sorry forgot to talk about the taste. Better than store bought. Delicious! best raisin bread I've ever had

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account

It was good, but I was expecting more umph. I think if the cinnamon was included in the bread itself with a little extra sugar and butter it would have that more dessert/ snack thing I was going for. But I'm a bit of a sugar tooth...

0 people found this review Helpful. You can only vote others' reviews helpful or not helpful... Was this review helpful to you? Yes | No We don't know who you are. Sign in or create an account