Kalacs (Hungarian Cinnamon Swirl Bread)

Description

My husband’s aunt passed along this super-easy recipe for this Hungarian sweet bread, and I made a couple of revisions to my family’s taste. Cinnamon, poppy seed, or walnuts are a traditional filling. Her recipe is for cinnamon, but one of my favorite ways is to break from tradition and use a cocoa/sugar/butter/vanilla mixture. It’s delicious, especially when the leftovers are toasted and buttered!

Ingredients

  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 (.25 ounce) envelope active dry yeast
  • 1 egg
  • ¼ cup melted butter
  • 1 ¼ cups warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • melted butter for brushing
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅓ cup brown sugar

Instructions

  1. Place flour
  2. white sugar
  3. salt
  4. and yeast into the bowl of a stand mixer. In a bowl
  5. whisk together egg
  6. melted butter
  7. warm milk
  8. and vanilla extract; pour into the flour mixture. Using dough hook attachment
  9. mix on low until the flour is moistened and a dough forms
  10. then increase speed to medium
  11. and continue kneading until smooth and elastic
  12. 4 to 5 minutes.
  13. Place dough into a greased bowl
  14. cover
  15. and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk
  16. about 1 1/2 hours.
  17. Punch down dough
  18. turn out onto a floured work surface
  19. and divide into 2 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 1/3 inch thick rectangle. Brush each square with melted butter. Mix together cinnamon and brown sugar in a small bowl
  20. then sprinkle evenly over the two rectangles.
  21. Roll each firmly into a log
  22. pinch the ends closed
  23. and tuck them underneath. Place each into a greased
  24. glass loaf pan. Cover
  25. and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk
  26. about 45 minutes.
  27. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
  28. Brush the tops of the loaves with melted butter
  29. then bake in preheated oven until loaves are golden brown
  30. and sound hollow when tapped
  31. about 30 minutes.

Prep Time: 25 mins

Cook Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 3 hrs 10 mins

Servings: 16

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