Cinnamon Star Bread

Weston Peterson made this cinnamon star bread and received Overall Grand Champion at the Stafford County Fair, 1st place in Specialty Breads at the Hudson Cream Flour Bakefest, and a purple ribbon at the Kansas State Fair.

Ingredients

Dough

1 (¼ ounce) package active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water (110°F – 115°F)
¾ cup warm 2% milk (110°F – 115°F)
1 large egg, room temperature
¼ cup unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 ¼ - 3 ¾ cups bread or all-purpose flour, divided

Filling

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
⅓ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Melted butter for brushing

Directions

  1. Dissolve yeast in warm water until foamy. In another bowl, combine milk, egg, butter, sugar and salt. Then add yeast mixture and 3 cups flour. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
  2. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, 6 – 8 minutes or use a dough hook to knead in a stand mixer. Place dough in a greased bowl. Cover; let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
  3. Prepare filling by combining all ingredients. Set aside.
  4. Punch down dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 4 equal portions. Roll 1 portion into a 12-inch circle. Place on greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Spread with 1/3 of the filling to within ½-inch of edge. Repeat twice, layering dough and filling, and ending with final portion of dough.
  5. Place a 2 ½-inch round cutter on top of the dough in center of circle. With a sharp knife, make 16 evenly spaced cuts from round cutter to edge of dough. Remove cutter; grasp 2 adjacent strips and rotate twice outward. Pinch ends together. Repeat with remaining strips.
  6. Cover; let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375°F. Bake until golden brown, 18 – 22 minutes. Remove from oven; brush with melted butter. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Yield: 1 large loaf, 16 servings.

NUTRITION INFORMATION PER SERVING (1 SLICE, 64 g): 200 calories, 7g total fat, 5g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 30mg cholesterol, 150mg sodium, 29g carbohydrate, 1g dietary fiber, 8g total sugars, 5g protein, 3mcg folate, 0mg vitamin C, 0mg iron.