Cinnamon Sugar Swirl Bread

If you haven't noticed, I LOVE to bake. I've been baking things ever since I was a little girl, thankfully I had  a dad who was brave enough to be a taste tester for all of my little creations. Even if I accidentally added too much Salt instead of Sugar and I'll save the story of the first time I baked a homemade chocolate cake and frosting for another day!

I think I really got into baking because of my Home Ec class in Elementary School. I feel so old even typing that, yes I had Home Ec class maybe that was a North Dakota thing but I would certainly be a huge advocate for bringing those classes back to our schools. I remember learning so much in those classes, how to balance a check book, cooking, baking, sewing and even the boys had to join in. One year we made the most fabulous homemade cinnamon bread, oh how I wish I had a copy of that recipe right about now. It's more of a cinnamon sugar cake than bread, and its oh so delicious! Thanks to the power of Google I was able to locate a similar recipe for this bread. It will make your house smell amazing and the perfect after school snack for the kids. My brain has gone a bit crazy with this recipe, I may attempt to make French Toast out of this one weekend. I'll let you know how that plan goes if I decide to take up that challenge. For now I'll just savor this bread with a hot cup of coffee and some trashy tv, I always did love a good nap time treat! Enjoy!

Recipe By: Averie Cooks

Ingredients:

• 1/3 Cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/4 Cup unsalted butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup light brown sugar, paked
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup buttermilk*
•  2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of slat  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, butter and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan, set aside.
2. In a small bowl combine the cinnamon and sugar, stir and set aside.
3. Melt butter in a large microwave safe bowl and allow to slightly cool (so you don't scramble the egg) add the egg, brown sugar, oil, vanilla, and whisk til combined, then whisk in the buttermilk. Whisk until all of ingredients are incorporated. 
4. Add the flour, ground nutmeg, baking soda and salt to the mixture, stir until just combined, don't overmix!  Batter will be thick and lumpy. 
5. Pour half of the batter into the greased and floured loaf pan, smoothing it out with a spatula. Sprinkle 75% of the cinnamon/sugar mixture evenly over the top of the batter. The creates the cinnamon swirl look to the bread.    
6. Top with the remaining batter, smoothing it out with your spatula then sprinkle the remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture on top. This will form the delicious crunchy cinnamon sugar top!
7. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until the top of the bread is set and firm, test with a toothpick, make sure it comes out clean. Allow bread to cool in pan for at least 15 minutes. Flip onto wire rack over the sink since there will be some mess from the cinnamon/sugar topping. 
8. Slice and enjoy! Can be kept in a air tight tupperware for up to 5 days or may be frozen up to 3 months. Fair warning though, this bread did not last more than 3 days in our house! 

* if you do not have buttermilk on hand you can make your own! All you need is 1 cup of milk and 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. Let the mixture stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. When it is ready, the milk will be slightly thickened and you will see small curdled bits. (This substitute will not become as thick as regular buttermilk.)