Cinnamon Bread

Recently, I am starting to have festive moods.  Shopping malls in Singapore have started to put up xmas tress.  Looking at these, how can I not be in festive mood??  Haha!

The 1st thing that came into my mind is cinnamon bread.  This is something that I had wanted to bake for many years but did not get a chance.  ok..ok...I am just giving excuses...I have been baking and why did I not have a chance to bake cinnamon bread??

You must try this cinnamon bread as it is soft and fluffy.  The aroma of cinnamon during baking is just awesome.  As I do not like things that are too sweet, I used cream cheese on the cinnamon breads instead of the usual sugar icing.  They were just divine....

Cinnamon Bread

Dough

1 cup       Whole Milk
135g        Sugar
14g          Active Dry Yeast
115g        Unsalted butter, softened to room temperature and cut into 4 pieces
2              Eggs
½ tsp       Salt
550g       Plain Flour

Filling

90g         Unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
100g       Sugar
1 tbsp     Ground Cinnamon

Cream Cheese Icing

56g        Cream Cheese, softened to room temperature
20g        Icing Sugar
3 tbsp    Milk
½ tsp     Vanilla Extract

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, warm the milk over low heat until lukewarm.   Pour the warm milk into the bowl of a stand electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment.  With a spoon, manually stir in the sugar and yeast. Cover with a towel and let sit until the yeast is foamy, about 5-10 minutes.   On low speed, beat in the softened butter until it is slightly broken up.   Next add the eggs, one at a time, and then the salt.  The butter won't really be mixing into the mixture, so don't be alarmed if it stays in pieces.  On low speed, gradually add the flour.  Once it is all added, beat on medium speed until a soft dough forms.  Increase speed to medium-high and beat until the dough is soft and supple, about 6 minutes longer.
2. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it with your hands for 1 minute.   Form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a lightly greased bowl.   Cover the dough loosely with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.
3. Butter/grease/spray with nonstick spray the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish, then line with parchment paper.  Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and, using a rolling pin, roll into a 13x18 inch rectangle.
4. Spread the softened butter all over the dough.   In a small bowl, toss the cinnamon and sugar together until combined and then sprinkle evenly over the dough.  Tightly roll up the dough to form a log.  Cut into 18 even rolls. Arrange them in the prepared baking pan, cut sides up. Let the cut rolls proof for around 1 hour. 
5. Preheat the oven to 375°F (191°C). Bake for about 25 minutes, until they are golden brown.
6. Make The Icing : In a medium bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and creamy.  Add the confectioners' sugar, milk, and vanilla. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 minutes.  Using a knife, spread the icing over the warm rolls and serve immediately.