Heavenly Smells from the Oven

Admittedly I have not been to Dollywood, but after seeing photos of the cinnamon bread there and the rave reviews about it, I kind of want to go, for the cinnamon bread. I started looking for recipes because the chances of me going to Dollywood are slim to none (although Andy says if the bread is that good - maybe we should make a visit). Many of the recipes start out with a frozen loaf of bread dough. Um... no? I can make bread dough - I don't need premade, also that means an extra trip to a store I don't want to go to. I found a version that is from scratch and oh man I had my doubts. I made it on a super cruddy day - yeast and rainy days aren't friends. It didn't seem to rise as much as I'd hoped, and then you slash it... I mean SLASH it four times and deflate it, roll it around butter, then cinnamon and sugar mix, toss in a pan, pour over the butter and sugar mix and pray. At least that's what I did. I had my doubts... BIG doubts. What came out of the oven smelled like heaven... or at least what I think heavenly smells like. I let it cool a bit on racks, put the glaze on top, and we had it for dessert. It.was.amazing. Like... amazing. Now let's be honest and say it's probably better at Dollywood, sign me up because this was amazing. Trust the crazy on this one - because it's worth it.

Cinnamon Bread at Dollywood
(Makes 2 loaves)

Ingredients:
For the dough:
1/2 cup warm water (100 to 110 degrees)
3/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 TBS plus a pinch of granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups bread flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 TBS unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Cooking spray

For the Topping:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 TBS ground cinnamon
6 TBS unsalted butter, melted
2 TBS light corn syrup

For the Glaze:
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
Pinch of salt
2 TBS unsalted butter, melted
3 to 5 TBS milk

Method for making the Dollywood Cinnamon Bread:
To make the dough: Combine the warm water, yeast and a pinch of granulated sugar in a small bowl and let sit until foamy, 5 to 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, whisk the bread flour, remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar and salt in a stand mixer.
Add the yeast mixture and melted butter to the flour mixture. Knead with the dough hook on medium speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
Transfer to a bowl coated with cooking spray. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
Lightly spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Punch down the dough and transfer to a work surface; knead a few times. Cut in half and gently shape into two 3-by-6-inch loaves (do not overwork the dough).
Place the loaves 3 inches apart on the prepared pan. Lightly spray the loaves with cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until puffy, 30 minutes to 1 hour.
To make the topping: Whisk the granulated sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small baking dish.
Whisk the melted butter and corn syrup in another small baking dish.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides. Cut 4 deep slashes across the top of each loaf (the loaves will look deflated).
Dip each loaf in the butter/corn syrup mixture, turning to coat, then coat with the cinnamon sugar, making sure to get the sugar in the crevices. Place the loaves in the prepared pans. Drizzle with any remaining butter mixture and sprinkle with any remaining cinnamon sugar.
Bake until light brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Lift the bread out of the loaf pans using the parchment overhang and transfer to a rack. Let cool in the paper, about 15 minutes.
While bread is baking, make the glaze: Whisk the confectioners’ sugar, salt, melted butter and 3 tablespoons milk in a bowl until smooth. Whisk in up to 2 more tablespoons milk as needed to loosen. Drizzle on the warm loaves or serve on the side for dipping.