78 Reviews of World's Best Cinnamon Raisin Bread (Not Bread Machine)

From: joy <3's baking

On Oct 11, 2007

Absolutely scrumptious- this cinnamon raisin bread turned out beautifully! After comparing a number of different recipes, I decided to give this one a try and I couldn't have been happier with the results. The loaves were fluffy, moist, and flavorful, and an intoxicating aroma filled my home not only during the baking process, but also every time a slice hit the toaster this week. I did make a few minor adjustments that I think made a positive difference to the final product: I added 1 T of sugar to my water/yeast mixture to help it proof. I increased the salt an extra 1/2 tsp (totaling 1 1/2 tsp) and increased the raisins an extra 2 cups (totaling 3 cups- I wanted to have 1 cup per loaf. At first, I was worried it would be too much, but in the end it turned out just right! Be on the lookout for extra moist raisins specially made for baking- I found them at my supermarket and they worked out great- if you can't find them, you can always plump your raisins in hot water for a few minutes before you add them!) Instead of 2 T of milk to wash the dough, I did 1 T milk + 1 T melted butter. I'd also recommend separating your dough into 3 parts before you start rolling- it made it so much easier to handle, and allowed me to form each loaf with a nice tight swirl. Just sprinkle about 1/3 cup of the cinnamon sugar mixture in each loaf to make sure it comes out evenly distributed. Lastly, my loaves were perfectly golden and ready to come out at 35 minutes (10 minutes shy of the 45 minutes in the stated recipe.) I hope these suggestions help! Lydia, thank you so much for this fantastic recipe- my family simply loved it!

From: Queer Eye in the Kitchen Guy

On Oct 3, 2005

This was the pefect solution to a boring Seattle Sunday! I tried to make it in my standard sized Mix Master. There was barely enough room & was fine until the dough climbed all the way up & over the hook! Will keep a closer eye on it next time. The bread was perfect though! might add another 1/2 cup raisins next time too.

From: John W Wenzelburger

On Nov 14, 2004

Just like the title says: "This is the best Cinnamon Raisin Bread I've ever had!". I added chopped walnuts with the suger and cinnimon to two of the loafs before I rolled them up. You could make one with nuts one with raisins and one just suger and cinnimon. Don't skimp on the sugar and cinnimon....

From: Daphne2002

On Jan 9, 2006

I made 2 batches of this bread for christmas presents. The first batch had a slow rise in the fridge overnight and baked in the morning due to time constraints. The second batch was made as instructed, with the addition of walnuts on top of the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Both batches were wonderful, but the room temperature loaves did rise higher. The dough was very easy to work with and tasted delicious when baked. Everyone loved their Christmas breakfast bread!

From: startnover

On Dec 15, 2008

This was a very good recipe. I would have given it 4 stars if I had not read all 54 reviews and decided to add more salt and sugar. I also was very mindfull of how quick it might cook. I did need to cook the whole 45 min but after just 20 I had to tent it with tin foil or it would have looked burnt. I did not use raisins in mine (personal pref) The ribbon of cin and sugar was gooey and nummy! I did wing the amounts of filling and instead of wetting it with the milk I rubbed a couple of tablespoons of butter on the triangle before adding the cina nd sugar. That might have been the reason for the yummy gooey center. Great recipe with the changes!

From: Yasmine

On Oct 12, 2007

Great recipe! My only change will be to add another cup of raisins into the DOUGH and not the swirl. This ensures that almost every bite will have a delicious raisin in it. Also, 45 min cooking time is WAY too long - try 30-35 maximum! Check out my pics.... this is my first attempt at raisin bread.

From: CarlaBakes

On Dec 1, 2007

Great raisin bread! Best flavor and texture I've had. Can't remember having better. I added sugar to the yeast and increased the raisins as suggested. Mmmmmmmm, good.

From: H-Chef

On Mar 27, 2006

More of the same! I'm not usually a fan of raisin bread, but I made this for my husband and it was ridiculously good even to me. It was very moist, yeasty, and flavorful. It just couldn't have been any better. I used 2 1/4 cups of raisins and instead of regular milk, I had some buttermilk that I wanted to use up. It was amazing. One note, the cooking time was about 10 minutes less in my oven.

From: Suzie_Q

On Feb 3, 2008

If I could give this 100 stars I would! This recipe far exceeded my expectations. I used egg whites instead of whole eggs, skim milk and cut the butter back just slightly. For the filling I increased the filling by half, used brown sugar and added nuts as a personal preference. In my oven 30 minutes was absolutley perfect. My family already devoured a whole loaf and is already talking about me making more! This definitely cured my craving for cinnamon buns and actually I think I prefer this now! Thanks for the best bread recipe ever!

From: Mswhipple

On Jan 5, 2005

Thanks for the nice recipe, Lydia! I made this just before Christmas and presented the loaves as gifts to my neighbors. It got very good verbal reviews! Instead of just raisins, I used a few raisins, some dried cranberries, cherries and blueberries. For the crust, I brushed lightly with beaten egg and sprinkled with Pearl sugar (also called Hail sugar) just before baking. It's definitely worth a repeat! ~ Mary Ann