Okay, so Biscoff + cinnamon flavor totally rocks. This I know. So, I decided to combine them once again, this time in a bread.
I first used the recipe from Cinnamon Girl for Peanut Butter Bread and swapped in the Biscoff for the peanut butter. I also added more brown sugar for sweetness. That was step one.
Then, I used the cinnamon-sugar filling from the Ultimate Cinnamon Bread that I got from A Year from Oak Cottage. That was step two.
Finally, because you might as well "go big or go home," I decided to up the ante and top it off with huge crumbs, the kind you find on those delicious crumb cakes (you know, the ones you're always tempted to pick off leaving the cake all bare). To make them, I adapted the crumb recipe from Smitten Kitchen's crumb cake. I used chilled butter instead of melted (just cause melted = meltdown for me), used all brown sugar increased the amount, and added in a little cardamom and nutmeg to give it the Biscoff taste. Step three - complete.
I gotta say, the crumbs were the best part of this bread. So delicious and irresistible. I just wanna pick them all off and eat them.
That said, the cinnamon swirl went really well with this bread. I realized too late that I intended to put in two layers of the cinnamon filling, but forgot to split the batter in thirds and only ended up with one layer. Next time, there will definitely be TWO layers.
Finally, the flavor of the Biscoff kinda didn't shine through like I had hoped it would. I'm thinking there needs to be more Biscoff. That makes sense considering I've made this bread with peanut butter before and ran into the same problem. Either that, or I'd add some cinnamon and nutmeg to the bread itself to help pull the Biscoff flavor through.
I admit, it needs a little tweaking. But, I'd say it's a good start to a yummy bread.
Biscoff Cinnamon Swirl Bread (adapted from and inspired by Cinnamon Girl, A Year from Oak Cottage, and Smitten Kitchen)
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. salted butter, room temperature
1/2 c. brown sugar (increased this to 2/3 cup)
1/4 c. sugar
1 c. creamy Biscoff spread
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. milk
Cinnamon-Sugar Swirl (taken from A Year from Oak Cottage)
1/2 c. light brown sugar
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
Combine and set aside.
Crumb Topping (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
8 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ginger powder
1/4 tsp. cardamom
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
dash salt
5 Tbsp. butter, chilled
3/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. flour
Combine the sugar, spices, and flour and whisk together well. Cut in the chilled butter until you have a mixture about the size of peas. Set aside in the fridge to keep chilled until you're ready to use it.
For the bread:
Grease four mini loaf pans and preheat the oven to 350F.
Cream the butter with the sugars and the Biscoff. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well. Combine the dry ingredients add add them alternately with the milk (i.e. dry - milk - dry - milk).
Put about 1/4 cup of batter in each mini loaf pan. Sprinkle on 2 Tbsp. of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Spread 1/4 cup more of batter onto the filling and smooth over as best you can with a rubber spatula. Top with 2 Tbsp. more of the cinnamon-sugar filling. Add another 1/4 cup of batter onto the second layer of cinnamon-sugar. Smooth over with a rubber spatula.
Then, take the crumb topping that you made earlier. Put some of it in your hand and squeeze it together. Pinch off pieces of it (as big as you want) and make a layer of them on the batter in the pans, covering the top completely.
Put the pans onto a cookie sheet (just in case a little overflows) and bake for 45-60 min. or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pans for about 10 min., then remove and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Note: All my changes to the recipes I used are in red.
