Cinnamon -
The name cinnamon is correctly used to refer to Ceylon cinnamon, also known as “true cinnamon”. However, the related species, Cassia (Cinnamomum aromaticum), Saigon Cinnamon (Cinnamomum loureiroi), and Cinnamomum burmannii are sometimes sold labeled as cinnamon, sometimes distinguished from true cinnamon as “Chinese cinnamon”, “Vietnamese cinnamon”, or “Indonesian cinnamon”; sometimes referred to as being cassia. Ceylon cinnamon, using only the thin inner bark, has a finer, less dense, and more crumbly texture, and is considered to be less strong than cassia. Cassia has a much stronger flavour than cinnamon, is generally a medium to light reddish brown, hard and woody in texture, and thicker, as all of the layers of bark are used.
I am a cinnamon addict. My favorite cinnamon, Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cassia, is not a true cinnamon, but it has the most exquisite aroma and flavor and I just love it. I buy my Vietnamese Cassia, 1 lb at a time, from Penzeys Spices. And I always use more cinnamon then the recipe calls for, yes I am a true cinnamon lover!
This week for our Bread Baker’s Apprentice Challenge we are making Cinnamon Raisin Bread. Of course with me being me I have to mix things up and change it around just a little. I substituted orange-flavored dried cranberries for the raisins and decided to make 1-piece mini challahs instead of a loaf. The orange-flavored dried cranberries were so good in this recipe that I think I found a permanent substitute for raisins!
And the 1-piece braided challahs, video below, were so easy, I can’t wait to try this technique again. I made my braids much smaller and only used an 18″ dough rope to begin which amounted to a finished 8″ challah.
Google Books has the entire book, “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread”, by Peter Reinhart, scanned and you can find the recipe on Page 147 by clicking here.
Here’s some links to other BBA’ers and their interpretations of this recipe:
Oggie at I can do that!
Caroline at Two Skinny Jenkins
Angela at Gourmet Hotdish and other Culinary Disasters
Jia at Sweet and Savory
All Rights Reserved 2008-9 © Big Black Dog
Oh Michelle this looks so good that I think I can even smell the cinnamon.
I was thinking of you yesterday when after a day of farm and artisan food shopping I brought my beautiful Camembert and other cheeses and spreads home to nothing more than Ritz Crackers.
I didn’t have a descent bread in my house and was too lazy to go out again at 5 o’clock. My gosh I hang my head in shame.
Such a nice braid. Tasty looking.
Great job,
Susie
♥♥♥ the idea of cinnamon & orange flavoured cranberries. I love those cranberries, & my sis always carries a big bag for the kids when she comes down from the States. I also ♥ the fun you are getting out of the BBA baking. Good for you Michelle…these mini challahs are precious! Congrats on your own site!
A beautiful Challah…and I also am a huge cinnamon lover.. I would love to find the vietnamese version.xoxo~Kathy~2 Sweet Up-North Mornings…
Another cinnamon lover here! I absolutely love the smell of cinnamon as it’s baking.
Excellent job! Thanks for the video. I’ll have to try it.
I love Pensey’s extra fancy cassia also. I didn’t realize it wasn’t a true cinnamon. I love it.
I love the one strand challah. It looks like so much fun to do. I have to try that soon. I am going to check out Penzy’s cinnamon. Thanks for the cinnamon lesson.
Hi Michelle,
I’ll be looking forward to your future BBA posts!
Nice post! I really like the video!
Thanks for the link to my blog
Carolyn
Looks wonderful! I love the smell of baking with cinnamon.
absolutely beautiful!! the things you do with do are so inspiring.
Great raisin substitution and lovely loaves! I can smell the cinnamon from here…
Beautiful braid-loaf. So many good ideas on this challenge. Congrats on becoming a dot net!
I enjoy your blogs very much thank you for posting, I too enjoy cooking and your recipes are awesome!
That looks wonderful! I haven’t been here in a while, lots of delicious food!
I signed up for a class at the Culinary School about 45 min from here…should be fun!
That looks really cool! I’m going to have to try that shaping technique. Thanks for sharing it.
They look really good. Have you tried making them with real Cinnamon.
The Cinnamon that we buy in the US is actually Cassia and not Cinnamon. Real Cinnamon is much sweeter and you can reduce on the sugar.