Bake

Rhubarb Swirl Bread

April 12, 2016
5
2 Ratings
Photo by Mark Weinberg
  • Makes one loaf
Author Notes

I love making swirled breads with jam—it's a great way to use up excesses of homemade jars or to taste a pop of fruit in the dead of winter. This shaping technique is surprisingly easy but looks super fancy-pants: Start by rolling it up like cinnamon rolls, cut the whole thing in half to expose the layers, then twist the pieces together. —Erin Jeanne McDowell

What You'll Need
Ingredients
Directions
  1. Grease a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. On a lightly-floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/2-inch-thick rectangle (about 12 by 18 inches in size).
  2. Use a bench knife or offset spatula to help square off the edges of the dough. Dollop the jam all over the surface of the dough, and spread into an even layer, all the way to the edges.
  3. Starting from one of the long sides, begin to roll the dough into a tight spiral. Use your thumbs to prop the dough off the work surface and use your fingers to keep the roll tight while you work.
  4. Use a bench knife or a sharp chef’s knife to cut the roll in half lengthwise (as if you were cutting a tube in half), exposing layers of dough and jam swirled together (if the dough feels too soft, you can refrigerate it until it's firmed up again before you cut).
  5. Make a large X with the two cut pieces of dough. First, work above where the X is formed, twisting the two pieces of dough together. Try to keep the cut sides facing upwards to expose the layers of dough and jam. Try to twist tightly, as this will shorten the length of the roll quite a bit!
  6. Continue to twist the pieces below where the X is formed in the same way. Tuck both ends under a bit, and transfer the shaped loaf to the prepared pan (you may have to smush it a bit to make it fit—that’s okay).
  7. Cover the surface of the dough with greased plastic wrap, and let rise until nearly double in size, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Towards the end of rise time, preheat the oven to 350° F.
  8. Egg wash the surface of the loaf, and bake until evenly golden brown, about 35 to 45 minutes (the loaf should have an internal temperature of around 185° F). Cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then invert the loaf onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Kayla
    Kayla
  • Hollie D
    Hollie D
I always have three kinds of hot sauce in my purse. I have a soft spot for making people their favorite dessert, especially if it's wrapped in a pastry crust. My newest cookbook, Savory Baking, came out in Fall of 2022 - is full of recipes to translate a love of baking into recipes for breakfast, dinner, and everything in between!

2 Reviews

Kayla July 6, 2017
First let me say, I live in central Texas where rhubarb apparently does not grow. When it first appeared in the grocery store this season, it was marked at $13/lb. It then went down to $7/lb. Insert simultaneously sad and annoyed face. Anyways, after finding it for $2.99/lb. in north Texas (woohoo!), I bought a couple pounds with this recipe in mind. I made the bread last night and though it's a far cry from beautiful, it's highly unlikely that there will be any left when we go to bed tonight. I had a bit of trouble with my dough, because it was very dry and bits were flying out of my mixer, but I added a bit more warm water and it came together. My bread did not rise nearly as high as the one in Erin's pic, and the rhubarb jam started to brown a bit too much, so I tented it in the oven, but other than that, it's great! Would definitely make again with another jam or maybe a brown sugar cinnamon spread. Thanks, Erin!
 
Hollie D. May 10, 2016
ERIN!!!!