Dollywood Cinnamon Bread Recipe Uses a Genius Shortcut for Sweet, Spiced Bliss
Dollywood is famous for many things: iconic Dolly Parton memorabilia, thrilling rides and, of course, delicious food. One iconic sweet treat from the theme park is the cinnamon bread, which is fluffy and sugary with a spiced kick. Since getting your hands on one of these loaves requires a trip to the theme park (and possibly, a long line), why not eliminate that and make it at home instead? It’s so easy to do, especially using a shortcut ingredient: frozen bread dough. This slashes the rise time, while delivering on a pillowy-soft bread loaf. Here’s the Dollywood cinnamon bread recipe that brings all of the flavor and fun to your kitchen!
The key ingredients in Dollywood cinnamon bread
This bread is a type of pull-apart bread that’s coated in butter, sugar and cinnamon. Once baked, the cinnamon bread is served with buttercream icing or apple butter. At Dollywood, cinnamon bread is sold at the Gist Mill and Spotlight Bakery—good to know if you’re ever making the trip. But, it’s a cinch to make a homemade version of this sweet bread in just a couple of hours. (Check out our Dollywood guide for travel inspiration.)
Easy shortcut to fluffy cinnamon bread
Most homemade bread recipes involve time-consuming steps, such as weighing out the ingredients, forming the dough and kneading it. Luckily, frozen bread dough is a convenient alternative as it’s already formed and requires a shorter rise time. Just make sure to thaw the dough beforehand. Then, follow the recipe for the tastiest loaf of cinnamon bread.
The delicious Dollywood cinnamon bread recipe
This cinnamon bread recipe comes from Parton’s own cookbook, Dolly’s Dixie Fixin’s, and is drizzled with a two-ingredient glaze before serving. Watch this video posed on Hallmark’s YouTube channel for a step-by-step guide on preparing this recipe.
Dollywood Cinnamon Bread
Bread:
- Vegetable oil cooking spray
- ½ cup sugar
- 1½ tbsp cinnamon
- 1 (1 lb) loaf frozen bread dough, thawed
- 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter, melted
Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 to 3 tbsp water or fresh lemon juice
Directions:
- Yield: 2 loaves
- Coat two 8½-by-4½-by-2½ inch loaf pans with vegetable oil cooking spray,
- Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish and set aside.
- Cut the dough lengthwise into two pieces. Make 4 crosswise slits in each piece, taking care not to cut all the way through. Brush the loaves all over with butter, making sure to cover the creases. Roll each loaf in the cinnamon mixture, packing the cinnamon into the creases with your hands. Place the loaves in the prepared pans and set aside in a warm place to rise for 30 minutes. While the bread is rising, preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Bake the bread, turning the pans around once, for 35 minutes, or until the top is golden and a tap on the bottom of the pan yields a hollow sound.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze. In a small bowl, vigorously stir together the powdered sugar and water until the mixture is smooth and free of lumps. Turn the breads out onto a rack while they’re still warm and drizzle with the glaze.
Copyright 2025 A360 Media
This story was originally published April 29, 2025 at 2:00 PM.