Dollywood’s famous cinnamon bread recipe can be made at home

If you’ve ever been to the Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, you may know that it’s famous for its cinnamon bread. Visitors have noted that as you arrive, the delicious aromas of baking bread will lead you to Craftman’s Valley, where you can go to the Grist Mill to watch artisans making the loaves and pick one up for about $10 — although they are also available at the Spotlight Bakery and at the park’s DreamMore Resort & Spa, if you want to avoid the lines.

Because the cinnamon bread is so iconic, you can bet there are plenty of copycat recipes around. Fortunately, Dolly Parton now has her own Pinterest board, which is full of both her favorite things and some exciting revelations. Now she’s posted a link to the official recipe, confirming its veracity.

According to Allrecipes.com, Dollywood released the recipe during the COVID-19 pandemic, when most people weren’t able to travel to the Smoky Mountains. Instead, they were stuck at home, baking up a storm. Although we’re fortunately out of that era, fall is coming, and some sweet, comforting, pull-apart cinnamon bread seems like a perfect food for the season.

Most of the ingredients you need to make this treat are already present in well-stocked kitchens: you’ll need yeast, a couple different types of sugar, bread flour, salt, unsalted butter, cooking spray, cinnamon, light corn syrup and milk. All these ingredients come together to form a dough with a cinnamon topping and a glaze.

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The preparation requires a bit of technique. You’ll combine ingredients in a stand mixer using a dough hook and let the dough rise for about an hour and a half. Punch down and knead a few times, being careful not to overwork the dough. Then let rise again for up to an hour.

During this time, you should make two topping mixes, one dry and one wet. Cut slashes in the top of your loaves and coat them completely them with the toppings before baking. Bake the dough in 9-by-5-inch pans so that you get two full loaves when you’re done.

Let the loaves cool for 15 minutes and then apply the glaze. For the full method, you’ll want to consult the official recipe on Allrecipes.com.

If you’re having trouble, though, Dollywood and its Grist Mill are open for business through Jan. 6, 2024. The park opens again for the 2024-2025 season in March.

MORE: Employees at Dolly Parton’s Dollywood will receive free tuition and books