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1
Make the dough: In the bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle the yeast over the warm milk; whisk to combine.
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2
Add the flour, butter, sugar, 2 eggs, and salt.
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3
Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the dough hook.
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4
Mix on low speed until all the ingredients are well combined, about 3 minutes.
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5
Raise the speed to medium-low, and continue to mix until the dough is uniformly smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 3 minutes more.
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6
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface.
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7
Pat out dough into a 9-inch round, about 1 1/4 inches thick.
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8
Sprinkle with raisins and cinnamon, and knead until they are just incorporated.
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9
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with oiled plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
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10
Return the dough to a lightly floured work surface, and pat into a round.
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11
Fold in the following manner: Fold the bottom third of the dough up, the top third down, and the right and left sides over, tapping the dough after each fold to release excess flour, and pressing down to seal.
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12
Return the dough to the bowl, seam side down, and let rise again until doubled in bulk, about 40 minutes.
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13
Make the filling: Combine sugar and cinnamon with 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl.
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14
Return the dough to a lightly floured work surface, and divide in half.
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15
Roll out one half to a 12-by-10-inch rectangle; brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with half the filling.
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16
Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
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17
Generously butter two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans; set aside.With a short end of the rectangle facing you, fold in both long sides of the dough, about 1 inch.
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18
Then roll the dough toward you, gently pressing as you go to form a tight log.
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19
Gently roll the log back and forth to seal the seam.
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20
Place the loaf in a prepared pan, seam side down.
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21
Repeat with remaining rectangle.
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22
Cover pans loosely with oiled plastic wrap, and let rest in a warm place until dough rises just above the rim of the pan, about 30 minutes.
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23
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425F.
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24
Brush the tops of the loaves with beaten egg, and transfer pans to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet.
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25
Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until loaves are golden brown, about 45 minutes.
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26
(If the tops begin to brown too quickly, tent with aluminum foil.
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27
)Turn out the bread onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
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28
The bread can be kept, wrapped in plastic, at room temperature up to 4 days.
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29
Ground cinnamon and raisins are sprinkled over and then kneaded into the dough.
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30
The dough is proofed in a lightly oiled bowl until it has doubled in bulk.
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31
The dough is rolled out into a rectangle, sprinkled with filling, and then rolled into a log.
