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This soft Rainbow Flower Cinnamon Bread is a dazzling display of vibrant colours layered with a rich, buttery cinnamon-brown sugar filling. While this heart-shaped bread (known as Blumenbrot or “Flower Bread” in Germany) looks sophisticated, it is actually much easier to make than you might think!
June is #Pride month, but I wholeheartedly support my LGBTQ+ friends year-round. This recipe is specially dedicated to our #LGBTQ community to bring a little joy, colour, and love to your day. (Kat and Bianca, this one is especially for you!)
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
The Ultimate “Wow” Factor: Slicing into this bread reveals perfectly even, vibrant rainbow layers shaped into beautiful hearts. It is guaranteed to be the show-stopper of any brunch table!
Classic Cinnamon Roll Flavour: We take the sweet, sticky filling of a classic cinnamon bun and apply it to this fun, tear-and-share flower-bread style.
Incredibly Soft Texture: By using a special sour cream dough hack and proper kneading times, the interior stays pillowy-soft and rich.
Ingredients You Will Need
Gather your baking staples and a set of vibrant food colouring gels to bring this rainbow bread to life!
For the Sweet Dough:
The Dry Base: 5 cups all-purpose flour (sifted), 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast (1 envelope), and ¼ teaspoon salt.
The Wet Ingredients: ½ cup unsalted butter, ½ cup packed dark brown sugar, and ½ cup whole milk (3.25% M.F.).
The Binders & Flavour: 3 large eggs, ½ cup sour cream (14% M.F.), and 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract.
The Colours: 6 jars (0.5 oz each) of Wilton icing colour gel (Purple, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange, and Red).
The Coating: 1 teaspoon vegetable oil for greasing the bowl.
For the Cinnamon Filling:
The Flavour Core: 1 cup unsalted butter (room temperature), 1 cup packed dark brown sugar, 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon, and ½ teaspoon salt.
For the Assembly & Cream Cheese Icing:
The Wash: ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (for brushing the finished bread before baking).
The Glaze: ¾ cup cream cheese (32% M.F.), 1 cup powdered icing sugar, ⅛ cup whole milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt.
How to Make Rainbow Flower Cinnamon Bread
Phase 1: Make the Sweet Dough
The Oven Hack: Preheat your oven to its lowest setting (usually 170°F / 76°C) for 10 minutes, then turn it off to create a warm proofing chamber.
In a small saucepan, melt the butter, dark brown sugar, and milk over low heat until just combined. Do not let it boil! Remove from heat and cool for 5 minutes.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, yeast, salt, eggs, and vanilla. Mix on low for 2 minutes.
Switch to the dough hook. Slowly pour in the cooled, melted butter mixture. Add the sour cream and knead for exactly 10 minutes(20 minutes by hand), until the dough is pliable and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Shape the dough into a ball, coat it lightly with 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil in the bowl, cover with a tea towel, and place in the warmed, turned-off oven for a 1.5-hour first rise.
Phase 2: Colour the Dough
Punch down your risen dough and turn it out onto a floured surface. Weigh your total dough on a food scale, then divide that number exactly by 6. (For example: 1400g total ÷ 6 = 233g per ball).
Dyeing the Dough: Take your first dough ball. Using the tip of a knife, scoop out a pinhead-sized amount of Purple gel colour. Wearing food-safe gloves, make an indent in the dough, smear the colour inside, and fold the dough over to seal it.
Place the dough ball in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, then mix on medium-low speed until the colour is vibrant and evenly blended. Cover the bowl with a towel.
Wipe the bowl and paddle clean, and repeat this process for the Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange, and Red dough balls.
Phase 3: Roll and Stack
Cut a sheet of parchment paper to perfectly fit a 12-inch round pizza pan.
Roll the purple dough ball out into an 11 or 12-inch circle. Place it directly onto your parchment paper cut-out. Lightly press a 10-inch round bowl into the dough to mark a perfect circle.
Spread 2 to 3 Tablespoons of the mixed cinnamon-butter filling evenly inside that 10-inch circle.
Roll out the blue dough, place it directly on top of the purple dough, and add more filling. Repeat this stacking process in rainbow order (Purple, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange), finishing with the Red layer on top (do not put filling on top of the red layer).
Place your 10-inch bowl over the stacked dough and use a sharp serrated knife to carefully trim away all the excess edges, leaving you with a perfect, clean pancake stack.
Phase 4: Cut and Twist (The Blumenbrot Method)
Lightly press a small 2-inch drinking glass into the exact center of your red dough to mark a circle. Do not cut inside this circle!
Starting from the edge of the 2-inch center, use a serrated knife to cut all the way through the layers out to the edge at 12 o’clock, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock. You now have 4 quarters.
Cut each quarter in half to make 8 slices, then cut each slice in half again to create 16 equal “pie slices.”
The Twist: Working quickly, pick up two adjacent slices. Twist them away from each other twice (twist the right piece to the right, and the left piece to the left). Lay them back down and tightly pinch the two ends together to form a beautiful heart-shaped petal! Repeat around the circle to create 8 petals.
Carefully slide the parchment onto your pizza pan. Cover with a towel and place back in the warmed, turned-off oven for a 1-hour second rise.
Phase 5: Bake and Glaze
Remove the bread from the oven and preheat to 325°F (163°C).
Generously brush the entire flower bread with the ½ cup of melted butter.
Bake on the middle rack for 20 minutes, then move the pan to the bottom rack for the remaining 20 minutes (40 minutes total) for even heat distribution.
While the bread cools, whisk together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, milk, and salt until smooth. Pipe the icing over the cooled flower petals and enjoy!
💡Pro Tips for the Perfect Cookie
The Perfect Stack Hack: Use a food scale to weigh the 6 dough balls to ensure they roll out evenly and rise to the same height. This is the secret to getting perfectly uniform rainbow layers in every single petal!
The Sour Cream Secret: Bread flour is typically best for yeast doughs because the high protein content develops strong gluten for a soft bread. Because all-purpose flour has less protein, adding ½ cup of high-fat sour cream to the dough gives the ultimate moisture boost to keep the interior soft!
Gel Colour vs. Liquid: Always use food colour gels (like Wilton) for baking! Liquid food colouring droplets add too much moisture to the dough and tend to fade or bake out in the oven. Gel colours are incredibly strong and will keep your rainbow bright and vibrant!
Complete the Brunch Menu
Here are other brunch ideas you can make to complete your menu:
Soft Fluffy Pumpkin Dinner Rolls: Loved working with yeast dough for this recipe? Try your hand at these incredibly soft, savoury, pull-apart dinner rolls.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to knead the food colour in by hand?
No! Kneading food colouring by hand takes a long time and will stain your hands and countertops. Using the paddle attachment on your stand mixer blends the colour into the dough beautifully and quickly. Just be careful not to overmix, or you’ll overwork the gluten and create tough bread!
Can I use another filling instead of cinnamon-brown sugar?
Absolutely! This soft, sweet dough is versatile. You can easily swap the cinnamon filling out for a heavy smear of Nutella, peanut butter, or your favourite thick fruit jam.
How should I store and reheat the bread?
Store any leftover bread in an airtight container on the counter for 1 to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 7 days. To keep it soft, I recommend tightly wrapping the individual “petals” in plastic wrap first! To reheat, spread a tiny bit of butter over the bread and microwave for 30 to 60 seconds, or pop it in a 325°F (163°C) oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
Bring a ray of sunshine to your baking! This bright Rainbow Flower Cinnamon Bread features soft layers of coloured dough and a sweet cinnamon-sugar filling.
Prep the Dough Liquids: Preheat the oven to its lowest setting (170°F/76°C) for 10 minutes, then turn it OFF. In a small saucepan, melt ½ cup butter, ½ cup brown sugar, and ½ cupmilk on low heat. Do not boil! Cool for 5 minutes.
Knead and First Proof: In a stand mixer (paddle attachment), mix the all-purpose flour, yeast, salt, eggs, and vanilla on low for 2 minutes. Switch to the dough hook, slowly pour in the cooled butter mixture, and add the sour cream. Knead on low for exactly 10 minutes. Shape into a ball, place in an oiled bowl, cover with a towel, and place in the warmed, turned-off oven for 1.5 hours.
Colour the Dough: Punch down the dough and weigh it on a food scale. Divide the total weight by 6 to create 6 equal dough balls. Using a knife tip, place a tiny smear of gel colour into the center of one dough ball, fold to seal, and mix in the stand mixer (paddle attachment) until vibrant. Repeat for all 6 colours (Purple, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange, Red). Keep dough covered with a towel.
Roll and Stack: Mix all of the cinnamon filling ingredients in a bowl. Cut parchment paper to fit a 12-inch round pizza pan. Roll the purple dough into an 11-inch disc and place it on the parchment. Lightly press a 10-inch bowl into the dough to mark a circle. Spread 2-3 Tablespoons of filling inside the circle. Roll the blue dough, stack it on top, and add filling. Repeat in rainbow order, ending with red (no filling on top of the red layer). Use a serrated knife to trim around the 10-inch bowl, to create a perfect circle of your stacked dough.
Cut and Twist (Flower Shape): Lightly mark a 2-inch circle in the exact center of the dough. Cut 16 equal slices (from the edge of the 2-inch center out to the perimeter). Take two adjacent slices and twist them away from each other twice. Pinch the ends together to form a heart-shaped petal. Repeat to create 8 petals. Slide the parchment onto your pizza pan or baking tray.
Second Proof and Bake: Cover the bread with a clean hand towel and return it to the warmed, turned-off oven to rise for 1 hour. Remove the bread and preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C). Brush the entire bread generously with the ½ cup melted butter. Bake on the middle rack for 20 minutes, then move to the bottom rack for 20 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes.
Glaze: Whisk the cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and salt until smooth. Pipe over the warm bread and enjoy!
Do I have to knead the food colour in by hand?No! Kneading food colouring by hand takes a long time and will completely stain your hands and countertops. Using the paddle attachment on your stand mixer blends the colour into the dough beautifully and quickly. Just be careful not to overmix, or you’ll overwork the gluten and end up with a tough bread!Can I use another filling instead of cinnamon-brown sugar?Absolutely! This soft, sweet dough is very versatile. You can easily swap the cinnamon filling for a heavy spread of Nutella, peanut butter, or your favourite thick fruit jam.How should I store and reheat the bread?Store any leftover bread in an airtight container on the counter for 1 to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 7 days. To keep it soft, I recommend tightly wrapping the individual “petals” in plastic wrap first! To reheat, spread a tiny bit of butter over the bread and microwave for 30 to 60 seconds, or pop it in a 325°F (163°C) oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
