Sometimes commitment can come too quickly, especially if it’s unwanted.
I was seeing a guy that seemed quite nice. However, if anything, he was a little bit too nice. Not that I have anything against nice guys- I certainly don’t like dating assholes. But on occasion, I do like to date someone who isn’t exactly like me, because I am a big fan of a good debate everyone once in a while.
So here I was, on the third date, seeing what I was quickly realizing was a too-nice-for-my-taste guy.
It would have really been in my favor to realize that on the second date.
At the end of the date, he leaned in to kiss me. And that is when I really realized that he was not the guy for me, since he even kissed too nice. But it was what happened afterwards that really sealed the deal.
Guy: We’re perfect for each other. I want us to be officially dating in a few weeks, engaged by Christmas, and then married by next summer.
Me: gulp (haven’t I mentioned before that I don’t jump into commitment? and I told this guy that! AND HE JUST GAVE ME A TIMELINE.)
Guy: We’ll be so in love!
Me: gulp (haven’t I mentioned it before that this freaks me out when that is said too soon? and I told this guy that, too! AND I’VE REALIZED I’M NOT EVEN “IN LIKE”)
Guy: It’ll be a dream come true!
Too bad for me it seemed more like a nightmare.
It also made it very difficult to let this guy down easily, as he obviously hadn’t been listening to anything I had said so far (except for “I’m a doctor,” likely. Seems like he had things in common with some of my patients.)
Take Your Time Cinnamon Bread
because who doesn’t need to slow down and breath every once in a while?
Ingredients (this makes two loaves)
- 6 c unbleached flour (this is approximate- you might use anywhere from 1/4 c more or less, depending on the day), plus extra for rolling
- 1 tsp and 2 tbsp cinnamon, divided
- 1 package yeast
- 1/4 c vegetable shortening
- 2 and 1/4 c skim milk
- 1/3 c + 1c sugar, divided
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- Vegetable oil spray
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- Cold water
- 1 egg, beaten
How-to
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix together 2 c flour, 1 tsp cinnamon, and yeast.
- Using a small saucepan over low heat, melt vegetable shortening. Turn off the heat and add the milk, 1/3 c sugar, and salt. Let cool until temperature is between 120-130 degrees Fahrenheit (use a thermometer- you need the right temp for the yeast!).
- Turn the mixer on low using the paddle attachment. Slowly add the liquid ingredients. Turn speed up to medium for 30 seconds, scrape bowl, then turn mixer back onto high speed for 3 minutes.
- Switch the paddle attachment for the dough hook. Turn the mixer on low, then slowly add the rest of the flour (taking into account that you might not use all of the flour, or you might need to add a little bit more if the dough seems too wet).
- Crank that mixer up to high for 3 minutes to kneed the dough.
- Remove dough and place into a glass bowl coated with vegetable oil, flipping dough over once to make sure it’s coated in a thin layer all around.
- Place in a warm place covered with a towel for 45 minutes to one hour to allow dough time to double in size (I normally place the oven on 200 degrees when I first start making the bread, then turn off before placing my bowl in there).
- Remove dough from your warm place and punch down. Let rest 10 minutes, then divide in half.
- Spray two loaf pans with vegetable oil spray.
- In a small bowl, mix together remaining 1 c sugar, remaining 2 tbsp cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Sprinkle a clean countertop and your rolling pin with flour. Roll half the dough out into a large rectangle, slightly wider than your loaf pan (I normally aim for about 2 inches here) and 16-18 inches long.
- Rinse your hands with cold water, and massage the surface of the dough until slick (this will help create a gooey cinnamon layer). Sprinkle on half the spice mixture. Roll up the bread, fold over ends, and place into the loaf pan seam-side down.
- Repeat with the second half of the dough and spice mixture.
- Cover again with a towel and place in a warm place to double in size (30-45 minutes).
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees (be sure to make sure your oven is empty!!!).
- Beat egg with a little bit of cold water. Using a pastry brush, brush tops of bread.
- Bake for 40 minutes (bread will sound hollow when you knock on it).
- Remove from pans and let cool.
Slice and serve. Be sure to keep in an air-tight container so it doesn’t dry out! If it does, heat up a slice in the microwave for 30 seconds with a little butter, or use to make french toast.
P.S. Do you want a yummy box of treats hand delivered to your door each week? Using this link (http://www.graze.com/us/p/QPKLN96), you can try Graze and your first box is even free! They’ll deliver a box of healthy snacks to your door each week (your other boxes are just $5 each, and that includes shipping, plus you can cancel at any time!). And no, I’m not being sponsored by Graze- I just thought it was a fabulous opportunity and wanted to share it with my readers!
domestic diva, M.D. 
This Graze idea is magnificent. I am signing up because you need an invitation code to join right now. Thank you, this is perfect for us lazy snackers…..like me. 😉
It comes in really handy for work- I prefer to portion out my own snacks, but this way I can try so many different kinds (and the packaged fit perfectly into white coat pockets)
Very practical woman, now if only we can cure you of commitment issues…… 😆
Hahahaha, in this case commitment WOULD be an issue
I haven’t tried this with cinnamon bread, but it works with rolls and cornbread. Put the stuff (probably sliced in this case) into a paper bag. Sprinkle the paper bag with water, seal it as tight as you can, and put it in a 400F oven for five minutes.
I typically use a paper lunch bag.
I haven’t had luck doing that with cinnamon bread since it dries out the inner cinnamon swirl too much- that’s why I microwave it when it gets too dry!
My mom made a bread like this the other weekend when I went home to see her. It was amazing! I love a good bread!
I used to love bringing this to school for lunch as a kid!
Wow, the Graze sounds nice. Wonder how similar it is to the Conscious Box I plan to get too. 🙂 I’ll check them out and let you know when I get my first box! Great blog and the bread look deeeelicious! 😉
I haven’t heard of the conscious box- I only heard of Graze since one of my coworkers started getting them. I’ll have to look into it!
It’s very similar to The Graze. They send boxes every month full of organic, sometimes vegan and upcoming eco friendly stuff….anything from chapstick to special drinks. I heard it from a YouTuber.
Hmmm I’ll check it out- I’ll have to see how many non-food products come, as I seem to already have the world’s largest supply of HBA…
OMG you poor woman, that sounds like a scene from a romantic comedy…Better luck next time!!
I felt like I was in a scene from “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”, except this guy was actually being serious…
That cinnamon bread looks great.
Thanks!
LOL… I’m not even in like. Where’d you find that guy, the set of a sit-com? Technically I pulled the ‘I love you’ out on my wife a bit too soon too (10th date maybe) but she’d been used to assholes (I did listen), so I got all Judo on her and wrote her a poem. We were engaged shortly thereafter… That was almost 19 years ago now. Love her more now than I did then. Good luck.
Awww, that’s really sweet. 🙂
Online dating. For every good guy on there, there are plenty of not-so-good ones. Though the odds are much better than a bar.
I can see that… My brother met his wife in that Neil Clark Warren one.
and don’t you just love it when the “over commiters” cry out “No nice girls will date me!!!” it’s cause y’all can be super creeeeepy.
Doesn’t help when you try to find mutual people you both know to tell you how “he really is such a catch.”
1) This bread looks like it would be delicious!
2) Woah there fella. Slow down now… Who gives someone a timeline like that?
Two loaves disappears in the course of a few hours in our Medical ICU workroom. I had to hide a piece for a coworker in clinic that morning.
Nice to know I’m not the only person horrified by a timeline…
well we all do …my schedule for tomorrow:
1 slow down
2 breath
3 repeat 1&2
That’s a much better itinerary
Oh my. I love this…all of it. The fear of commitment (I’ve had five addresses in as many years)…the “too nice” guy…and the cinnamon bread. I’ve been wanting to make some for a while, but after a huge flop in November I’ve been a bit leery. I might just have to jump in this weekend!
The fact that I moved at least once a year in college might be a sign that I don’t fully jump into things…
And good luck with the bread making!
That loaf looks delicious – glad you managed to get rid of the scary ‘nice-guy’! 🙂
I really think that if you’re too “nice” it’s just because you’re hiding something
Good point!
I’ve def. been there. It can take you from, “Oh this guy’s cute and cool” to “oh…this guy’s a psycho” in one date. How disappointing. Oh well, the bread looks great! I wish Graze was an option for Switzerland!
You can at least make the bread in Switzerland 🙂
I can’t believe he said that! We will be in love? You either are or you aren’t! Still, you get to keep that yummy looking cinnamon bread to yourself 🙂
It was a little bit terrifying, to say the least. I’m not the biggest fan when someone tells me how I’m going to feel.
Oh I’ve “dated” guys like that. I think they are in love with the idea of being in love. They see a small opening and go for it. Never mind we haven’t remotely indicated that we want that too.
And then it’s bad when they find the female equivalent of the same thing.
Takes the thrill of the chase to a creepy level. So glad I’m out of the dating game.
Mmmm… I’d rather date the cinnamon bread. At least it doesn’t talk back.
And it’s far more satisfying
Haha, that guy sounds like a tool. Good to nip that one in the bud. 😉 The bread looks great! Can’t wait to try it.
Too bad I didn’t nip it earlier…
That guy sounds like a complete psychopath. Dodged one heck of a bullet there! And that cinnamon bread looks to die for.
Thanks 🙂
Oh lord. Oh lord oh lord oh lord. Thats terrifying. And probably my worst nightmare. Did he name your kids yet? Did he make a wedding album using photoshop and facebook? Jeez.
It’s bad when I feel like I’m living How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, except that he’s for real
Holy crap! Is that guy for real?! I would have been freaking out too! I like that your bread recipe is called “Take it slow” bread. Hehehe… Crazy dude…
Hey thanks for following me! Your blog seems awesome too! 😀
I do try to tie in my recipe titles to my stores 🙂
And you’re welcome! And thank you!
I have been craving this bread for ages and now I feel the need to make it since I see my craving in a photo.
Sorry about the timeline guy…much too fast for a first date!
I was waiting for a rotation that had enough people coming to a workroom to give me an excuse to make two loaves of bread (i.e., to make it so I didn’t eat two loaves all by myself)!
I have no shame, my recipe makes three loaves and most of the first one is gone. The kiddos helped eat a bit of it.
See I live alone- no one else to blame for 2 loaves of bread disappearing!
The kitchen pixie did it! 😉
Can’t wait to try out the bread, we’re cinnamon fiends in this house! Plus can totally relate to the too-nice-guy situation. I’m glad I’m not the only one that thinks there’s such a thing!
And why is it that all the too-nice guys also seem to be a bit insane?
I don’t know. Hopefully NOT because they recognise a similar streak of madness in us!
Whoa baby! Crazy guy, lovely bread!
I’m much happier with the bread, let me tell you 🙂
White socks with black pants. Dead giveaway that there’s something wrong there. That was my criteria when I was in high school – it never let me down. My late husband would NEVER have worn white socks with black pants, and neither would my husband now. Jes sayin…there’s a way to tell. 😆
Aside from that, I love the looks of this cinnamon bread (one of my favorite breads). ‘course, I’ll have to use my Armstrong mixer for this.
I have rules against white socks with black pants OR socks with sandals. However, there are other fashion rules that I sometimes need to impart, too (just ask my boyfriend, who couldn’t figure out why he couldn’t wear a velvet smoking jacket with corduroy pants both in black together).
Meaning a strong arm? 😉
Oh my, there are guys like that? Seems against every stereotype I have (even with internet dating!) Loved it nonetheless!
And this was internet dating. Sadly, I have come across worse with regular dating…
I love cinnamon bread! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
You’re welcome!
That dating story is hilarious! Hilarious because I’m a spectator. Horrifying if I was you! And that bread looks really yummy. Super impressed you find time to cook and bake as a doctor! I know my doctor friends just struggle to survive! Thanks for stopping by and following my blog! Yay foodies for the win! =p
It’s my form of stress relief. Plus coworkers are happier when I bring in treats!
Oh wow! He segued all the way from nice guy to Stepford guy! Run for the hills!! Love the story – and love the cinnamon bread recipe! 😀
I ran. Quickly. Unfortunately he tried to keep up for a while…
Loosely related monologue with baked goods. A woman after my own fat, fat heart.
You’re welcome. And medically, hearts don’t really get all that “fat” 😉
Haha, well y’kno…fat as in attitude, not fat as in 3 A.M. motorized wheelchair runs to Wal-mart for triple-stuffed oreos.
Very nice recipe, and a very terrifying third date 😉
Definitely the worst third date I ever experienced
I love your date stories. Pleas consider any future rubbish dates as an exercise in altruism so we can all continue to enjoy the tales of weirdos 😉
And the cinnamon bread looks yum too. Love cinnamon – I’ve recently become obsessed with cinnamon hot chocolate.
I’ve got a recipe for hot chocolate with cinnamon and chili peppers in an earlier post.
Don’t worry- I have plenty of dating stories still! Online dating was a boon to the blog.
Ooh just found it. Sounds lovely – shall give it a go. And I look forward to more dating stories 🙂
The medical stories can be just as amusing, I promise! 🙂
And a medical dating story might trump them all… 😀
I do have some awkward dating other medical professional stories to come!
Too funny! Love your blog. My husband is a resident also, so I’m really amazed you make time to blog. Keep it up!
It’s my form of stress relief with work 🙂
Could you give that guy my number? He sounds like a pleasant change from my last boyfriend.
You want someone that quick, though??
Looks delish!
Thanks!
wow what a crazy guy!! great story tho 😉
Thanks!
I too have experienced guys moving too fast. Take a hint!! But seriously, no one has ever said anything like that to me. That’s not even a commitment thing. You’re just not desperate, while he obviously is!! Hhbbbbrrr… gives me the shivers that someone can get attached THAT quickly. Taylor Swift mentality, but in a guy. That’s wack!
I made something similar recently: http://bit.ly/UX4dyR Cinnamon bread = awesome.
It’s often requested at work 🙂
I love making bread – and I love cinnamon bread. So, for me, this is a win/win situation. (Maybe you should write a movie script about your dating adventures!!!)