Apple Cinnamon Pull-Apart Bread
This Apple Cinnamon Pull-Apart Bread is everything I want in a delicious fall bake: soft layers of bread coated in cinnamon sugar, pockets of jammy spiced apples, and a glossy vanilla glaze that settles into all the little crevices. The apples are cooked down first with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and lemon zest until they're thick and concentrated, giving the bread plenty of apple-pie flavor without making the dough soggy. The result is soft, pull-apart layers with caramelized edges, warm spices, and little pockets of apple in every bite. And when it's still slightly warm and you pull those layers apart? That's the good stuff.
Ingredients
- 2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and finely diced
- 2 Tbsp vegan butter
- 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/8 tsp salt
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- Pinch of salt
- 12-14 frozen Rhodes dinner rolls, thawed but still cool and workable
- 3 Tbsp melted vegan butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 Tbsp melted vegan butter
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1–2 Tbsp unsweetened soy milk, as needed
Instructions
- 1Make the spiced apple filling
Melt the vegan butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the diced apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, salt, and lemon zest. Cook for 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples are tender and the mixture is thick and jammy, with very little liquid remaining. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Transfer the apple filling to a shallow bowl or plate and let it cool completely before assembling the bread.
- 2Prepare the cinnamon sugar
In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt. Set aside.
- 3Roll out the dough
Lightly grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan. Working with one thawed Rhodes dinner roll at a time, roll each roll into a thin circle about 4 inches in diameter. Aim for about ⅛-inch thickness. The rounds don't need to be perfectly uniform.
- 4Coat the dough
Brush both sides of each dough round lightly with melted vegan butter, then generously coat with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Place the first round into the prepared loaf pan.
- 5Build the layers
Continue rolling and coating the remaining dough rounds, stacking them directly on top of one another in the loaf pan. Every 2–3 layers, add about 1–2 teaspoons of the cooled apple filling over the dough, spreading it into a thin layer while leaving a small border around the edges. Continue stacking until all 12-14 dough rounds have been used. Don't press the layers down; simply let them settle naturally into the pan.
- 6Let the bread rise
Cover the loaf loosely with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and place it in a warm, draft-free spot. Let rise for 30–45 minutes, or until the dough looks noticeably puffy and has expanded in the pan.
- 7Bake
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 30–40 minutes, until the loaf is deeply golden on top and the center is fully baked. If the top begins browning too quickly, loosely tent the loaf with foil during the last 10–15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes.
- 8Make the glaze
While the bread cools slightly, whisk together the powdered sugar, melted vegan butter, vanilla, and enough soy milk to make a thick but pourable glaze.
- 9Glaze and serve
Remove the bread from the pan and place it on a serving plate. While the bread is still warm, drizzle generously with the vanilla glaze, letting it run into the layers and down the sides. Serve warm and pull the layers apart with your hands for the best texture.
