I’ve always loved baking cinnamon rolls, but I have recently begun making pull-apart bread for a change. You can also convert your favourite cinnamon roll recipe into a loaf of pull apart bread by assembling it differently. I will try to illustrate the steps in my post.
Although bread is relatively more time-consuming to make, this is worth the wait. Patience, my dear, is key. Each piece is soft and gooey, just like the best part of a cinnamon roll – the center section. I love the addition of pumpkin as it adds a natural sweetness, and not to forget, it has its superfood properties.
This is how the dough should look like after rising for about an hour in a warm place. Try placing it at the warmest part of your house. It should double in size.
Roll it out in an even rectangle, spread on loads of butter and generously top with the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Cut it into six equal sections (look at the markings I have made).
Stack those layers together.
Cut it into six equal portions again.
Stack them sideways in a loaf pan. Voila! It’s ready to be baked.
After baking, it should look golden brown and risen. Can you tell how fluffy the interior of the bread is? Yeast is amazing.
The result was a decadent, soft, sweet and gooey bread. It’s hard to stop at one slice!
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast or one package
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 t vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
Ingredients for Filling
- 5 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger (optional)
- 1/8 tsp ground clove (optional)
Ingredients for Maple-Rum Glaze (optional)
- 4 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon rum
- 3/4 cup to 1 cup icing sugar, sifted
- Make the dough by combining the flour, sugar, yeast and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook.
- Heat the milk in the microwave for one minute. Add the butter to the milk and stir until melted.
- Add the milk, pumpkin, vanilla and eggs to the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until dough starts to come together, then increase the speed to medium high and knead for about 5 minutes. The dough should be smooth and elastic. Add more flour (by the tablespoon) as needed until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Some dough might stick to the bottom of the bowl, but this is okay.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place bowl in a warm area and allow dough to rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in bulk.
- While the dough rises, making the filling. Combine the sugar and spices and mix well. Melt the butter in the microwave, about 30 seconds on high. Set the butter aside.
- Once the dough has risen, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and roll into a ball. Punch out the air from the dough.
- Roll the dough into a rectangle, about 12 by 20 inches. Brush the dough with softened butter and cover with cinnamon-sugar mixture.
- Cut the dough into 6 two-inch wide strips. Stack the strips on one another and cut them into 6 equal sections.
- Stack each section into a greased 9 by 5 inch loaf pan, sprinkle any leftover sugar onto the layers of dough.
- Cover the pan with a towel and let the dough rise a second time in a warm spot for 30 to 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the bread for 30 to 35 minutes until the top is golden brown. Allow the bread to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before removing from pan.
- While baking, make the glaze. In a small sauce pan, heat up butter and maple syrup on low until melted. Stir in the rum. Slowly add in the powdered sugar.
- Drizzle with glaze (optional) when bread is still warm and fresh out of the oven.