Apple Pie Stuffed Breads
For something different this apple season, try some apple pie stuffed breads. Because what makes everything better? Bread. Fluffy cinnamon dough stuffed with ooey-gooey apple pie filling and sprinkled with sugar. Same apple goodness but wrapped in a gluten blanket. Plus, you get some leftover apple caramel sauce for dipping. Food coma, anyone?
How to make these apple pie stuffed breads
First of all, you’re going to need some apples. I used Gala apples, but most common apples will do. Cortland, Pink Lady, Empire, Honeycrisp, etc. Avoid using McIntosh apples for this as they break down easily. And if you use Granny Smith apples, your filling will just be a little more tart. You can also use a few varieties to get different flavour profiles.
To make the filling, you’ll have to melt the sugars, but not caramelize them, in a saucepan. The caramelization will happen once everything is cooking and reducing. So to avoid a bitter caramel flavour, I prefer just melting the sugars to start. Then add the apples coated in the cornstarch first, stir them in, and follow with the coconut oil. Once the apples have cooked down, the whole thing is a darker caramel colour and there’s less liquid, it’s done. Strain most of the leftover caramel out, but keep it for dipping or drizzling! If there’s too much in the filling, it will just all seep out like a volcano during baking. It will probably still happen for some of them, but it won’t be as bad.
I tried just combining all the ingredients together at the beginning and letting that simmer, but the end result was just a slab of apples coated in hard caramel and covered in coconut oil. So don’t do that, trust me. Since the filling is made with coconut oil and not vegan butter, it’s finicky that way.
As for the dough, it’s similar to the one from the blueberry buns recipe, with some cinnamon and lemon zest added. It’s a fairly simple dough to make and there’s no excessive kneading involved. Then it’s just a matter of waiting for it to proof. That’s most of the recipe really, waiting. But it’s well worth it! The bread will be nice and fluffy and lightly golden with a crispy sugar exterior. They’re best enjoyed still warm from the oven, but they’ll still be delicious reheated in the 2 days after making them.
If you make this recipe please let me know in the comments! All feedback is very much appreciated and I would love to hear from you! You can also tag me on instagram @the.quaint.kitchen or use the hashtag #thequaintkitchen to share your creations!
Apple Pie Stuffed Breads
Ingredients
Dough
- 110 g water, around 37C/98F, but no more than 48C/120F
- 1 tsp instant yeast or active dry yeast
- 1/2 tsp white granulated sugar
- 200 g all-purpose flour
- 25 g white granulated sugar , make sure it’s vegan
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp lemon zest
- 25 g neutral oil, (grapeseed, canola, vegetable…)
Apple Filling
- 200 g apples, I used Gala
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- pinch of salt
- 25 g white granulated sugar
- 25 g brown sugar
- 15 g refined coconut oil
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Topping
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- or just coarse sugar
- plantbased milk
Instructions
Dough
- Combine the lukewarm water, yeast and 1/2 tsp of the sugar and set it aside to let the yeast foam.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, the rest of the sugar, the salt, cinnamon and lemon zest.
- Once the yeast has lightly foamed, pour it into the dry ingredients along with the oil. Stir everything together until a rough dough forms then tip it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times, about 5 minutes, just until it forms a nice smooth ball and doesn’t feel too sticky.
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover it with a damp tea towel and place it in a warm place to proof for an hour or until doubled in size.
Apple Filling
- Dice the apples into small cubes and place in a bowl.
- Sprinkle the cornstarch, cinnamon and salt over the apples and stir to combine, then set aside.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the white and brown sugar and let them melt.
- Once they’ve melted, take the saucepan off the heat, add the apples and stir them in.
- Place back on the heat and add the coconut oil.
- Lower the heat and let the filling simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring often to avoid it sticking and burning. It’s done when it has reduced and the apples are a deeper colour.
- Stir in the vanilla then strain the filling and reserve the caramel to avoid it seeping out during baking. Transfer the filling to a bowl and set aside to cool.
Assembly
- Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Divide the dough into about 60g balls, then one by one, flatten them into a slightly oval shape, fill with about 1 tbsp of apple filling and pinch the longer sides together very well to close.
- Place them on the prepared baking sheet and cover with a damp tea towel to avoid them drying out.
- Let rest for about 20 minutes, in the meantime, preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F.
- Brush the breads with plantbased milk and dust the topping on them using a sieve. Or sprinkle them with coarse sugar.
- Cut 2 slits into them, making sure they get to the filling. Bake for 15-17 minutes.
- Let them cool a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring onto a wire rack.
Notes
- *Disclaimer: I have a tiny not-so-great oven, so your bake time may vary from mine.
- I strongly suggest making recipes by weight, if you make them by cups I can’t guarantee that you’ll get the same results.