Apple Dumpling Pull-Apart Bread with optional dipping sauce

This is probably one of the most complicated recipes I have ever made.  It is probably also one of the most delicious.  It's the apple dumpling we know and love, transformed into bite size form!

I recommend that you completely read through the recipe before you start.  It isn't a difficult recipe, but it does have a lot of steps.

Dough

• 1 cup milk
• 1/3 cup unsweetened apple juice
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted)
• 3 cups bread flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Caramelized Apples

• 4 Fuji or other apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 64 ½-¾ inch chunks
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Maple Coating/ Glaze

*note: the apple dumplings are dipped in the coating, and the remainder of the coating is later used as a base for the glaze

• 1 cup maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• ½ cup apple cider (for glaze)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla (for glaze)
• 1/3 cup pecan pieces (for glaze)

Make the Dough:

Mix 2 cups flour and yeast in stand mixer fitted with a beater blade. Turn machine to low and slowly add the heated liquid mixture. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.

Switch to the dough hook, gradually add the remaining flour (add more or less as necessary) until dough clings to the hook and almost cleans the sides. Knead until the dough is smooth.

In microwave safe bowl, heat milk, apple juice, sugar, salt and butter to 120° to 130°. Stir to dissolve sugar.

Turn dough onto lightly floured counter and knead briefly to form a round ball. Coat a large bowl with nonstick cooking spray. Place dough in bowl and coat surface of dough with cooking spray. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and rise in a warm place until dough doubles in size, about 2 hours.

Caramelize apples:

Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat.  Add maple syrup, lemon, and cinnamon and stir to combine.  Add the apples and sauté until apples are softened and all the liquid is evaporated.  Allow to cool. 

Make the Maple Syrup Coating:

Heat butter, maple syrup, cinnamon to a small sauce pan and heat.  Cook on medium for about 20 minutes until the mixture thickens slightly.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Butter a 12-cup Bundt pan liberally.

Make Dumplings:

After dough has fully risen, punch down the dough and cut it into 64 pieces.  With floured hands, flatten out a piece of dough, add a chunk of apple, and wrap the apple chunk like a dumpling so the apple is completely wrapped in dough.  Dip the dumpling into the Maple Syrup Coating, and add it to the bundt pan.  Repeat 63 more times taking care to stagger the dough balls to build layers.

When all of the dumplings have been dipped and placed into the Bundt pan, put the remaining maple syrup coating into a container and refrigerate (you’ll be using the leftovers for the glaze). Cover Bundt pan tightly with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator.

Approximately two hours before you want to bake your Monkey Bread, remove it from the refrigerator and let the dough come to room temperature and begin to rise.

Preheat oven to 350°. Unwrap pan and bake until top is deep brown and caramel begins to bubble a little around edges, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, then turn out on platter and allow to cool slightly, about 10 minutes.

For the glaze:

While the apple dumpling bread is baking, put the remaining maple syrup coating to a saucepan and add ½ cup of apple cider.  Cook the glaze until it reduces into a syrupy consistency (about 20-30 minutes).  Add the pecans and vanilla.

Spoon mixture over the pull-apart bread after it has been removed from the Bundt pan.

Dipping sauce (optional)

• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 cup apple cider.
• 1 tablespoon corn syrup (optional)
• 1/3 cup of heavy cream or coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla

Boil maple syrup, cider, and corn syrup until it reduces by 3/4. When it's nearly finished reducing, heat the cream/milk, butter, cinnamon, and vanilla in the microwave for 30-45 seconds (This will help keep the sauce from breaking).

Add the warmed milk mixture to the boiling cider/maple syrup and stir.  Serve alongside the pull-apart bread for a little extra apple-y goodness.

This recipe is partly based upon this recipe: http://www.barbarabakes.com/overnight-apple-fritter-monkey-bread/

Vegan Fruitcake Recipe

A lot of things are better with booze: Wii Sports, rum raisin cupcakes, hockey, watermelon, booze...  It pains me to say this, but fruitcake is better without the booze.  I created two vegan fruitcake recipes, one with rum and one without.  The one without the rum won the hearts of my family.  

This recipe was adapted from Alton Brown's recipe, which can be found here.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons milled flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water

1 cup golden raisins

1 cup currants

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup dried blueberries

1/2 cup dried cherries

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

Zest of one lemon, chopped coarsely

Zest of one orange, chopped coarsely

1/4 cup candied ginger, chopped

2 cups unfiltered apple juice

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 to 1/2 cup pecan pieces (optional)

Preparation
Combine dried fruits, candied ginger, both zests, flax seed, and 3 tablespoons of water. Add 1 cup of apple juice and allow fruit to soak overnight in a covered bowl.  Alternatively, you can microwave the mixture for 5 minutes to re-hydrate the fruit.

Place fruit and liquid in a non-reactive pot with the sugar, coconut oil, water, 1 cup of apple juice and spices. Bring mixture to a boil stirring often, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.  Cool the mixture for at least 15-30 minutes.

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Combine dry ingredients and sift them into the fruit mixture. Quickly bring the batter together with a large wooden spoon.  The batter will be very, very thick.  You will get a good workout while working the batter.  Fold in the nuts.

Divide batter in half and spoon it into 2 8-inch non-stick loaf pans.  Bake for 40-50 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting toothpick into the middle of the cake. If it comes out mostly clean, it's done. If not, bake another 5 minutes, and check again.

Allow to cool completely before turning out from pan.

**Note: Feel free to mix and match the fruits as you see fit.  Trader Joe’s didn’t have currents for my first batch, so I used a combination of golden raisins and dried mango.  It turned out quite lovely.


 

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup vegan butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening (I used Crisco)

3 tablespoons water

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large bowl, cream together the margarine, shortening, and brown sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the water and vanilla.  Mix in the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Add the chocolate chips.

Shape the dough into walnut-sized balls and place the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. 

Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes.

Makes approximately 45 cookies.


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Vegan Swedish Fish Cupcake Recipe

They said it couldn't be done, but I did it.  I made vegan cupcakes with Swedish Fish*, and they are absolutely delicious. 

There's a lot going on in these cupcakes, but it all works.  I created an orange cupcake base for my cupcake because I thought it might nicely accent the ummm.... cherry flavor?  Are they cherry?  I just don't know, but I thought red flavor would go well with orange.  This basic vegan cupcake recipe is the one upon which I was built.  My recipe is much different, but I like to give credit to those who came up with the original ratios.

If you don't have coconut oil, you can substitute it with canola or vegetable oil.  Ditto if you don't have rice milk.  It can also be replaced with an appropriate analogue if necessary

Ingredients  

1/2 cup coconut oil, warmed until liquid

2/3 cup demerara sugar (or raw sugar)

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 ½ cups rice milk (warmed to room temperature)

1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon pure orange extract

zest of one orange

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup of small Swedish Fish

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a muffin pan with 12 paper baking cups.

Beat together the coconut oil and sugar.

Mix in the rice milk and cider vinegar. Add the orange and vanilla extracts.

Add the orange zest, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix until well combined.

Slowly incorporate the flour taking care not to over mix.

With a spatula or spoon, stir in the Swedish Fish.

Portion out the batter into the pre-lined muffin pan. They don't rise a lot, so I filled the cups almost to the top.

Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

I iced my cupcakes with this Vegan Orange-Chocolate Frosting.

* Swedish Fish are vegan.  PETA says so.