Food: Apple Fritter Bread

I was at Target the other day and every time I pass through the bakery I see their Archer Farms Apple Fritter Bread and man, does it look good. Luckily, I resist buying it every time (it's $3.99!! for a loaf of bread!) I decided to try making my own and was happy with how this recipe turned out. It's perfect served warm and would make a delicious breakfast or brunch treat.

I searched around and found this recipe over at Flour Me With Love. I made some changes to the recipe and process and was pleased with the results.

Apple Fritter Bread - adapted from Flour Me With Love

Filling:

3 apples, peeled & diced (I used Granny Smith)

2 tsp. lemon juice

1/2 C brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 Tbsp. butter

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

Dough:

2-1/2 C all-purpose flour

1 package yeast

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 C brown sugar

1/4 C water

1 egg, beaten

3/4 C milk

1/4 C butter

Glaze:

1 Tbsp. butter, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

3/4 C powdered sugar

3-1/2 tsp. milk

In a skillet, cook apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, vanilla, butter, cinnamon and cornstarch on medium-low heat until apples are tender and mixture is slightly thickened (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Heat the 3/4C milk in a saucepan until bubbles begin to form and add 1/4C butter. Stir to melt butter completely.

Combine flour, yeast, salt and brown sugar in a medium mixing bowl and stir well. Add water, egg, and milk/butter mixture and stir to combine thoroughly until a soft dough forms. At this point I used the kneading hook on my stand mixer and kneaded it for 5 minutes. You could also hand knead on a lightly-floured surface. Dough will be sticky, don't add more flour! Place back in mixing bowl, cover, and let rise for an hour.

Grease a bread pan/dish/stone. Roll dough into a 12"x 18"-ish rectangle on a floured surface. Spread apple mixture evenly over the dough.

Cut dough into even(-ish) squares.

Using a spatula, stack squares on top of each other and make four piles (this part is super messy :)).

Place stacks of dough sideways (see picture below) into dish. Cover and let rise for 1/2 hour - 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake for 50-55 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes and then remove from pan to plate.

Mix up glaze ingredients and drizzle over warm loaf (I didn't end up using all of the glaze). Serve immediately. Enjoy :)