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Blueberry Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

DSC_0043 DSC_0037I have been wanting to make this pull- apart bread for a long while now. I came up with my version of the recipe (I adapted Joy the Bakers) and wrote it down in my wee recipe book maybe a year ago. I tried to make it last time I was home but the dough was left out over night so the yeast went cray and the dough was done for. I think maybe, just maybe, this is up there with my favourite, non-cake, sweet treats. You know that anything with cinnamon is going to taste good right?

DSC_0033 DSC_0035I have been sitting on the components for this blog post for over a week now and there’s another one under there too. I just have not had the time to sit down and write it up. Well that’s probably a small porky pie. I just haven’t had the motivation to do it. My motivation has slowly been growing with my increased creativity at work. I’m cooking/bakings new things and constantly thinking of what ingredients will go well together for tomorrows muffins or the special. Also, summer is probably my favourite season for baking and cooking. The range of fresh, seasonal, produce available is unreal.

Pull Apart 1 Pull Apart 2I am off to Glastonbury today! I can’t believe it’s already been a year since I was last there. Time has flown by. I made these Granola bars last year for breakfast. Made little goody bags for my friends and everything. I didn’t get round to buying all the ingredients this time but I had some over ripe bananas so I made this Blueberry & Walnut Banana Bread instead. It is currently cooling in front of me and it is taking all my will power to not slice a bit off.

Pull Apart 3 DSC_0024Apart from the music, one of the things I look forward to most is the food. Last year I went halloumi mad. I can’t even remember how many of those halloumi cones I ate. Definitely two. Possibly 3. I will be looking out for the Tea & Toast van for my breakfast fix and Buddha Bowls seeing as last year I never got my hands on one.

DSC_0044 DSC_0030I may have told you before that I struggle to work with yeast. No no, yeast doesn’t like working with me. I try and I try but it just never seems to work out. But this time. This time it did. The dough came out sooooo pillowy soft I had to give myself a pat on the bag in between gently squidging the dough. Apparently squidging isn’t a word. It is now. But yeah, it came out great which resulted in soft bread. Nothing dry or tough over here thanks. If you are new to using yeast, I suggest activating it first just to be sure it’s going to work. Joy the Baker tells you how to do it here.

 

Recipe

I adapted Joy the Bakers recipe. The blueberry jam isn’t essential. It was just a way of using up any ingredients so nothing goes to waste, therefore there aren’t any exact measurements! I also cut up my dough slightly differently as I found the dough was too flimsy for me to handle.

Serves: 8-10 (depending on how generous you are with your slices!)
Prep Time: 30-40 mins
Rising/Resting Time: 1.5-2hrs
Cooking Time: 20-30 mins
Skill Level: It’s a wee bit tricky
Equipment
2lb/ 900g Loaf Tin (greased & lined with baking parchment)
4 x mixing bowls (2 large, 2 small)
Pastry brush
Dough cutter
2 x saucepan

Ingredients
Dough
300g + 115g Plain Flour (keep them separate)
50g golden caster sugar
2½ tsp active dry yeast
½ tsp salt
2 large eggs
55g unsalted butter
75ml milk
50ml water
1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling
200g golden caster sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
55g unsalted butter (melted)
280g blueberries

Method

  1. Mix together 300g floursugar, yeast (if you haven’t activated it) and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
  2. Whisk together eggs in a small bowl. Set aside.
  3. In a saucepan over low-med heat , melt together butter and milk.
  4. Remove from heat. Add water and vanilla essence. Leave to cool.
  5. Pour the cooled butter mix into the flour bowl. Mix with a spatula. This is when you want to add the yeast if you activated it before hand.
  6. Add the eggs and keep stirring until they are completely mixed into the dough. It’s gonna be soup but keep stirring.
  7. Add the remaining 115g flour and stir for about 2mins bringing the dough together.
  8. Place dough in a large greased mixing bowl. Cover with cling film and a tea towel. Leave in a warm place for about 1 hour until dough has doubled in size.
  9. Meanwhile make the filling by mixing together sugar and cinnamon. 
  10. Grease loaf tin. Set aside.
  11. Once dough is ready, tip out on to a lightly floured surface knead for about 2 mins to deflate. Cover with tea towel and leave for to rest for 5 mins.
  12. Roll out the dough into a 12″ x 20″ rectangle. If it’s not quite 20″, that’s cool.
  13. Using a pastry brush, spread the melted butter on the rolled out dough.
  14. Sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar mix over ensuring the entire surface is covered.
  15. Slice the dough vertically (where shortest side is vertical) into 6 strips.
  16. Now cut the dough in half horizontally and stack the strips into two piles.
  17. Again, cut these two piles horizontally into ⅓’s so you are left with 6 stacks. Don’t worry about the sugar you lose, you will use this for the jam.
  18. Layer the stacks in loaf tin so the are standing up like pages in a book.
  19. Push 3/4 blueberries in between each layer of dough.
  20. Cover tin with a tea towel and leave in a warm place for 30-45mins until dough has almost doubled.
  21. Preheat oven to 200c/180c fan/Gas 6.
  22. Bake bread for 30-45mins until very brown brown to ensure middle is cooked.
  23. Whilst the bread bakes, make the jam by mixing together your remaining blueberries and any cinnamon sugar that may have fallen off during the stacking process, in a saucepan.
  24. Cook over low-med heat for about 15-20mins until sugar has melted and the blueberries have begun to burst and become sticky, like jam.
  25. Leave bread to cool for 20 mins before removing from tin and pouring blueberry jam over. Best served warm!

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I’ve been trying to decide who I am most looking froward to see at Glastonbury, I think it might be Mothership Returns. A funk super group consisting of George Clinton, Parliament, Funkadelic and The Family Stone…

KB x

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