Apple Butter Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Apple butter cinnamon swirl bread: a soft, moist yeast loaf with ribbons of apple butter and cinnamon sugar in every bite!
It’s a cool October morning, and I can’t think of a better way to start the day than with a cup of tea and a warm slice of apple butter cinnamon swirl bread!
I made this loaf over the weekend and I’m so glad to be able to nibble on it all week long. It makes a lovely breakfast or afternoon snack. And it’s a great way to use up some of the apple butter we picked up on our most recent trip to the orchard. I bet you have a jar in your fridge too; am I right?
I am a huge fan of Baked by Rachel, and all the gorgeous swirl breads she makes. Especially this one! So when I got the idea to make an apple butter cinnamon swirl bread, I knew I wanted to follow her lead and try this gorgeous technique.
It’s surprisingly simple! I know it looks fancy and complicated but really it’s not at all. If you can make cinnamon rolls, then this will be a snap for you.
Just roll out the dough into a flat rectangle, and spread the apple butter all over it. Then, sprinkle it with cinnamon sugar, and roll it up in a log, just like you would do with cinnamon rolls. Now, instead of cutting it crosswise into rolls, slice it lengthwise, all the way down, leaving it just barely attached at the one end. After that you just twist the two long pieces together. It feels a little awkward- the log wants to come undone, but it’s ok! You really can’t mess it up. It’s meant to be free-form so the more it waves and twists the better.
Look at all those ribbons of apple butter and cinnamon! There’s plenty of sticky filling in every bite. And the bread itself is super moist and soft. My family loved this apple butter cinnamon swirl bread and I think yours will too! It’s perfect for fall, or even for Thanksgiving or Christmas morning!
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Apple Butter Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (375 g) water,, warm
- 1/4 ounce (7.09 g) active dry yeast, (1 packet)
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar, , lightly packed
- 3 tablespoons (44.36 g) unsalted butter,, softened
- 3 3/4-4 1/2 cups (531.25 g) all-purpose flour, divided
- 3/4 teaspoon (0.75 teaspoon) kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (141 g) apple butter
Instructions
- Place the warm water in a large bowl and sprinkle the yeast on top.
- Set aside for 5 minutes to allow the yeast to proof.
- Add the brown sugar and butter.
- Blend in 2 cups of the flour and the salt until moistened.
- Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Stir in an additional 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 cups flour, until dough pulls away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead on floured surface, adding 1/2 to 3/4 cup additional flour, until dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
- Place dough in large greased bowl, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise in warm place until doubled in size, 30 to 45 minutes.
- Lightly mist a 9×5-inch loaf pan with non-stick spray.
- Stir the granulated sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl.
- Punch down the dough and roll it into a rectangle, about 9 inches on the short side and 1/4 inch thick.
- Spread with a thin layer of apple butter, and top with the cinnamon sugar.
- Starting at the short side, roll into a tight log (like a cinnamon roll).
- Using a sharp knife, cut the log in half lengthwise, leaving the two halves attached at one end.
- Twist the two long pieces together and place in the prepared pan.
- Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise in warm place until doubled in size, 30 to 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Uncover dough and bake 40 to 45 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when lightly tapped.
- Cool completely before slicing.
Is the serving size one slice?
I’m going to make this for a carry-in at work. It looks amazing – we are all so excited to try it out!
Awesome! I hope you and all your co-workers love it!
Delicious! I am a novice at bread making but I saw the picture of this bread and wanted to try it. The recipe was actually very easy to make (getting the twist right and transferring it to the pan was probably the hardest part). I used homemade apple butter and it worked great in the bread. I’ll definitely try this again for the holidays. Thank you
You’re so welcome Jen! I’m so glad you had such great success with it.
This was very good, I used all whole wheat flour and added a tablespoon of gluten. May not of need it, as the loaf over flowed and I made a cinnamon bun with the excess. Will make this again!
So happy to hear it! Thanks so much Sharon!
I love this recipe! I made it several times last year and I’m so excited to make it again now that it’s officially fall (although still 90 degrees here in the south). Do you have any tips as far as multiplying this? I want to make lots of loaves for my family! Should I make one at a time or can I just double or triple the ingredients?
So happy you’ve been enjoying it Deana! I think you could probably double the recipe without a problem, so long as your mixer is big enough to handle that much dough!
Wonderful recipe! Thanks for sharing
My pleasure Jamie! I’m so happy you enjoyed.
THANK you for a recipe page that is straightforward and relevant – it seems like every recipe I’ve come across recently has a looong (boring) story about their “hubby” who loves this recipe and then 987 pictures of the finished product, making it a chore to even FIND the recipe. Anyway, props to your design and this bread recipe!!
So happy you like it! Thanks Erika!
Love this recipe! A co-worker gave it to me. I make & can my own apple butter, so this was perfect. I did saute up some fresh apple pieces with brown sugar & apple pie spice & put into the dough. A bit tackier & I probably use more flour, but it’s really yummy. Using this for our Christmas brunch french toast bake!
Sounds amazing Jennifer! Thanks for the positive review and I hope you loved your French toast bake!
Love this recipe and about to make it. However, your prep time is way off. If you have 2 rises of 30 minutes, and the time for creating the dough, 10 minutes kneading dough, plus time to roll it out….that’s at least 75 minutes prep.
Thanks for the heads up Aisha! But prep time just refers to active time. The rise time is not included because it’s hands-off. Hope you enjoy your bread!
This recipe sounds like it would smell amazing!!! What a yummy breakfast!
perfectly swirled 🙂
The addition of apple butter is genius! Love this twisty bread!
So sorry – the ratings are below “post comment) so I didn’t see it in time on my phone.
Oh my goodness, this is wonderful! I used apple cider instead of water, left out the brown sugar & added 2 tsp Vietnamese cinnamon in the dough. I used my homemade apple butter (made in the Instant Pot) and topped with a mixture of brown sugar & more Vietnamese cinnamon. My house smells like fall!! Thanks for such a great recipe!
My pleasure! Your adaptations sound delicious. I’m so happy you liked the recipe!
Made this today and the recipe was so easy to follow. I subbed 1 cup of whole wheat flour, used instant yeast, added flax and chia seeds. Also added 1 tbs more water to account for the WWF substitution. Smelled so good! I agree with one comment though, next time I will add more sugar to the cinnamon/sugar mix. I was expecting it to taste more like a cinnamon roll and the sweetness was just not there. Still a keeper though! Thanks for the recipe!
So glad you were happy with it Karina! Thanks so much for sharing your take!
Is there a way to make the dough the night before and then bake it the next day? I haven’t made bread before so I’m unsure at which point it’d be okay to leave in the fridge, if at all.
Thanks!
Hi Diva! You can definitely do that. You can refrigerate the dough before either of the proofs, depending upon how much you want to do ahead. That will retard the rise. Then, when you’re ready to move forward with the remaining steps of the recipe, just remove it from the fridge and allow it to come up to room temperature. Once it hits room temp, let it rise until doubled in volume, then bake. Good luck and let me know if you have any other questions!
Hi! I’m making these as holiday presents and was wondering if they’re apple to be mailed. Just making sure they don’t need to be refrigerated
Hi Laura! I think if they’re getting there in a day or so that should be fine. But since there aren’t any added preservatives, this bread doesn’t tend to have quite the same shelf life as something store-bought.