This Maple Walnut Pull-Apart Bread is made with a simple homemade yeast dough and bursting with toasted walnut pieces covered in maple syrup. This pull-apart bread recipe uses coconut oil and almond milk to keep it dairy-free, and is sweetened only with maple syrup!
Never have I ever made (or eaten?) pull-apart bread prior to this fall. Never mind the fact that I have a serious number of amazing looking pull-apart breads on my Pinterest boards. Lately I've been trying to cross those "never I have evers" off my list (culinary ones, of course!), and pull-apart bread was the next to fall. See also slow cooker sweet potato soup and homemade pfeffernusse as others on that list!
Besides the obvious that these breads just look delicious, I love that there's a pull-apart bread recipe for everyone. Quick ones using pre-made dough or more time-intensive breads using homemade yeast-based doughs. You can lean savory (herbs! sauce! cheese!) or sweet (cinnamon! sugar!)...you name it.
For my first foray into pull-apart land, I chose to make a sweet dough from scratch and stick with a maple walnut flavor. It's also sweetened solely with maple syrup, and coconut oil is used in place of butter making it dairy-free. Helloooooo pull-apart bread! I see you.
This dough is rich and tender, with maple-drenched toasted walnut pieces allllll over. Truly. There are about thirty pieces of dough all stacked together here, with that maple walnut mixture between each one. The magic of pull-apart bread. 🙂
A simple yeast dough is let to rise, and then the fun begins in turning regular bread into pull-apart goodness. The dough is rolled out into a rectangle and brushed with melted coconut oil and a sprinkle or two of ground cinnamon. Then you'll spread the maple walnut mixture over top and cut the dough into four slices, length-wise. After you stack the strips on top of one another, you'll cut through them all to form roughly square slices. This'll leave you with about thirty pieces (give or take).
Now it's time to assemble everything! To make the next step easier, I tilted the (well-greased) 9" x 5" loaf pan on one of its small ends, letting it lean against the wall with a weighty bowl/candle/something in front of it to prevent it from sliding back down. Then you stack the dough pieces on top of one another in the loaf pan until it's filled. Simple enough, right? I'm already scheming how I can "pull-apart" everything.
We enjoyed this bread any which way, but it's especially great when slightly warmed. This means it's go time as it cools a bit after coming out of the oven. After that, I suggest popping the pan into the oven for a few minutes to warm it. Or, let's say you're at work and only have access to a microwave. In that case you can quickly heat a slice (or two...) for a few seconds there. Either way will help bring back that flaky, just baked taste!
Recipe Notes
- While this bread is on the sweet side (versus savory), it's not a super sweet, dessert-style bread. Those are obviously delicious, but I wanted to make something that wouldn't give me a sugar rush if eaten in the morning or as an anytime snack. If you'd prefer something sweet sweet, I'd suggest adding granulated sugar over top of the maple walnut filling mixture when you're spreading it on the dough.
- When baking non-coconut flavored things, I typically use refined coconut oil as I've found it's flavorless - no coconut flavor will come through in the finished product. I'm aware that it doesn't have quite the level of benefits of unrefined ("virgin") coconut oil, but coconut wouldn't mesh well with a lot of flavors, including maple walnut.
Maple Walnut Pull-Apart Bread
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, divided
- 2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast (one envelope)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon or more to taste
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup milk (I used almond milk)
- ¼ cup water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Maple Walnut Filling:
- 1 cup chopped walnut pieces, toasted
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon plus extra for sprinkling
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add 2 cups of flour, yeast, salt, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs. Set aside.
- Set a small saucepan over medium heat and add ¼ cup coconut oil, maple syrup, and milk. Let heat until the coconut oil has just melted completely, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and add water and vanilla extract. Stir to combine. Before proceeding you'll want the temperature of the mixture to be between 115-125 degrees F, so you may need to let the mixture sit for a few minutes until it reaches that point.
- Pour wet mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir together. Add whisked eggs and stir until incorporated. Add the remaining ¾ cup of flour and work into the dough (it'll be sticky).
- Place dough in a large, greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel. Place bowl in a warm place to rise for about one hour, or until the dough has doubled in size [see note]. While the dough is rising, toast the walnuts. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place walnut pieces in a single layer onto an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 5-8 minutes, or until the walnuts just become fragrant. Remove walnuts from the sheet to a bowl. Add ¼ cup maple syrup and ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon and stir to coat the walnuts. Set aside.
- Once dough has risen, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously flour your work surface and rolling pin and roll out dough into a large, thin rectangle. Brush 2 tablespoon of melted coconut oil over surface of the dough and sprinkle extra cinnamon over top if you like. Spread walnut mixture evenly over top to cover the surface.
- Cut the dough into four evenly-sized strips, lengthwise. Stack the strips on top of one another, with the walnut sides facing up. Cut the stack into 7 or 8 pieces. Grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan and add all pieces next to one another.
- Bake for 28-35 minutes, or until the top of the bread is a deep golden brown. A deep color ensures the center of the bread is fully cooked. Serve while warm or reheat prior to serving for a flaky, just-baked taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.
Food Safety and Nutrition DisclaimerAdapted from Joy the Baker's Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread
Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook says
Hi there! I have been thinking of making this one soon, but what can I sub the coconut oil? This looks absolutely yummy! 😀
Alyssa says
Hi Jhuls, if dairy isn't a concern you can sub in equal amounts of unsalted butter for all of the coconut oil. Hope you enjoy if you make it! 🙂
Danielle says
I've never attempted a pull-apart bread, but I so want to! They always look so delicious, this one looks so perfect too. Plus it's totally acceptable for breakfast, right?
Alyssa says
Oh for sure! Haha I've been bringing a slice to work with me for breakfast/a mid-morning snack. It's not too sweet, and it has walnuts for protein, right? Haha! Thanks Danielle!
Jess @ What Jessica Baked Next says
I've never made pull-apart bread before - but this looks incredible! I love that this recipe is naturally sweetened with maple syrup! Loving the gorgeous flavours!
Alyssa says
Thanks Jess!!
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says
I have had pull apart breads before but they are usually made with tons of sugar and rolled into balls. This not only looks beautiful, but sounds delicious too!
Alyssa says
Thanks Kathy! I've seen those types and I bet they are delicious! I try and cut down on the amount of sugar I eat for breakfast (especially if I'll be eating the same thing for several days in a row), so the subtle sweetness in this bread worked for me! 🙂
marcie says
I've never made pull-apart bread, and this version is really making me want to fix that! I love maple so much -- this bread looks amazing, Alyssa!
Alyssa says
Thanks Marcie! I love maple all year round but especially so in the fall/winter. I contemplated putting maple extract in this bread to really amp up the maple flavor, but I liked the subtle hint of maple with just the syrup. Though I bet either way it would have been a keeper!
Denise @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
I've never made pull-apart bread before because I am scared I'd eat the entire batch myself 😉 This version looks amazing, love maple and walnuts together!!
Alyssa says
Haha that thought did cross my mind a time or two... 😉 I've started putting half of any baked good I make in the freezer right away to cut down on those cravings. With just the two of us here it's tough! We made quick work of the half of this bread though.
Ashley says
Gahhhh this looks amazing!! I love pull-apart bread but have never made it myself! This flavor! I love it!
Alyssa says
Thanks Ashley!
Jess @ Flying on Jess Fuel says
I've never made pull-apart bread either, but it's SO FUN!! I love this one... the flavors sound amazing and I would totally devour this for breakfast! 😀 Yum!
Alyssa says
Thanks Jess! This was my go-to breakfast at work for days on end. Anything that gets me excited about being at work in the A.M. is a special bread indeed. 😉
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
Pull apart bread is (has been) on my recipe bucket list forever!!! I don't think I've ever eaten it either 😛 But o man...they look so good!!! I just need to do mad experimenting (i.e. gluten-free and vegan) which may take a few trials 😉
Alyssa says
It took so long for me to make it - I wonder why that is? Haha Good luck with experimenting - I'd be eager to see a GF/vegan version!