Apple Cinnamon Puffs

Apple Cinnamon Puffs

This delicious recipe creation was the result of a brainstorm session on ways to use  my sweet bread starter outside of making cinnamon rolls. I was recipe browsing and looking at recipes for Monkey Bread, and then thought how great apples would go with the Monkey Bread flavor profile. I wanted to come up with a fun twist, so I decided to stuff the bread....the result: these delectable Apple Cinnamon Puffs.

These puffs make a great breakfast/brunch or dessert food....or if you are my boyfriend, a great "the first thing you eat when you walk in the door" food :) You could serve these puffs with a drizzle of caramel or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.



Apple Cinnamon Puffs


Ingredients for the Dough:
-1 c sweet bread starter
-1/2 c granulated sugar
-1/2 c coconut oil (vegetable oil could be substituted)
-1 tbsp salt (I use fine ground sea salt)
-1 1/2 c warm water
-1 tbsp dry active yeast
-6 c all-purpose flour


Ingredients for the Filling:
-1 1/2 c apples, peeled and chopped
-1/2 tsp cinnamon
-2 tbsp lemon juice
-2 tbsp sugar


Ingredients for the Topping:
-2 tbsp butter, melted
-1/2 tsp cinnamon
-2 tbsp sugar


Instructions:
1. Attach the dough hook to your electric stand mixer. Mix starter, sugar, oil, salt, water, yeast and flour on low speed setting. Mix until incorporated (2-3 minutes).
2.  Place the dough in a large, greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
3. Let the dough rise overnight (approx. 12 hours).
4. Preheat oven to 325°F.
5. Place the dough onto a well-floured surface. Using a floured rolling pin, roll the  into an large oval, 1/4 inch-thick.
6. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the filling ingredients.
7. Using a biscuit cutter, cut out a dough circle and lightly flatten it with your fingers.
8. Place a tbsp of filling onto the dough circle. 
9. Fold the dough over the filling and pinch to seal the seam. Roll the dough ball in your hands to ensure the puff is sealed.
10. Place puff on a parchment-lined baking sheet, seam side down.
11. Repeat steps 6-9 until all the dough has been used.
12. Brush each puff with melted butter.
13. Combine cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle each puff with cinnamon-sugar mixture.
14. Bake puffs until golden brown.
15. Enjoy!


Pictures and Tips:

Step 1. Using the dough hook, mix the dough ingredients until well incorporated...about 2-3 minutes. While mixing, use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Make sure that the flour in the bottom of the bowl gets mixed in. 

Step 2.  Place the dough into a large, greased bowl. I used a little bit of extra coconut oil, but butter would work as well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and seal the edges well.

Step 3. Allow the dough to rise over night. It will double in size and become large and puffy. The dough will then start to deflate slightly and small bubbles will appear on the surface. The longer rise time always for a slow fermentation of the dough, which adds great flavor.

Step 5. Place the dough onto a well-floured surface. Roll the dough out into a large, 1/4" thick oval.

Step 6. Stir together the apples, cinnamon, sugar and lemon juice. The lemon juice will keep the apples from turning brown while you are working with the dough and also adds a fresh zip to the filling.

Step 7. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out dough circles. It may help to lightly flour your biscuit cutter.

Flatten the dough circle out with your fingers.

Step 8. Place a tbsp of filling onto the dough circle.

Step 9. Fold the dough over the filling and bring the edges together. Use your fingers to pinch the dough together creating a tight seal. 

Lightly roll the dough in your hands to shape it into a round puff.

Steps 10 & 11. Place the puff, seam side down onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Complete steps 6-10 with the remaining down. I was able to make 20 puffs.

Step 12. Brush the puffs with the melted butter. The butter will help the cinnamon-sugar topping stick, and will help the puffs get golden brown in the oven.

Step 13. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar.

Sprinkle each puff with the mixture.

Step 14. Bake the puffs until they are golden brown. 

Step 15. Enjoy! You can allow the puffs to cool or eat them right out of the oven. The puff filling will be very warm because of the steam trapped inside. Here is a picture of the inside...delicious little puff pockets of apple goodness.




I love the way this recipe turned out...so fun and absolutely delicious. This recipe/method is very versatile...you could mix the fillings up to make sweet or savory puffs. I'm already imagining cheesy puffs dipped in marinara sauce...or spinach-and-artichoke-dip puffs...yum!


Enjoy the puffs and as always, thanks for visiting!


-The Delicious Dabbler