This recipe took a bit of changing, but it was SO WORTH IT. It’s magically delicious inside, and wonderfully crunchy outside. Very glad I gave this one another try!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups apple, chopped small
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 1/4 cups bread flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 3/4 cups cool water
• 3/4 cup salted caramel chips

The night before (or early morning, depending on how you want to time this), preheat your oven to 425 degrees while you cut your apple. Small pieces will bake more, drying out somewhat, which is what you’re going for to reduce the amount of liquid that the apple will later put into the dough.

Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl, then toss the apples in the mixture. Grease a baking sheet and spread the cinnamon sugar apple pieces on it. Bake 10-15 minutes, until fork-tender but not mushy. Set aside to cool, and turn the oven off for now. Once cooled, you can throw the cooked apple in a small container until later.

I actually did a tiny bit smaller and cooked a bit further second time around, but didn’t manage to get a picture of it. You’ll see it later on, dumped on the dough.

In a large bowl, combine both flours, the salt, yeast, and water in a large bowl. Stir together until mostly combined, then knead just until all the remaining loose dry flour has been incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap, and place the bowl in a warm place (your oven with the light on is a good choice). Let rise at least 8 hours, or overnight.

Grease a large dutch oven well – can’t hurt to do the inside of the lid as well.

Turn your risen dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Flatten as much as you can just by patting flat by hand, without using a rolling pin.

Spread the baked apple pieces and the caramel chips over the dough, leaving a clear space around the edge.

You can see little apple bits here somewhat, they’re quite small, and cooked until lightly caramelized.

Pinch the edges of the dough together, creating a large log. Curl the log into a spiral and press it together. Gently transfer the spiral of dough into the greased dutch oven and press down gently on the surface to press it together a bit more. Put the lid on the dutch oven, then place back in the oven with the light on to rise an additional 2 hours.

After the 2 hour rise, turn your oven, with the dough still in it, to 425 degrees. Bake 40-45 minutes, then take the lid off your dutch oven and cook an additional 10-15 minutes, until it’s a nice brown.

Turn the bread out onto a wire rack to cool completely, then store in an airtight container.

Thanks to MaryKate for the french toast suggestion!

Caramel Apple Bread

Adapted from King Arthur Flour.

• 1 1/2 cups apple, chopped small
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 1/4 cups bread flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 3/4 cups cool water
• 3/4 cup salted caramel chips

The night before (or early morning, depending on how you want to time this), preheat your oven to 425 degrees while you cut your apple.

Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl, then toss the apples in the mixture. Grease a baking sheet and spread the cinnamon sugar apple pieces on it. Bake 10-15 minutes, until fork-tender but not mushy. Set aside to cool, and turn the oven off for now. Once cooled, you can throw the cooked apple in a small container until later.

In a large bowl, combine both flours, the salt, yeast, and water in a large bowl. Stir together until mostly combined, then knead just until all the remaining loose dry flour has been incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap, and place the bowl in your oven with the oven light on. Let rise at least 8 hours, or overnight.

Grease a large dutch oven well – can’t hurt to do the inside of the lid as well.

Turn your risen dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Flatten as much as you can just by patting flat by hand, without using a rolling pin. Spread the baked apple pieces and the caramel chips over the dough, leaving a clear space around the edge. Pinch the edges of the dough together, creating a large log. Curl the log into a spiral and press it together. Gently transfer the spiral of dough into the greased dutch oven and press down gently on the surface to press it together a bit more. Put the lid on the dutch oven, then place back in the oven with the light on to rise an additional 2 hours.

After the 2 hour rise, turn your oven, with the dough still in it, to 425 degrees. Bake 40-45 minutes, then take the lid off your dutch oven and cook an additional 10-15 minutes, until it’s a nice brown. Turn the bread out onto a wire rack to cool completely, then store in an airtight container.