Friday, September 4, 2009

Apple Ball Pull Bread

1 frozen pkg (12) rise and bake dinner rolls
1 med. tart apple, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted

Icing:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
3 tsp. hot water
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Place rolls in a warm place and let rise for about 1 hr. Combine apple, sugar, pecans and cinnamon. Set aside. Break each roll in half and on a lightly floured surface, pat and roll out each into a 2 1/2" circle. Place 1 tsp. of apple mixture in center. Pinch edges together to seal and form into a ball. Dip in butter. Place half of the dough balls into a 10" tube pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of remaining apple mixture. Add next layer and rest of apple mixture. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled (about 45 minutes). Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Combine icing and drizzle over bread while hot. Cool before serving.

This bread takes a little time to make but the original recipe called for actually making your own dough and I've found that it works just as well with frozen yeast dinner rolls which also cuts the time down. For changes I would suggest using different flavorings. Instead of the vanilla extract, try orange or maple. If you don't have orange flavoring, use 3 1/2 tsp. of orange juice with pulp instead of hot water and vanilla extract in the icing.