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Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pull Apart Bread is something you didn’t know you needed, that you’ll continue to make for years to come!
Subtle pumpkin, hints of cream cheese, bold cinnamon flavor, this sticky little treat is worth the time and effort that goes into making it! Give this pumpkin cream cheese pull apart bread a try!
This recipe is a Thanksgiving tradition for us. The day before Thanksgiving, in the evening, I make this pumpkin bread and get it in the loaf pans. Instead of letting it rise, I cover it with saran wrap and aluminum foil, letting it sit in the refrigerator over night. Thanksgiving morning, I wake up earlier than everyone else, pull the bread from the fridge, and let it start to rise, then pop it into the oven when it’s ready.
There is something so cozy about smelling fresh coffee being brewed, while the scents of pumpkin and cinnamon fill the air.
As I sip my coffee, waiting for the bread to cook, I watch the kids run around excitedly, glee in their eyes. They love getting to play with their cousins, spending time with grandma and grandpa, and getting to eat yummy food(and desserts)!
I take a deep breathe and change my focus to the random chatter floating around the room, when suddenly I hear it! The buzzer beeping. My bread is ready! I jump up to remove it from the oven, everyone has gathered, anticipating the reveal. The “ooh-ing” and “ahh-ing” do not disappoint. Everyone gets a share of the bread, it’s gobbled up rather quickly.
I absolutely love creating fun and memorable traditions, like this one! Everyone looks forward to them, it also adds a new level of excitement to each occasion!
I love this tradition, and encourage you to try it, as well!
Give it a try!
What you’ll need:
- 2 loaf pans
- Electric hand mixer
- Rolling pin
- Pizza cutter
Ingredients:
- Almond milk(or regular cows milk)
- White sugar
- Yeast
- Sour cream
- Pumpkin puree
- Brown sugar
- Salt
- Ground cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- All-purpose flour
- Butter
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla
Steps:
1. In a small saucepan, warm the almond milk, making sure it doesn’t get too hot. If it’s too hot, it can kill the yeast.
2. Add the warmed milk to a liquid measuring cup. Add the white sugar and yeast, giving it a good stir. Let rest 10 minutes.
3. While waiting for yeast to “bloom”, in a large mixing bowl, add flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
4. When yeast is ready, add sour cream, pumpkin puree, and brown sugar to the yeast, mixing it together well.
5. Carefully pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture.(The yeast mixtures splashes!)
6. Combine the yeast mixture with the flour mixture, creating a nice dough, then continue to knead 5-7 minutes.
The dough should be nice and smooth, slightly tacky, yet not stick to your finger.
7. Cover dough with a towel and let rise 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
8. In a smaller mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese together using an electric hand mixer.
9. Sift the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the cream cheese/butter mixture. Mix well with a spoon or rubber spatula, and set aside.
10. Butter two loaf pans, set aside.
11. When the dough has doubled, divide the dough into two balls.
12. Lightly flour your work surface and rolling pin. Roll the dough out, one ball at a time, until dough is roughly 1/4″ thick. Trying to achieve a rectangular shaped roll-out will help the pieces fit into the pans better.
13. Spread half of the cream cheese filling out onto the rolled dough, distributing evenly.
14. Using a pizza cutter, cut strips(lengthwise), about 1 1/2″ wide. Then, cutting widthwise, cut each strip into roughly 2 1/2″ lengths.
15. Layer each piece into your loaf pan, offsetting each piece.
16. Repeat with other half of dough, in the other pan.
17. Let both pans rest 30 minutes.
18. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
19. Bake loaves for 50 minutes, loosely covering loaves with aluminum foil after 25 minutes.
20. In a small saucepan, brown butter, while the bread is baking.
*See notes*
21. Remove the butter from the heat to cool slightly.
22. When bread has 5 minutes cooking time left, place powdered sugar in a small mixing bowl.
23. Add browned butter, almond milk, and vanilla, and mix together well with a spoon or rubber spatula, being sure to get rid of as many powdered sugar clumps as possible.
24. Pull bread from the oven, let rest 5 minutes, then flip pans upside down onto baking sheets, glass serving trays, into casserole dishes, or whatever you’ll be serving it on.
25. Pour half of the glaze onto each loaf, distributing evenly.
26. Let cool, if you can, and enjoy!
Notes:
To brown butter, place butter in a wide pan, over low/med heat. Swirl the butter as it melts. Keep swirling the butter over the heat until it is light brown in color and has a fragrant nutty smell to it. It will bubble first, so it might be slightly difficult to see the color. Watch it closely, the butter can burn quickly once it starts to brown. Once brown, remove from heat. If there are little brown flecks in the butter, that’s good. A lot of the flavor is in those little flecks. Add those to the food, as well!
I use almond milk whenever possible, however, regular milk works as well.
You can use butter that isn’t browned, the browned butter simply adds a hint of nuttiness to the glaze.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Pull-Apart Bread
Equipment
- 2 loaf pans
- Electric Hand Mixer
- Rolling Pin
- Pizza Cutter
Ingredients
Bread
- 1 cup Warm almond milk
- 2 tsp White sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp Yeast
- 1/2 cup Pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup Sour cream
- 1/4 cup Brown sugar
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
- 4 1/4 cups All-purpose flour
Cream Cheese Filling
- 1/2 cup Butter, room temperature
- 8oz block Cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup Powdered sugar
- 4 tsp Ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp Nutmeg
Vanilla Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups Powdered sugar
- 4 tbsp Butter, browned
- 1 tbsp Almond milk
- 2 tbsp Vanilla
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, warm the almond milk.
- Add the warmed milk to a liquid measuring cup, add the white sugar and yeast, giving it a good stir. Let rest 10 minutes.
- While waiting for yeast to "bloom", in a large mixing bowl, add flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
- When yeast is ready, add sour cream, pumpkin puree, and brown sugar to the yeast, and mix it together well.
- Carefully pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture.(The yeast mixtures splashes!)
- Combine the yeast mixture with the flour mixture, creating a nice dough, then knead 5-7 minutes.
- Cover dough with a towel, let rise 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
- In a smaller mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese using an electric hand mixer.
- Sift the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the cream cheese/butter mixture. Mix well with a spoon or rubber spatula, and set aside.
- Butter two loaf pans, set aside.
- When the dough has doubled, divide the dough into two balls.
- Lightly flour your work surface and rolling pin. Roll the dough out, one ball at a time. Roll out till dough is roughly 1/4" thick, try to achieve a rectangular shaped roll. This helps the pieces fit into the pans better.
- Spread half of the cream cheese filling out onto the rolled dough, distributing evenly.
- Using a pizza cutter, cut strips(lengthwise), about 1 1/2" wide. Then, cutting widthwise, cut each strip into roughly 2 1/2" lengths.
- Layer each piece into your loaf pan, offsetting each piece.
- Repeat with other half of dough, in the other pan.
- Let both pans rest 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake loaves for 50 minutes, loosely covering loaves with aluminum foil after 25 minutes.
- In a small saucepan, brown butter, while the bread is baking. *See notes*
- Remove the butter from the heat to cool slightly.
- When bread has 5 minutes cooking time left, place powdered sugar in a small mixing bowl.
- Add browned butter, almond milk, and vanilla, and mix together well with a spoon or rubber spatula, being sure to get rid of as many powdered sugar clumps as possible.
- Pull bread from the oven, let rest 5 minutes, then flip pans upside down onto baking sheets, glass serving trays, into casserole dishes, or whatever you'll be serving it on.
- Pour half of the glaze onto each loaf, distributing evenly.
- Let cool, if you can.
- Enjoy!