🍎Soft Apple Rose Bread Inspired by German Apfelrosenkuchen

🥣 Make the Dough

  1/ Gently warm the milk and melt the butter in it. Let the mixture cool until lukewarm (about body temperature). *The butter can also be melted in the microwave.

  2/ In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, salt, vanilla sugar, and dry yeast.

  3/ Gradually add the milk and butter mixture while mixing by hand. Add about half first and mix roughly, then add the rest and continue mixing.

  4/ Bring the dough together in the bowl using your hands or a wooden spatula until no dry flour remains. The dough can still be sticky at this stage.

  5/ Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

  6/ Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead for 7–8 minutes. Using the palm of your hand, repeat pressing, folding, and turning. Knead until the dough becomes soft and elastic, similar to an earlobe. It does not need to be perfectly smooth.

7/ Place the dough back in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a clean cloth, and let rise for 50–60 minutes, until roughly doubled in size.

🥣 Make the Apple Compote

  1/ While the dough is rising, cut the apples into 1 cm cubes. Place half of the apples (about 225 g) into a saucepan with the water. Cover and cook over low heat for 10–15 minutes.

  2/ Add the sugar and cinnamon, then add the remaining apples. Cover and cook for another 5–8 minutes.

  3/ Add the cornstarch, stir well, and cook for about 1 minute until the mixture thickens and the moisture comes together.

  4/ Remove from heat and let the apple filling cool.

🥣 Shape the Dough

  1/ Line a 20 cm (8-inch) round pan with parchment paper, or grease it with butter.

  2/ After the first rise, roll out the dough on a floured surface into a rectangle about 30 cm × 20 cm, with a thickness of 3–4 mm.

  3/ Spread the apple filling evenly over the dough and sprinkle with the chopped chocolate.

🥣 Roll and Shape into Roses

  1/ Roll the dough up tightly.

  2/ Cut into 7–8 equal pieces.

  3/ Arrange the rolls in the prepared pan with the cut side facing up, leaving a little space between each piece.

  4/ Cover and let rest for 15–20 minutes for the second rise.

🥣 Bake

  1/ Lightly brush the tops with milk.

  2/ Bake at 170°C (340°F) for 20–25 minutes.
If the tops brown too quickly, loosely cover with aluminum foil.

🥣 Finish & Cool

  1/ Warm the apricot jam in a small saucepan and thin it with a little water.

  2/ Brush a thin layer of the warm jam over the freshly baked bread for shine.

  3/ Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Once completely cooled, cut and enjoy.