Mulled wine pull-apart bread only works if the spices are ground in two separate batches. First the cinnamon with sugar to a fine powder, then the cloves and star anise separately. Grinding them all together gives you a coarse mixture instead of a proper aromatic powder.
We have been baking mulled wine pull-apart bread every Christmas season for years. The trick of grinding the spices separately comes from hundreds of batches. When the cinnamon stick, cloves and star anise all go into the mixing bowl at once, the cinnamon stays too coarse and the cloves become too fine. The result is uneven.
Mulled Wine Pull-Apart Bread, Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 16 ✓
- 160 g milk
- 1 cube fresh yeast
- 380 g flour
- 50 g sugar
- 50 g butter
- 1 pinch salt
- 20 g sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 cloves
- 1/2 star anise
- 1 zest of one lemon unwaxed
- 1 zest of one orange unwaxed
- 50 g butter
- 70 g brown sugar
- 3 tbsp mulled wine
- 50 g icing sugar
Instructions 0 / 5
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1
Knead the dough.
Add milk and yeast to the mixing bowl and warm for 2 1/2 minutes / 37°C / speed 1. Add flour, sugar, butter and salt and knead for 3 minutes / kneading mode. Transfer to a bowl, cover with a cloth and leave to rise for 1 hour. Rinse and dry the mixing bowl.
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2
Grind the spices.
Break the cinnamon stick into pieces and add to the mixing bowl with 10 g sugar, grind for 1 minute / speed 10 and set aside. Add cloves and star anise with 10 g sugar to the mixing bowl and grind finely for 10 seconds / speed 10. Add the lemon and orange zest with the butter, cut into pieces, and mix for 3 minutes / 60°C / speed 1.
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3
Roll out and fold the dough.
Roll the dough out into a rectangle of 15 x 25 cm and spread with the spiced butter mixture. Mix the brown sugar and ground cinnamon together and sprinkle generously over the dough. Fold the dough from the long side to the halfway point, then fold the other side over the top and leave to rise, covered, for 30 minutes.
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4
Bake.
Preheat the oven to 200°C top and bottom heat (fan 180°C, gas mark 3 to 4). Line a loaf tin with baking paper, cut the dough into 10 pieces and layer them upright side by side in the tin so that the filling is visible from the top. Bake on the middle shelf for 40 to 45 minutes. After about 20 minutes, cover with aluminium foil.
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5
Spread the topping.
Stir icing sugar and mulled wine until smooth and spread over the pull-apart bread. Best enjoyed while still warm.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Why grinding in two batches makes all the difference
The cinnamon stick needs 1 minute at speed 10 with 10 g sugar to become a fine powder. The sugar prevents clumping and draws out the essential oils from the cinnamon. Cloves and star anise are harder but only need 10 seconds. Grinding them all together gives you coarse pieces of cinnamon or pulverised cloves with no aromatic strength.
After grinding, mix the spices with 60 g butter at 60°C. The butter releases the fat-soluble aromatic compounds from the cinnamon, cloves and anise. That is what gives the finished pull-apart bread its intense flavour.
The folding technique for visible layers
The dough is rolled out into a rectangle of 15 x 25 cm. After spreading with the spiced butter mixture, fold one half to the centre, then lay the other half on top. Do not roll it up. The folding ensures that when you cut the dough into 10 pieces, each slice shows the filling from the top.
Layer the pieces upright in the loaf tin. The filling must face upward. During baking the butter flows between the layers and holds them together. Cover with aluminium foil after 20 minutes, otherwise the brown sugar on top will burn.
Common pitfalls with pull-apart bread
Dough tears when rolling out
The yeast dough must rise for 1 hour after kneading. Rolling it out too early means too much tension in the gluten. The dough tears and cannot be shaped evenly. After 1 hour the gluten network is relaxed and the dough can be rolled out into a rectangle without trouble.
Our solution: Stick to the rising time and leave the dough to rest covered at room temperature. Not in the fridge, or it becomes too firm.
Pull-apart bread turns dry inside
40 to 45 minutes at 200°C top and bottom heat is the upper limit. Any longer and the bread dries out. Line the loaf tin with baking paper so the sides do not burn. Cover with aluminium foil after 20 minutes, otherwise the surface gets too dark before the centre is cooked through.
Our solution: Do a skewer test after 40 minutes. If no dough clings to the wooden skewer, the pull-apart bread is done. Do not bake it longer, even if the surface still looks pale.
Mulled wine glaze does not flow
Stirring 50 g icing sugar with 3 tbsp mulled wine produces a thick glaze. If the glaze is too firm, add 1 tsp mulled wine. If it is too thin, add 1 tsp icing sugar. The glaze should run slowly off the spoon, not drip or flow away immediately.
Our solution: Spread the glaze over the pull-apart bread while it is still warm. On cold bread it beads off. While warm it soaks lightly into the surface and forms a shiny coating.
Using a different alcohol as the base
With punch: Use 3 tbsp fruit punch instead of mulled wine for the glaze. The flavour becomes fruitier and less spiced. Works especially well with non-alcoholic punch for a family-friendly version.
With amaretto: Use 2 tbsp amaretto with 1 tbsp water for the glaze. This gives a marzipan note that pairs well with the Christmas spices. The amount of icing sugar stays the same.
With rum: Use 2 tbsp dark rum with 1 tbsp orange juice. This enhances the citrus aromas from the orange zest in the dough. The rum should not be too strong, or the glaze will become too thin.
How long does mulled wine pull-apart bread keep
Stored in a sealed tin in the fridge, it keeps for 3 to 4 days. The glaze softens the surface slightly but the inside stays moist. Do not leave it at room temperature for longer than 1 day, as the butter in the filling can go off.
Freezing works without the glaze. Cut the baked pull-apart bread into slices before glazing, pack each slice individually in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To defrost, warm in the oven at 150°C for 10 minutes, then glaze.
Goes well with: Mulled wine and vanilla sauce.
Mulled wine pull-apart bread tastes best fresh from the oven, still warm with the glaze running. The spices come through more strongly when warm than when cold.
More Christmas bakes: Braided yeast loaf, shortbread jam biscuits, chocolate peanut cookies.
