Orange and White Chocolate Pull-Apart Bread

February - the month of loooove.. and citrus! 

Guess what you're about to be making tonight? THIS. This recipe. Fun. Flirty. Ooey. Gooey. DELICIOUS. Who doesn't finger food?! I do. You do. They do. So, let's do it.

Never baked with yeast? It's totally okay. This recipe is fool proof. You just dump it all in to one bowl, mix it up and let it rest. The yeast will do all of the hard work for you. It's almost like.. magic. You can find instant or dry active yeast in the baking isle of almost any grocery store.

While the dough rests, it gives you time to make the filling. And, while the bread bakes, it gives you time to make the topping. It's like I've planned this all out or something. I like mine a bit caramelized and crispy on the edges so I bake it a tad longer - closer to the 40 minutes. But, if you want it to be softer then bake it until it just starts to get nice and golden brown. 

I chose citrus as the theme of the month because, most importantly, it's in season. In order to get the most nutritious and flavorful food, make sure it's the right growing season for that particular item. In doing this, you're also supporting your local farmers who choose to farm sustainably. And, it saves you a lot of money. ALSO, I chose citrus as a nod to my home state: California. You can walk into any market or grocery store today and probably find the juiciest oranges, specifically Navel oranges. YUM! Yup, use those in this recipe. 

Alriiiiight, enough talking.. here's the recipe. Trust me, make this. ENJOY! 

xox, Ting 

Orange & White Chocolate Pull-Apart Bread

Dough

• 3 c All Purpose Flour
• 1 pack - instant yeast or dry active yeast
• 1/3 c milk, warm 
• 1/4 c butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 2 oranges, zest 
• 2 eggs

1. Combine milk and butter. Warm in microwave or in a small pot over low heat until the butter is melted. Let it sit for a couple minutes to cool down. 
2. Combine flour, yeast, cinnamon, salt and zest in a bowl or stand mixer. Add warm milk and butter mixture, vanilla and eggs. The dough should come together and be pretty sticky. This is good! 
3. Dump the dough onto a floured surface, knead until you can form it into a big, sticky, cohesive ball. Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, put a cloth or plastic wrap over it and forget about it for 1 hour. It should double in size.
4. Make the filling - see filling instructions below. 
5. Once the dough is doubled in size, dump it onto a floured surface. Take a rolling pin and roll this out into a large, thin rectangle. Take your filling and spread it all over the dough. Take a knife or pizza cutter to make squares.  Stack the squares. 
6. Brush a loaf pan with melted butter. Put the stacked squares into the pan. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Let the dough rise in the loaf pan while the oven preheats. Bake for about 30-40 minutes - or until lightly brown. Let the bread cool for about 10 minutes, remove from pan, top with white chocolate orange glaze and serve!

Citrus Brown Sugar Filling

• 1/4 c softened or melted butter
• 1/2 c brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 orange, zest

1. While the dough is rising, soften or melt your butter in the microwave or on the stove.
2. Dump all of the ingredients into a bowl with the melted butter, mix it up aaaand your done! 

White Chocolate & Orange Glaze

• 1/2 c white chocolate chips, melted
• 1/4 c milk
• 1/2 orange, zest
• 1/4 c powdered sugar

1. Melt white chocolate with milk
2. Add zest and powdered sugar
3. Mix until smooth and pour!