Apple Bread - Schnitzerei Brod

Making the apple bread

Combine 3 cups apple sauce, warmed or at room temperature, with 3 cups bread flour and 1 tbsp salt in a large bowl to create a spongey apple dough.

Add 1 tbsp sugar to 1 cup lukewarm apple tea, then add yeast and stir to combine.  

Apple tea is made by boiling the peel and core of an apple in 1 cup ofwater for 30 minutes.  Strain out the solids from the liquid.

When yeast is foaming vigorously in the apple tea mixture (5 min), add to the apple sponge dough.

Combine thoroughly, cover and set aside in a warm place until double in size and bubbles forming on surface.

Stir down the sponge dough.

Add 1 ½ tsp salt and 4 cups bread flour to the sponge.

(Optional: add ½ cup chopped dried fruit to mix at this point).

Knead dough until it becomes soft and spongy (5-10 minutes).

Divide the dough into two equal halves, knead again and shape into loaf-shaped portion.

Place each loaf into a well-greased bread pan, cover and set in a warm place.  Allow the dough to rise well above the tops of the bread pans.

Preheat oven to 450 deg F.  Bake the bread for 15 minutes at 450.  Reduce oven temperature to 400 deg F and bake another 15 minutes.  Reduce oven temperature to 375 deg F then bake 25-30 minutes more.

As soon as the bread is taken from the oven, remove the bread from the pans to cool.

Combine the butter and the milk until creamy, then brush the tops of the hot loaves with the mix.

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