Lemon Cream Cheese Pullapart Bread

Lemon lovers gather around. I have a delicious lemon pullapart recipe for you that looks spectacular and yet is so easy thanks to a clever dough trick. This pullapart can be pulled apart in leaves with a lemon and cream cheese filling and layers of simple icing. You'll impress your guests with this bread and this is a pushy recipe!

This lemon and cream cheese pullapart recipe is one that I've been meaning to make for almost two years now ever since I first saw it on my adopted mum's blog Barbara Bakes. I was particularly taken with the layers or leaves of bread. Mine didn't turn out quite as perfect as hers. I think that I might need to play with the size of the tin for that.

I thought that the cutting and stacking of the dough was very clever and a technique that I want to apply to other breads. This also meant that there was the perfect ratio of dough to filling too.

I did make one change and that was to add cream cheese to the lemon and sugar spread instead of using butter as I wanted a cheesecake sort of bread. I took one warm leaf smothered in baked-in sweet lemon cream cheese and sank my teeth in and then before I knew it, it was gone and I was reaching for another. It is THAT good.

Dear Reader, I learned a new term the other day. It was from a relative and we were trying to plan a dinner out. She is gluten free and her partner is vegetarian so I suggested a restaurant with Asian cuisine.

"Is this restaurant gluten responsible?" she asked. I blinked my eyes as I read the message that came up on my computer screen. Is gluten responsible a phrase now? Is that really a thing?

I googled it and I didn't get any results but I was reminded of how difficult it is to plan somewhere to go out with the in laws. I suggested that she find somewhere to eat because quite honestly I didn't want to become gluten irresponsible.

Anyway, I am not going to claim any sort of gluten responsibility here. This bread has gluten and I don't know if you could do a version without.

So tell me Dear Reader, have you ever heard of the term "gluten responsible" before? Do your friends or family have many eaters that has specific requirements when dining out? How do you accommodate them?

Lemon Cream Cheese Pullapart Bread

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott adapted from Barbara Bakes

Preparation time: 30 minutes plus resting time

Cooking time: 30 minutes

• 2 3/4 cups/410g/14.4ozs all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup/55g/2ozs granulated sugar
• 2 1/4 teaspoons dried instant yeast
• 1/2 cup/125ml/4flozs milk
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Lemon Sugar Filling

• 1/2 cup/110g/3.9 caster or superfine sugar
• 4 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (4 lemons)
• 125g/4ozs. cream cheese, softened (I used light cream cheese)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, very soft

Lemon Icing

• 1 cup/155g/5.5ozs powdered or icing sugar
• 5 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Step 1 - Line a large loaf tin with baking parchment. Fit your mixer with the beater attachment and add the 2 cups flour (not all yet, you may not need it all), sugar, yeast, and salt. Heat the milk and butter in the microwave until the milk is warm but not hot and the butter is soft but not entirely melted. Add to the mixer bowl and beat on low speed. Add vanilla and eggs one at a time and beat for 3 minutes.

Step 2 - Switch to a dough hook and then add the salt and some of the remaining flour - you may not need to add it all, I stopped short with about 3 tablespoons left. Scrape the sides of the bowl and roll the dough into a ball and place back in the bowl and cover with cling film. Rest for 1-2 hours until doubled in size.

Step 3 - Make lemon sugar filling by combining the sugar and lemon zest. Then mix the cream cheese and butter together in a separate bowl and set aside.

Step 4 - When the dough is ready, flour a clean surface. Punch down the dough and roll out into as large a rectangle as possible. Trim the sides so that you get a rectangle shape. Cut into five even long strips and then spread with the cream cheese mixture and then sprinkle with lemon sugar. Pile all of the strips on top of each other sugar side up.

Step 5 - Now measure your tin and then cut the long strips into three or four pieces. The dough will expand quite a bit so you want some gap at the front and sides of the tin for when it expands when baking. Set aside in a warm place for its second proof/rise for 15-30 minutes. I usually reroll the scraps and fill them with the lemon sugar and cream cheese and make a small scroll too.

Step 6 - Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Bake for 30 minutes. Check the loaf after 20 minutes and if it is browning too much, cover with foil.

Step 7 - Mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice to form an icing and fill a piping bag or zip lock bag with the end cut off and drizzle over the bread.