Sweet Sticky Pull-Apart Bread (Printable)

Tender dough balls with cinnamon sugar and butter, baked to golden perfection.

# What You'll Need:

→ Dough

01 - 4 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2¼ teaspoons instant dry yeast
03 - ¼ cup granulated sugar
04 - 1 teaspoon salt
05 - ¾ cup warm milk
06 - ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
07 - 2 large eggs

→ Coating

08 - 1 cup granulated sugar
09 - 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
10 - ½ cup unsalted butter, melted

→ Optional Glaze

11 - 1 cup powdered sugar
12 - 2 to 3 tablespoons milk
13 - ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

# How-To:

01 - In a large mixing bowl, blend flour, yeast, sugar, and salt thoroughly.
02 - Add warm milk, melted butter, and eggs to the dry mixture. Stir until a soft dough forms, then knead for 5 to 7 minutes until smooth and elastic.
03 - Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise in a warm environment for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
04 - Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon in one bowl; place melted butter in a separate container.
05 - Punch down the risen dough and divide it into 40 pieces, approximately 0.7 ounces each. Roll each piece into a smooth ball.
06 - Dip each dough ball into melted butter, then roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Arrange coated balls evenly in a well-greased bundt pan.
07 - Cover the bundt pan and let the dough rise for 20 to 30 minutes until slightly puffed.
08 - Preheat oven to 350°F and bake the assembled dough balls for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown and fully cooked.
09 - Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a serving platter.
10 - Whisk powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and drizzle over the warm bread before serving.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • No slicing required—everyone just pulls off warm, sticky-sweet pieces straight from the pan.
  • The dough is forgiving and actually easier than it sounds, with plenty of rise time to work around your schedule.
  • It looks like you spent hours in the kitchen but honestly takes just over an hour of mostly hands-off time.
02 -
  • The pan absolutely must be well-greased or the bread will stick no matter how careful you are—I learned this the hard way with melted butter coating every corner.
  • Pulling it from the pan too early while it's piping hot means it might break apart; waiting just 10 minutes makes all the difference between a perfect presentation and a crumbly situation.
  • Those cinnamon sugar-coated pieces will stick to each other and that's not a mistake—it's the whole point, and it makes the pulling-apart experience even better.
03 -
  • Set a timer for your first rise, but also trust your eyes—if it's doubled in size and springs back slowly when poked, it's ready, even if the timer hasn't gone off.
  • Using a scale for the dough balls makes them more uniform, which means they cook evenly, but honestly eyeballing 40 similar-sized pieces works just fine if you're not fussy about perfection.
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