These apple pull-apart rolls are miniature "monkey breads" featuring fresh apple and raisins nestled among bite-sized rounds of cinnamon-sugar bread. A simple glaze adds sweetness, and an optional drizzle of boiled cider takes them over the top!
To make the dough: Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Combine all of the dough ingredients, mixing and kneading to make a smooth, soft dough. It may seem dry at first, but as you knead it'll soften up.
Place the dough in a greased bowl or greased 8-cup measure, cover it, and let it rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until it's noticeably puffy (though not necessarily doubled in bulk).
Line a 12-cup standard muffin pan with baking cups and grease the cups. If you have a second muffin pan, line four wells of the second pan with baking cups and grease. Alternatively, double up four sets of baking cups and place on a small baking sheet; grease the cups.
Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 16 pieces; each will be about 1 1/2 ounces (44g). Round each piece into a flattened ball.
Working with one piece at a time, use a bench knife (or regular knife) to cut the dough into eight wedges. Don't worry about being precise; pieces can vary in size.
Roll or shake the dough pieces in cinnamon sugar, and place four of them into a muffin cup.
Sprinkle with raisins, chopped apple and cinnamon chips; top with the remaining four pieces of dough.
Repeat with the remaining balls of dough, raisins, and apple. When you run out of room in the first muffin pan, either continue assembling the pull-apart rolls in the second pan or place the remaining dough balls in the double-lined baking cups.
Sprinkle any remaining cinnamon sugar atop the rolls. Cover the rolls, and let them rise for about 2 hours, until they're noticeably puffy. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F with racks in the upper and lower third.
Uncover the risen rolls, and bake them for 15 to 17 minutes, until they're a light golden brown, rotating them top to bottom halfway through baking. Don't let them darken too much; they'll be dry.
Remove the rolls from the oven and drizzle each with some boiled cider, if desired; this will add flavor, and a nice stickiness.
To glaze the apple pull-apart rolls: In a small bowl, mix the glaze ingredients together. Drizzle over the cooled rolls. Serve at room temperature.
Storage information: Store leftover apple pull-apart rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.
If you demand precision in a recipe, this one probably isn't for you. How many raisins, exactly, do you use for each roll? As many as you like. How many pieces of apple? Up to you. How much cinnamon sugar? Enough to coat the dough. While baking often does demand exact amounts of ingredients, the filling for these rolls is more intuitive. If it looks good to you, it's right.
