A while back, a reader tagged me on Facebook and showed me a video of making a gorgeous Spinach Artichoke twisty appetizer, made with gluten-full frozen pastry sheets. She asked if it could be made gluten free. (Trick question — with my gfJules Flour, of course it can!).
When I looked at the pictures though, it seemed like the pastry had risen more like a bread dough and it looked delicious that way! So I set to work making my own version as a gluten free Spinach Artichoke Pull Apart Bread.
It was really much easier than I had feared — and so gorgeous!
Using my gfJules Flour, the dough is a dream to work with; watch the quick video in my directions below — you won’t believe how soft the dough is and it bakes up beautifully.
Once you have the dough on top of the fillings, just cut in towards the center with a pastry wheel, pizza cutter or a knife and then twist! You can see this technique in my quick recipe video.
You could easily take this recipe and use just about any filling you like: sweet or savory. I urge you to get creative and experiment with your own filling combinations because I’d love to hear about them!
Treat it like a pizza or an omelet or a quiche … add whatever you like to the middle and dig in, or pull it apart, as it were.
Make this gluten free twisty pull apart bread your own, or use this classic spinach artichoke filling which I’ve even made dairy-free! See, you can do anything, really!
Just let your imagination be your guide and don’t let a little thing like gluten or dairy get in your way.
Just be sure to use my award-winning gfJules Flour; it really does make a difference. Try making this dough and trying to twist it around fillings with an ordinary, store-bought gluten free blend or one you make yourself, and you’ll be sadly frustrated.
Gluten free doughs are notorious for being dry, crumbly and brittle — definitely not what you need for a recipe like this!
My gfJules Flour, on the other hand, is exceptional for rolled doughs like gluten free pie crusts, cinnamon rolls, puff pastry and even braided breads like challah.
This Gluten Free Spinach Artichoke Pull Apart Bread is just one more wonderful way to put it to the test and to reap the delicious benefits of your efforts! Cheers to delicious gluten free bread! It will be the hit of your next party, I promise!
Oh, and speaking of party food, check out my Gluten Free Party Food Recipe Round-Up! I just updated it (again)!
There are over 39 delicious gluten free recipes from appetizers to desserts, fancy to fast, plus brand recommendations for snacks and gluten free beer information!
Gluten Free Spinach Artichoke Pull Apart Bread
This beautiful gluten free Spinach Artichoke Pull Apart Bread is just another way to show off your gluten free baking prowess without giving away how easy it was to make! With my gfJules Flour, this dough is a dream to roll and twist - check out the video for the quick how-to!
Ingredients
Pastry:
- 1/4 cup warm water (110° F)
- 1 Tbs. granulated cane sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp. (1 packet) active dry yeast (like Red Star® Yeast - do not use Platinum, as it's not gluten free)
- 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter or non-dairy alternative (I used Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
- 1/4 cup warm milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 2 large eggs (room temperature) or favorite substitute
- 3 cups (405 grams) gfJules® Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt (1/4 tsp. salt if using non-dairy alternative)
- 1 egg, beaten, or 2 Tbs. milk (dairy or non-dairy) for brushing on pastry before baking
Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened (I used Go Veggie® Vegan Cream Cheese)
- 14 ounces (~ 1½ cups) canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped small
- 10 ounces fresh spinach (3/4 cup cooked and drained)
- 1/4 cup sour cream (dairy or soy sour cream or plain yogurt – I used So Delicious® Cultured Coconut Milk plain)
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (I used Go Veggie® Vegan Grated Parmesan)
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (dairy or vegan)
- 1 tsp garlic powder OR gluten free nutritional yeast
- ½ tsp. sea salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- ½ – 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp. Ume Plum Vinegar (optional)
- 1 egg + 1 Tbs. water (or milk) to brush onto crust before baking
Instructions
- Mix together softened cream cheese, drained and chopped artichoke hearts, cooked and drained spinach, sour cream, parmesan, mozzarella, garlic salt, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and vinegar (if using) in a bowl. Set aside.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the warm water, 1 tablespoon sugar and yeast; whisk and set aside to proof. If the mixture is not bubbly and doubled in volume after 5-10 minutes, toss out and start again with fresh yeast.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk all dry ingredients for pastry together (gfJules Flour, baking powder and salt). Add small cubes of butter and mix with a pastry blender or a paddle attachment with a stand mixer until the butter is cut throughout the dough and the flour looks pebbly.
- Add the milk and eggs and beat until integrated. Stir in the proofed yeast-sugar-water mixture, then beat another minute, until the dough comes together and is not too sticky or tough. If the dough seems resistant, dry or tight, add more warm water by the tablespoon and knead into the dough until it is soft but not too sticky.
- Prepare a large baking sheet by lining with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a silicone pastry mat or onto a clean counter dusted lightly with gfJules Flour.
- Divide the dough in half and roll one half of the dough gently out into a circle the size of a large dinner plate; cut off any raggy edges to make the circle even, if you prefer. Using bench scrapers or spatulas, lift the dough and transfer to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Spoon the filling out onto the rolled round, covering all of the dough.
- Click on the photo above the recipe card to watch the quick how-to video on making this gorgeous pull-apart bread.
- Repeat the rolling process with the other half of the dough. Lift and transfer it to top the other dough with filling. Place a drinking glass in the center of the pastry, then cut just into the glass to form 12 evenly spaced strips of stuffed dough. Gently lift up on the end of each strip and twist. (see video)
- Brush pastry with egg wash of one beaten egg + 1 tablespoon water, or warm milk of choice.
- Cover with oiled wax paper or parchment and set in a warm place to rise for 30 minutes.
- While the pastry rises, preheat oven to 350º F (static) or 325º F (convection).
- After rising, remove paper and place pastry in the oven to bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the pastry comes out clean.
- Remove to cool on a wire rack before serving.
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In case you missed it — here’s the video showing how to get that gorgeous TWIST in this dough:
I can’t wait to see what filling combinations YOU come up with!
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Quick question. If I was to make this dough ahead of time, how long should I let it sit out before I use it?
Hi Cortney, if you make the dough ahead of time and refrigerate it, then allow it to sit, covered, until it’s slightly less cold and you can work with it without it cracking. You don’t want the butter to be melty in the dough, but if it’s too cold, it’s too hard to roll out and will crack. Start with 15 minutes and see if that’s enough time. You can always add more time if you need to.
~jules
So I wanted to share with you. I made your biscuit recipe yesterday, the one that uses a little bit of pudding mix. They were by far the best gluten and dairy free biscuit I’ve made in the 12 years I’ve been cooking gfcf. Then I saw the spinach-artichoke pull apart bread recipe. I decided last minute to toss in slightly less than a tbsp of pudding powder in that and wow! Tender on the inside, a slight crisp edge and just perfect.
What a stunning photo, Michelle!!! That spinach-artichoke bread is gorgeous! How fun that you added some of the pudding mix to this dough and it worked out so well!!!
~jules
This was a hit at the Super Bowl party I attended. I will definitely be making this again and again – thanks for the recipe, Jules!
oh goodness – you have definitely taken this gluten free spinach pull apart bread to the NEXT LEVEL, Bambi!!!! What a brilliant idea!!!!
~jules
I used a Brie wheel, sliced it and laid it as the filling. After it was baked, I drizzled the bread with a little bit of honey and a sprinkle of fresh, chopped rosemary and the whole thing was eaten in 20 min. Hands down, the best bread I’ve ever tasted, so easy and you can do so many variations on the filling. This recipe will be a staple for sure!
Sounds like a perfect twist on this recipe, Leslie! Too bad you didn’t get a picture — I bet it was gorgeous, too!!! Thanks so much for sharing your inspiration. I can’t wait to try this recipe your way!
~jules
I made this yesterday for a Super Bowl party and it got rave reviews. Think I will cut it farther into the center to have less round center as everyone seemed to like the “fingers” better than the cut pieces from the center round. I would also sprinkle the center with Parmesan cheese and kosher salt. By the way, I took the left over pieces and rolled them out, cut them into about 1” squares, brushed them with egg wash and sprinkled with kosher salt and placed them around the pull apart and cooked them. They cooked a little faster, so I pulled them out with about 6 minutes to go on the pull apart. I served them as crackers with the cheese I served. They were really good.
Oh MY, Karen, that sounds fantastic for the leftovers! So glad you tried it and got such rave reviews at your party! I’m glad you weren’t afraid to make the recipe. It’s so impressive and really easy once you dive into making it. I’m going to make it with cinnamon and sugar next time I make it … and maybe try your leftovers idea, too!!! 🙂
~jules
I made this last night. I didn’t have any of the stuff for the filling, but I had shredded cheese. So I turned it into a cheesy bread. It, would not serve twelve as it was so good, I ate most of it myself. I will be doing this again, trying different fillings.
I love this idea, Linda!!! So glad you went for it and made the recipe even though you didn’t have the fillings I used — cheesy bread sounds fantastic!!!
~jules
I cannot get a video to come up when clicking on the picture above the recipe, or anyplace else either. Any suggestions? Sounds yummy. Can’t wait to make it.
Hi Kris – are you on mobile or desktop? Do you see where to click for the video but it’s just not working? Sorry – trying to figure out what might be going wrong!
~jules
I couldn’t get the video to play either but found the picture you need to click on is at the BOTTOM of the recipe! Give that a try.
Thanks Mary Ellen!!!
~jules
Did not use the artichokes, just more spinach. Delicious ! Thumbs up from gf and non-gf family. We will be using this recipe again. Thanks
I love that you took this recipe and made it your own, Anita! Congrats on the thumbs up, even from non-GF family! That’s a HUGE win! YAY!! Thanks so much for letting me know!
~jules
Is this something I can prepare the day before I have to bake it?
Hi Ivana, you should be able to do , but I would suggest doing instead is to prepare the two sheets of pastry dough and wrap well, then refrigerate. The next day, just uncover them and add the filling and cut and twist, then let rise a bit longer so the dough can warm up and then bake. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
~jules
Thanks Jules. I just made it for my sister and she absolutely loved it. She couldn’t even tell that it was gluten free. Thanks again.
That’s the highest praise! So happy for you (both!). Thanks for letting me know!
~jules
I have always wanted to make a pull apart bread!
I SERIOUSLY can’t wait to try this!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you! I will let you know how I do!!
I can’t wait to hear, Stacey!!
~jules
Wow!!! This looks absolutely amazing! I’m sure this is a total crowd pleaser!
It’s very impressive, that’s for sure, Emily!
~jules
Wow this looks so amazing! You can’t even tell this is a gluten free recipe! Guests would be so impressed by this!
Thanks Sharon! I hope you get to try it!
~jules