Jalapeño Cheddar Pull-Apart Loaf

Meet your new favourite shareable bread: this soft, buttery pull-apart loaf is loaded with sharp cheddar and sweet-and-spicy candied jalapeños. It’s so much fun to pull apart, and perfect for dipping into a comforting soup or just enjoying as is!

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s really easy to make using your favourite enriched dough (I recommend making some of my Anything Goes Enriched Sourdough).
• It’s perfect for sharing! Everyone can pull off a layer or two, no slicing required.
• It’s great for dipping into your favourite soup!
• Jalapeño & cheddar is a classic flavour combo for a reason! It’s a crowd-pleaser and such a delicious comfort food.
• The sweet & spicy flavour is addictive and perfect any time of year, though I especially love it during fall!

Key Ingredients

• Jalapeños add a mild spiciness to the filling. I love using candied jalapeños for their delicious sweet & spicy flavour combo (and I include instructions in the recipe below for making your own from scratch). You can use homemade or store-bought pickled jalapeños instead, if you prefer. I don’t recommend using fresh jalapeños because they could be too sharp and crunchy to work well in this recipe.
• Cheddar makes up most of the flavour of the filling. Use one you like the taste of, either sharp and aged for a stronger and more pronounced flavour, or go for a milder cheddar if you prefer!

Jalapeño Cheddar Pull-Apart Loaf

Soft, buttery sourdough layered with sharp cheddar and sweet-and-spicy candied jalapeños, stacked into a fun pull-apart loaf. Perfect for sharing, snacking, or serving alongside a bowl of soup.

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Prep Time 45 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Assembly & Proofing 3 hours hrs

Servings: 1 loaf

Course: Lunch, Snack

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients

  

• ½ batch Anything Goes Enriched Sourdough or any enriched/sandwich loaf dough recipe you like! See Note 1 for a link to my dough recipe.

Candied Jalapeños (see Note 2)

• 225 g fresh jalapeños about 8–10 medium peppers
• 300 g granulated sugar
• 240 g apple cider vinegar
• ½ tsp fine sea salt
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric optional, for colour

To Assemble

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter softened, for filling
• ¼ tsp fine sea salt
• 100 g sharp cheddar grated
• ¼ cup candied or pickled jalapeños or more if desired, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter melted, for brushing on after baking

Method

 

Make Candied Jalapeños

1. It's really important to cook this somewhere with good ventilation! Just opening the window in your kitchen might not be good enough (I speak from experience!). If you don't have a strong range hood, you may want to cook this outside. Otherwise the steam could be extremely irritating to breathe in
2. Chop 225 g fresh jalapeños into rings about ¼ inch (6 mm) thick. You can leave the seeds in to make it spicier, or remove the seeds to make it milder. Place in a medium bowl.
3. In a medium saucepan, combine 300 g granulated sugar, 240 g apple cider vinegar, ½ tsp fine sea salt, ½ tsp garlic powder, and ¼ tsp turmeric. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the sugar and salt have dissolved.
4. Add the sliced jalapeños. Continue cooking while stirring from time to time, until they lose their bright green colour and soften a little. Transfer to a clean mason jar, and allow to cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate.

Roll & Fill

1. Spray a small loaf pan (about 8 x 3.5 x 2.5 inches / 20 x 9 x 6.5 cm) with baking or cooking spray.
2. Roll out the dough to a rectangle about 9 x 12 inches (23 x 30.5 cm). Spread 2 tbsp unsalted butter all over the dough, and sprinkle on ¼ tsp fine sea salt100 g sharp cheddar, and ¼ cup candied or pickled jalapeños evenly over the butter.
3. Cut the dough into 12 squares (3 rows of 4 squares). Make two stacks of 6 squares each, then arrange the two stacks in the loaf pan so the two tops of the stacks face the middle of the pan. That way you don't have too much melted cheese sticking to the sides of the pan. Watch the video to see this in action!
4. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature until noticeably puffy. Or put it in the fridge overnight or for up to 24 hours.

Bake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Bake until the loaf has puffed up and the crust is golden brown. You can also use a probe thermometer to check that the internal temperature has reached at least 195 °F.
2. Melt 2 tbsp unsalted butter and brush onto the loaf as soon as it comes out of the oven. Remove it from the loaf pan and allow to cool on a wire rack until it's cool enough to handle.
3. This is best enjoyed the same day, but will keep for a few days. Or you can freeze it in an airtight freezer bag for up to 3 months, after cooling completely.

Video

Notes

The timings above don’t include making the dough. I recommend using my Anything Goes Enriched Sourdough.  You can use any enriched dough you like as the base for this pull-apart loaf whether it’s sourdough or not. The timing to make the dough depends on what recipe you use!

1. Make a full batch of Anything Goes Enriched Sourdough up to resting in the fridge. Divide it roughly in half (you can use the other half for another recipe, or use the full batch to make a larger loaf—just make sure to double the filling ingredients and use a loaf pan that’s about double the size of what I use here.
2. I think candied jalapeños work beautifully in this recipe, and add a delicious sweet & spicy kick to the filling. That said, you can absolutely use pickled jalapeños instead (made from scratch or store-bought work equally well). I don’t recommend using fresh jalapeños as they could be too spicy and crunchy. The recipe here makes way more than you need for the loaf, but fills a standard-size mason jar well. It keeps well in the fridge for several weeks, and is delicious on sandwiches, scrambled eggs, and more!