Filled with the tropical flavors of pineapple AND coconut, this gluten free ‘Ohana pineapple bread is out of this world! One bite and you’ll feel like you’re sitting right there at ‘Ohana looking out at Cinderella’s castle!
We’ve been going to Disney World for a long time, not long after they first opened back in 1971. I’m really showing my age now, but age is just a number. Because every time I go back to Disney I’m a kid again, taken away from reality if only for a short time.
In fact, by the time you see this I will have already eaten breakfast at ‘Ohana this morning, albeit minus this wonderful bread! You see, even though Disney does wonderful things for those of us with allergies/illnesses, this bread isn’t one they’ve tackled yet.
Lucky for me, I had the pleasure of enjoying ‘Ohana’s pineapple bread years ago before my Celiac diagnosis. I even made the original recipe many times and everyone loved it (Disney releases some of their recipes quite often).
Since I already knew how to make the original recipe, it was only a matter of time before I made it gluten free. And I’m here to tell ya, you will NEVER KNOW it’s gluten free! If you were lucky enough like I was to try the original, yay!! If you weren’t, don’t worry because this bread is easy and it’s JUST LIKE what I remember it to be. So let’s get started!!
What is ‘Ohana?
‘Ohana is a restaurant at the Polynesian Village Resort in Disney World. It’s one of my absolute favorite restaurants on all of Disney property and we’ve been eating there for years.
I was very nervous about what I’d be able to eat when I first went to Disney after being diagnosed. But the chef came out and talked to me and by the end of the meal I was in tears (of joy). I couldn’t believe how well they treated me (like a queen) and how wonderful the food was! On the way out, my mom stopped and told the chef that he made me cry (in a good way). He was honored.
‘Ohana means family (if you’ve never seen Lilo & Stitch). All of their meals are served family style. When you have an allergy, though, you’re given your very own platter to avoid cross contamination! It’s filled with gluten free Mickey waffles, scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes, and sausage and ham. Characters are only at ‘Ohana breakfast. Mickey himself, Goofy I think, Lilo, and Stitch will all come to your table and sign autographs and take pictures!
For dinner, they keep the food a-comin’ and it’s all extraordinary! There are shrimp, chicken, pork, and beef skewers that don’t stop until you say so! We’ll be eating dinner at ‘Ohana, too, so I’ll share all the deets when I get back 🙂
Making the Dough for Gluten Free ‘Ohana Pineapple Bread
Drumroll, please. The dough for this bread is my one and only gluten free sweet dough! Tada!! Lol! All joking aside, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve used this dough in recipes so far. I know I’ve only just begun to crack the surface on what it’s capable of.
If you haven’t made this dough yet, you’re gonna LOVE it!! It’s so supple and smooth (nothing at all like your typical gf dough), and when baked it has the most perfect texture of all gluten free breads, in my humble opinion.
Mixing the Pineapple Coconut Filling
The filling is the best part of this bread and only contains a few ingredients:
- Crushed pineapple in juice
- Unsweetened finely shredded flake coconut — Bob’s Red Mill makes a really great finely shredded coconut and you can find it here.
- Granulated sugar
- Cornstarch
Stir the ingredients together in a medium bowl and refrigerate for at least one hour.
Putting the Dough and Filling Together
‘Ohana’s original instructions for their bread are kind of hard to understand. When I first made it, it came out looking NOTHING like what I remembered. It tasted great, though, and isn’t that what ultimately matters? I eventually came up with my own interpretation.
The first part that’s incomprehensible is “fold the dough into itself.” What the heck does that mean?? I took it to mean “fold it over onto itself” after the filling has been added, kind of like you’d fold over a calzone. So that’s what I did.
Cutting the Dough into Pieces
The recipe says to “cut dough into pieces with a pizza cutter and spread out cut pieces evenly in cake pan.” With no picture as to show you what they mean, I again decided to make it my way.
Looking at a picture of the bread that comes to the table, I noticed it was cobblestone-like. This reminded me of my gluten free apple fritters, so I used the same technique. It’s very messy, so if you just accept that fact and move on, the outcome will be so rewarding (I promise!).
Take a pizza cutter or pastry wheel and cut strips of the dough down the length of the folded over dough. Filling will probably squeeze out, but that’s okay. Next, go the opposite way with the pastry wheel and cut the dough into smaller squares. Messy, messy, messy.
Now pick up handfuls of the dough and the filling that’s already seeped out and drop them into the prepared greased pan.
Cover the dough with plastic wrap and allow it to rise in a warm, draft-free area for about one hour, or until doubled in size. It could take longer, depending on the temperature of your rising area.
Bake for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Finishing Your Gluten Free ‘Ohana Pineapple Bread
Even though the original recipe doesn’t mention anything about a glaze, there is clearly a glaze on the pieces they bring to the table. Therefore, I made a simple powdered sugar glaze consisting of powdered sugar, milk, and a little bit of vanilla extract.
Drizzle the glaze over the somewhat warm bread and serve.
I’d say my family goes for the rides or the ambiance or the family or whatever. And all of those are great and we love them. But I’d be telling a BIG.FAT.LIE. if I said our most favorite thing about Disney isn’t the FOOD!!!!
Whether you’re a Disney fan or just a bread lover, you’ll really enjoy this gluten free ‘Ohana pineapple bread for breakfast, brunch, or even with dinner!
Gluten Free ‘Ohana Pineapple Bread–A Disney Copycat Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ recipe ultimate gluten free cinnamon roll dough
- filling (recipe follows)
- glaze (recipe follows
FILLING
- ½ cup (120 g) crushed pineapple in juice
- ½ cup (50 g) unsweetened finely shredded coconut
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
GLAZE
- ½ cup (63 g) powdered sugar
- 1 tsp milk
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the dough according to the recipe instructions and refrigerate overnight or up to 3 days.
- Knead the dough on a well-floured surface and cut in half. Place the other half back in the refrigerator for another use.
- Roll out the dough into a rectangle that's about ½ inch thick. Spread the filling over the bottom half of the dough and then pull the top half over the filling. Press fingertips into bottom of dough to seal. Some of the filling may leak out, which is okay.
- Cut the dough using a pizza cutter or pastry wheel down the width into strips about 1 inch wide. Then cut those strips down the length into small squares that are about 1 by 1 inch in width.
- Pick up the pieces of dough and place them haphazardly in a well-greased baking dish (11 by 7 inch is what I used, but use what you have).
- Cover the pan with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise until doubled, about 1-2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F and bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown.
- Mix together the glaze ingredients and drizzle glaze over the bread while still warm.
- Let bread cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature. Bread will keep well covered at room temperature for a few days, or can be frozen for up to two months, well wrapped. The filled dough can also be made a day ahead, kept in the refrigerator under wraps, and risen and baked the next morning.
Notes
Adapted from Allears.Net’s WDW recipes for Pineapple Bread
Thanks for this recipe. I am loving your bread recipes – the textures are just great!
In this one, I cut back on the sugar by about 1/3 in both the dough and filling just to suit my family’s taste, but it was delicious and the texture was super. My non-GF teenager didn’t even notice it was G/F, which is high praise indeed.
Thanks so much!! Glad everyone liked it 🙂
Howdy! Just found your site today and my shirt front is wet from drooling over your pictures. I’ was diagnosed 10 years ago and have had uneven results in making breads and cookies. I can’t wait for my order to arrive to actually begin baking your recipes.
Your recipes seem very well written, and when reading along never encountered a “what????” moment. I do have a question though, do you recommend using glass to bake your delicious recipes? All of the pictures I’ve drooled over so far have been in glass baking pans and if I’m going to put an order in for ingredients, I might as well add in a baking dish or two.
Can’t wait to try this! I never had the original, but it looks phenomenal. Have a magnificent trip!!!
Thanks so much, Pam! We’re having a wonderful time!!