Saturday mornings are normally pretty lazy around here. Our son is allowed to watch a show while my husband and I slowly wake up haha. Then we crawl down the stairs and make the boys a bowl of cereal. We often joke that they often have “second breakfast” or even “third breakfast” because they will have their cereal and then usually want some of our breakfast too when it’s finished.

Well this recipe is perfect because it can be prepped the night before (haha if you are that good at planning ahead!) If not, it can be made the morning of, but will just need time to rise. It’s also the perfect fail proof recipe because even if some of the dough balls stick to the pan after flipping it over, you can just place them back on and no one will be the wiser!

Ingredients

DOUGH:

• 4 tablespoons butter, divided, 2 tablespoons softened and 2 tablespoons melted
• 1 cup milk, warm (about 110 degrees)
• 1/3 cup water, warm (about 110 degrees)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for work surface
• 2 teaspoons salt

BROWN SUGAR COATING:

•  1 cup packed light brown sugar
•  2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
•  8 tablespoons butter (1 stick), melted

GLAZE: (I used some extra cream cheese frosting in the picture above and was also delicious)

• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk

Directions

1. Butter a Bundt pan with the 2 tablespoons softened butter. Use a pastry brush or a paper towel or anything that will really help get inside all of those nooks and crannies. Set aside.
2. In a large measuring cup, mix together the milk, water, melted butter, sugar, and yeast. Mix the flour and salt together in a standing mixer fitted with dough hook. Turn the machine to low and slowly add the milk mixture. After the dough comes together, increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough is shiny and smooth, 6 to 7 minutes. If you think the dough is too wet (i.e. having a hard time forming a cohesive mass), add 2 tablespoons flour at a time and mix until the dough comes together (it should still be on the sticky side, just not overly wet). Coat a large bowl with nonstick cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat lightly with the cooking spray. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until doubled, 1-2 hours.
3. For the sugar coating, while the dough is rising, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl. Place the melted butter in a second bowl or shallow pie plate. Set aside.
4. To form the bread, gently remove the dough from the bowl and press it into a rough 8-inch square. Using a bench scraper or knife, cut the dough into 64 pieces.
5. Roll each dough piece into a ball (it doesn’t have to be perfect, just get it into a rough ball-shape). Working one at a time, dip the balls in melted butter, allowing excess butter to drip back into the bowl or pie plate. Roll the dipped dough ball in the brown sugar mixture, then layer the balls in the Bundt pan, staggering the seams where the dough balls meet as you build layers.
6. Cover the Bundt pan tightly with plastic wrap and let the monkey bread rise until puffy and they have risen 1-2 inches from the top of the pan, 1-2 hours.
7. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Unwrap the pan and bake until the top is deep brown and caramel begins to bubble around edges, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool the monkey bread in the pan for 5 minutes (any longer and the bread will be too sticky and hard to remove!), then turn out on a platter or large plate and allow to cool slightly, about 10 minutes.
8. For the glaze, while the bread cools, whisk the confectioners’ sugar and milk together in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth. Using a whisk, drizzle the glaze over the warm monkey bread, letting it run over the top and sides of the bread. Serve warm.

Make-Ahead Instructions: make the recipe through step #5. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place the pan in the refrigerator before letting the monkey bread rise up to 12-18 hours. A couple hours before you want to bake it, remove the pan from the refrigerator and let the monkey bread come to room temperature and rise until puffy and risen 1-2 inches below the top of the pan (this exact measurement will depend on the dimensions of the Bundt pan you are using). Bake as directed in step #7 and proceed with the recipe

(Mels kitchen cafe for original recipe)