[Collegiate Meals] How to Make Monkey Bread

Monkey Bread - the ultimate finger licking, finger picking dessert of all time. Soft balls of dough, coated in a cinnamon sugar crust of sweet goodness. Your uncle Joe can't be accused of taking the large slice of triple decker ultra fudge chocolate cake when you're serving monkey bread. Monkey bread is self service with full service portion control.

That is, if you can resist 1 monkey bread ball.

For the record... Monkey Bread is totally better than fruit cake, but perhaps not as the traditional fruit cake bowling ball. Yeah, that would be messy.

Step 1 Ingredients

2 "tubes" of pizza dough OR biscuits*
1 Stick of Butter
Cinnamon
Sugar

You'll also need a bunt pan OR a bowl and cup that can be placed in the oven. Cinnamon/Sugar should be mixed in a ratio of 1 Tablespoon of Cinnamon per 1 cup of sugar.


*Today, I discovered you can use pizza dough. I accidentally got pizza dough instead of biscuit dough - and I'm quite satisfied with the results.

Comments

[atropos]

Have you ever tried making this with the actual pillsbury cinnamon bun dough instead of the biscuit dough? Or would that be a diabetic coma waiting to happen? lol

[Void Schism]

or maybe actually making dough instead of just opening a can?

[NanaBuchanan]

I agree. My mother used to make them using frozen bread dough (she wasn't a complete from scratch cook) but I prefer to make my own. Any sweet dough recipe should work or even just a plain white dough. When all the dough balls are made and in the pan, sprinkle with the remainder of the sugar/cinnamon mix then pour over whatever butter you have left. Paula Deen would be proud.

[trebuchet03]

I've tried it... and frankly, it's not as tasty as I'd like... it's just no gooey enough...

[Nelyan]

I. NEED. THIS. NOW. *Shoves fiancé out of the door to go shop the ingredients and continues drooling*

At first it looked only mushy and gooey pile of weirdness, then I read what's in it and I now have a serious craving for this. I got to try this out!

[whisperonthewind]

You can also bake this in a regular cake pan, or loaf pan, glass or metal, round or square or oblong. Just watch it.

[ashley021291]

what is the gooyness on it at the end?

[mslaynie]

That's the caramelized cinnamon sugar with butter that formed while in the oven. When you've finished putting all the coated balls of dough into the pan, you drizzle the remaining butter over the dough in the pan, and then sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon and sugar over the top.

While it's in the oven, the butter melts the sugar into the butter and makes a delicious, sticky caramelized glaze at the bottom of the pan. Once you flip the monkey bread out of the pan, that glaze is now on top of the monkey bread. It's truly the best part!

I made this for years when my husband and I were in college. It was delicious!

[VALadyRose1965]

Another addition to this is to add Instant Butterscotch Pudding as you put the sugar/cinnamon balls in the bundt pan. Take small box of the dry instant pudding mix and sprinkle it over each layer of the balls as you build them up in the pan. You want extra gooey. You'll have it It is AWESOME!!!!!

[trebuchet03]

Butterscotch, I like it :)

[Shindou]

I know this recipe by a name I have forgotten. My version is worlds more awesome though. I use a peanut butter bread dough I make from a book called "Electric Bread" I use a TON of honey as well as clarified butter, Saigon cinnamon and enough white sugar to kill all diabetics within 10 miles. The dough is the secret, I forget the exact recipe, but it doesn't taste as good when made into its intended use....a little bland, I'll maybe post an 'ible when I get back home, who knows, maybe even make my version of this sugar coma inducing pile of awesome:D Thanks for reminding me of this wonderful desert.

[Pentacle]

Definitely gotta make this for my family. They buy the stuff from a bakery out of town. But I bet they'd love it if I made some. Hehe.

[feeshy]

Any idea how/how long to store them?

[cory.smith]

Props on the recipe.

Another variation that we do is to separate the pre-formed biscuits, coat with sugar/cinnamon and then insert into bundt pan on their edge. Glaze with butter. Then, you get monkey bread slices, which are awesome for breakfast. =D

I think that all of us college people should get a group going for our recipes!

Cory

[trebuchet03]

Then, you get monkey bread slices, which are awesome for breakfast. =D

Totally breakfast tomorrow - sounds awesome :p

[zhayes]

I LOVE MONKEY BREAD! Until I made it for my friends they thought i was crazy. But after I made it All those around (who partook of the glorious Monkey Bread) instantly be came my mindless love drones. p.s. You are only the second person (outside of family) I have heard, that has called it Monkey Bread Also you can quarter any cheap canned biscuit. (saves time on the rolling)

[Marche]

I didn't realize those Pillsbury tubes were pressurized. I shat cinder blocks when I opened it. I'm still shaky.

[cbrown222]

hahaa

[acrollet]

classic!

[vandal1138]

I say this only because I have an ungodly high metabolism. I say after its completely finished, mix up a semi-sweet batter and deep fry that bad boy. Dear Lord the thought of that is givin me chubbage....

[MairseyDotes]

It's just not right to call it monkey bread and not use monkeys. I mean, banana bread is made with bananas, zuchinni bread is made with zuchinnis, and so on. Even mock turtle soup is made with.. Oh, wait.

[Swishercutter]

I have been wanting to sue "Panda Express" for that very reason.

[l.una]

But that's MOCK turtle.. so imitation?

[AstralQueen]

i made this from scratch. i was so eager to make it i couldn't be bothered to let the dough rise properly but it tasted so good. AAAAAAAAH!

[AstralQueen]

does the dough contain yeast? i can't get the pre-made dough here and I usually make my own pizza dough from scratch.

[twocvbloke]

This looks wrong, but in a good way!!! Very tasty looking indeed... :D

[IamGnu]

My Ma called this monkey ball bread.I think we've since dropped the "ball" part as a crude saying.We added brown sugar as a final step,sprinkled on as last step.And yes,it can be made in any type of bread or cake pan. I've made it as large as 8 rolls at a time in a huge lasagna pan for a family reunion.Thanks for the Instructable!

[bFusion]

My parents used to call them "monkey balls" too heh.

[ZenThruCraft]

This looks so delicious!.. I was trying to figure out what I could bring to the Family Christmas dinner (I was picked to bring desserts) .. this is just easy enough for me to make a few batches and be done. THANKS!!

[bFusion]

My parents always used to make this for my sister and I Christmas morning, I'm so happy I found a recipe that I can make for myself whenever I want! :D

[lucek]

sounds fun. thow I'd probably make the dough in my bread maker instead of packaged goo.

[Chicken2209]

it works good with camping and dutch ovens

[eroki]

one word- wow, five minutes after I read this Instructable I went to the kitchen to see what ingredients I was missing, I had everything including some leftover pizza dough. I tried it immediately and loved it(I couldn't resist and ate 5 in a row) I will definitely try this again as soon as I get more dough.

[Tomcat94]

I made this stuff earlier. Everybody loves it!!! Thank you for making such a good instructable! *faved*

[dashofthunder]

I tried making it and I think I used salt instead of sugar. I think that is why it tasted so bad.

[Tomcat94]

LOL *fail*

[Kordan9090]

I made this stuff for my friends and I and now when I have any guests over, they won't stop bothering me to make some! It tastes even better with the pre buttered biscuits.

[RetroPlayer]

I think you missed the step of pouring syrup over the bread at the end. My mom used to call this "gooey bread" and she made it in regular loaf pans. Monkey bread is a little better since it looks like monkey brains :)

[trebuchet03]

As pictured, no syrup was poured over it -- it glazes itself in the pan :) Unless, you're suggesting that's something I should do :) If so, I ask, what kind of syrup?

[RetroPlayer]

Yeah, I noticed that after reading it again. My mother always made it with syrup and cinnamon poured on top (just run-of-the-mill maple syrup) and the picture looked like you did as well, but I see it was just glazing.