This easy Monkey Bread recipe requires only 6 ingredients and turns out ooey, gooey, and caramelly delicious every time! A perfect recipe for brunch, a sweet breakfast or even dessert.
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This post was originally posted on 4/16/2020 and updated on 5/22/2023.
Why We Love This Easy Monkey Bread
- An easy recipe with 6 simple ingredients.
- A quick prep time makes it ready to enjoy within a hour.
- It's ooey, gooey, with a yummy cinnamon center and buttery brown sugar sauce.
- This is a crowd pleasing recipe that is perfect for breakfast, brunch or even dessert. It makes a great breakfast treat on holiday mornings too!
- It's a fun recipe for the kids and family to enjoy.
Ingredients for Monkey Bread
- Refrigerated Canned Biscuit Dough
- Sugar
- Cinnamon
- Salted Butter
- Brown Sugar
- Pure Vanilla Extract
Substitution Suggestions:
- Refrigerated Biscuits: You can use your own homemade dough recipe if you like. For whatever reason, when I have tried to make Monkey Bread from scratch with homemade yeast dough it just doesn't turn out right. And I have tried many, many times. The dough is just never right, it never turns out how I remember eating it like a kid. So, with that, I use the biscuits. I use the 16 oz cans of refrigerated biscuit dough that are bigger. You can use the smaller cans, just use enough to equal 48 oz.
- Salted Butter: Unsalted butter can be used, I would just add a ¼ teaspoon of salt to the butter and brown sugar mixture.
- Brown Sugar: you can use dark brown sugar if you want. It will give a richer more molasses flavor to the caramel sauce.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Pure extracts are the best to use. Imitation extracts can leave an unwanted after taste in your baked goods.
- Variations: If you want a little texture added to your monkey bread you can add a ½ cup of chopped nuts like pecans or walnuts. Or you can also add some raisins or a finely chopped apple. Add them in with your biscuit dough.
Not only is this delicious monkey bread great for breakfast, but it is also good served at brunch or for a sweet treat. Weekend brunch is when we like to make and serve it the most, but we always serve it on Christmas morning. This is going to be one of your favorite recipes to enjoy with the entire family.
How to make Monkey Bread
- First, heat oven to 350°F and grease a 10 inch bundt pan well with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large gallon zip top bag combine the white sugar and cinnamon. Give it a good shake to combine it all. You can also use a large bowl.
- Next, open the cans of biscuits. Using kitchen shears or a sharp paring knife, cut the biscuits into quarters.
- Place the quartered biscuits into the zip top bag. Shake the bag well until all the biscuit pieces are coated with the cinnamon sugar mix. I do one can of biscuits at a time so all the pieces get evenly coated.
- Add the bite-size pieces of dough into the greased bundt pan. Spread the pieces around so they are in the pan evenly. Gently pat the dough down.
- Now, in a small saucepan, combine the butter and brown sugar over medium-low heat. Once the butter is melted, the brown sugar has dissolved and the mix is just starting to bubble remove it from the heat and stir in vanilla extract. Do not boil the mixture!
- Pour the sauce evenly over the biscuit pieces coated with the cinnamon mixture in the bundt pan. Then gently tap the pan a few times on the baking sheet.
- Finally, bake in preheated oven for 50-60 minutes until the top is a deep golden brown and the dough is cooked through. I use a chopstick to check the dough in the middle.
- Now the hardest part is going to be letting it cool down for at least 15 minutes before flipping it over onto a baking sheet, plate or cake stand. I like using the baking sheet because it has rimmed sides so there is no spillage of the delicious ooey, gooey sauce.
Storing Monkey Bread
Monkey Bread is best served warm on the same day. However if you have leftovers, cover them tightly with plastic wrap or place in an airtight container, and store at room temperature or in the fridge.
To Reheat: wrap in aluminum foil and warm in a low oven or heat in a microwave until warmed through.
Tips for Monkey Bread
- Grease the bundt pan very well. This will prevent it from sticking when you flip it out after baking.
- Add the dough pieces one can at a time to the bag with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Add them in a single layer in the bag. This helps them all get evenly coated and not stick together.
- Gently pat the dough down so it all fits and doesn't rise and overflow while baking.
- Bake the monkey bread on a sheet pan to catch any overspill.
- Make it a little sweeter for a dessert by adding a sweet glaze made from powdered sugar and milk to the top or serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
FAQs About Monkey Bread
Yes, prepare the monkey bread, cover it with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. When ready to bake, let the monkey bread come to room temperature while the oven preheats. Then remove plastic wrap and bake as recipe states.
Yes, if you don't have a bundt pan you can use 2 loaf pans or a 9x13 baking dish. Baking time will be a little less, so start checking it at the 35 minute mark. I do not recommend using a tube pan because the caramel sauce will leak out.
Yes, I have used name brand and cheaper brands and they all work well and the monkey bread turns out great.
More Sweet Breakfast Recipes
- Chocolate Sour Cream Baked Donuts
- Peanut Butter and Jelly Waffles
- Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
- French Toast Casserole
- Baked Donuts with Chocolate Glaze
- Chocolate Waffles
- Strawberries and Cream Stuffed French Toast
Monkey Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cans (16 oz each) Refrigerated Biscuits, not the flaky kind
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 cup salted butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a bundt pan well. Place the bundt pan on a baking sheet.
- Place the dough pieces into the greased bundt pan evenly. Gently pat the dough down.
- In a small saucepan, melt together butter and brown sugar until the brown sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture just starts to bubble. DO NOT BOIL!
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.
- Pour sauce over the dough pieces. Gently tap the bundt pan a few times on the baking sheet.
- Bake the monkey bread for 50-60 minutes until the top is a deep golden brown and the biscuits are no longer doughy. I use a chopstick to check the middle of the dough.
- Let cool at least 15 minutes before turning pan over on the baking sheet, plate or cake stand.
- Serve and Enjoy!
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