‘Tis the season of parties, elegant soirées, casual barbeques and one of our favourite types of events to attend, potlucks. Creating a dish to impress at a potluck doesn’t need to be a complicated affair, it just has to be simple, easy to eat and hearty enough to feed a group of hungry people. Monkey Bread is one dish that ticks all of those boxes — and only takes a hot minute to whip up. When made right, it pulls apart effortlessly and is absolutely delicious. Here is a foolproof recipe that will make you the MVP of any potluck you attend this season.
Ingredients
For the dough
– 200mL of Lewis Road Creamery Organic Light Milk
– 85 grams of unsalted Lewis Road Creamery butter
– 2 eggs
– 550 grams of bread flour
– 2½ tsp of yeast powder
– 1½ tsp of fine table salt
– 50 grams of raw sugar
– Vegetable oil or canola oil for greasing
To assemble
– 125 grams of unsalted Lewis Road Creamery butter
– 1 tbsp of ground cinnamon
– 1 tsp of ground ginger
– 1 tsp of nutmeg
– 1 tsp of allspice
– 230 grams of dark brown sugar
– 150 grams of toasted and chopped pecans, walnuts and almond slices (mixed)
For the glaze
– 100 grams of icing sugar
– 1 tsp of pure vanilla extract
– 1 tbsp of Lewis Road Creamery Light Milk
– Pinch of ground cinnamon
– 30 grams of unsalted Lewis Road Creamery butter, melted
Method
1. To make the dough take a medium-sized pan and heat the milk and butter together until it melts. When it starts to simmer, turn the heat off. Let it cool for a few minutes before whisking in the eggs with a fork.
2. In a separate, large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, sugar and salt and then add the liquid butter, milk and egg combination. Mix until it becomes a dough-like consistency then leave to sit for 5 minutes.
3. Flour a clean surface and start to knead your dough for approximately 7 minutes, until smooth and springy.
4. Take another large bowl and grease it with oil (preferably use canola or vegetable oil as the strong flavours of olive oil can be too much in this recipe) add the dough and turn it in the oil to coat. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and set aside in a warm space for an hour for the dough to double in size.
5. Grease a 25cm bundt pan with butter. Melt the rest of the butter in a pot over a low heat.
6. In a separate, medium-sized bowl, mix the spices, sugar and salt.
7. Take 2 tbsp of the melted butter and drizzle it across the base of the bundt pan before following with 3 tbsp of the sugar and spice mixture. Finish by sprinkling 4 tbsp of chopped pecans across the base of the tin.
8. Take the dough and separate it into approximately 65 small pieces. Take around five balls at a time, dunk them in the remaining melted butter, shake off the excess and then roll them in the spice and sugar mixture until they’re coated. Place them in the tin until you have one full layer. Sprinkle some pecan nuts over the top and then repeat this process until you have no more dough left. Tip in any leftover sugar and butter over the top when you’re finished.
9. Cover the pan with oiled cling wrap and leave the dough to rise again in the tin in a warm place for an hour, or until the dough doesn’t spring back when you poke it. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celcius, fan-bake.
10. Bake the bread for approximately 35 minutes or until risen and golden. Once it’s ready, let the tin cool for 10 minutes and then smack it on the counter to loosen the bread from the sides.
11. As your bread cools, make the glaze by mixing all the ingredients together thoroughly. Turn the bread onto a plate and when it’s cooled completely, drizzle the glaze across the top.
Enjoy!
