Pumpkin Pie Brioche Monkey Bread

It has been far too long since I've updated this food blog.  I have some posts to catch up on, but until then, I have this one.  This lovely, lovely bit of yumminess I made tonight.  Yes, it's onto the main event:  Pumpkin Pie Brioche Monkey Bread.  

To start, you make a recipe of Pumpkin Pie Brioche Dough from "Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day".  This is a very versatile dough with a delicious flavor and actually has good things in it for you.  I modified the recipe by doubling the spices and using half olive oil/half butter when it called for oil or butter.  I also (as always) threw in a handful of flaxseed and substituted 1/2 cup quinoa flour for 1/2 cup of the all-purpose flour.  

There are numerous yummy things to do with this dough besides bake a loaf of bread.  I've seen recipes online for cinnamon rolls, mini bundt brioches and my favorite (until now anyway) Pumpkin Pie Brioche with a Twist.

Now, onto the main event:  The Pumpkin Pie Brioche Monkey Bread.  This comes via a blog called Something Shiny (thank you Something Shiny for this wonderful heavenly way to use the brioche dough).  The monkey bread from my childhood consisted of 4 cans of Pilsbury Refrigerator Biscuits that were cut into 4 pieces, rolled in cinnamon sugar and put into a bundt pan.  Then, you would top that with a boiled mixture of butter and sugar.  Out of the oven was a gooey, sticky, sweet monkey bread.  The Pumpkin Pie Brioche Monkey Bread is a more refined and lighter version of this.  You simply roll the balls of dough in melted butter, then in cinnamon sugar and put it in your bundt pan.  Sprinkle any excess sugar on top (I poured on my little bit of excess butter first), then bake.  It's not as gooey as the original, but I don't miss that at all.  Each little bite of brioche is tender and cinnamony and just divine.  We had to cover it back up with the bundt pan so that we would stop eating it.  

First make little balls of dough.  They don't all have to be equal, but they will get bigger when they rise and bake.

Roll each piece of dough in melted butter.

 
   
Then roll in a cinnamon-sugar mixture.  Be careful if a small child is helping you.  My little guy just wanted to stand there and eat the cinnamon-sugar.  Silly boy.

Then put the little balls of dough in a greased bundt pan.

Here's what the monkey bread looks like before it rises and bakes.

Go to Something Shiny now and get all the details.  This is totally worth it!

Comments

[Sherry Neal]

That looks mighty tasty! Is is complicated? I'm not very talented with sweets.

[JenPack]

It's really not that complicated at all. If you look at the dough recipe, you'll see you just mix it up, let it rise and stick it in your fridge til your ready to bake. Yay for the Five Minute A Day method! :)