Gluten-Free Monkey Bread

I love this soft, gooey, pull-apart Gluten-Free Monkey Bread. These bite-sized cinnamon buns are a heavenly dessert that I like to eat for breakfast! From their warm, sticky, caramel glaze to the buttery cinnamon sugar to the easy way it all comes together in a bundt pan, this recipe is absolute perfection.

 

I don’t know why this delectable snack is called monkey bread, but I do know I love it. And all my monkeys, young or old, love it! The whole family dives into this dish with abandon. We can probably finish the whole thing in about 20 minutes if compelled. Who am I kidding? We don’t need any more convincing to gobble this up. The sticky sweetness does that all on its own.

Why I Can’t Get Enough of This Monkey Bread

First of all, this recipe is gluten free, so that makes it amazing right off the bat. But also, you place something gooey and cinnamony in front of me and I can’t resist.

I also love recipes that I can share. This is the perfect, sharable recipe. Not only is it designed to be pulled apart and eaten piece by piece like every other monkey bread recipe you can find, but this recipe is so soft and fluffy with extra helping of sticky sweetness.

Because everything in this recipe is made from scratch, it becomes so much lighter than other recipes you may have tried. You can’t beat a treat made from scratch!

How Do I Make It?

The long list of ingredients may seem daunting, but I promise you this recipe is easy!

Prepare: Grease a standard bundt pan with softened butter.

Mix: In a large mixing bowl with the paddle attachment add gluten-free flour, baking powder, instant yeast, salt and sugar. Mix to combine.

Add: Next, while the mixer is running on low, add the milk, eggs and softened butter. 

Mix some more: Turn the speed up to medium and mix for 3 minutes until very smooth. The dough will be thick but that is normal. 

Let it sit: Take an oiled spatula and scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let rise for 45-60 minutes, until doubled in size.

Get ready: While the dough is rising, prepare the coating.

Melt: In a bowl, melt the butter.

Some more mixing: In another more shallow bowl, mix the white sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon.

Form: Once the dough has risen, pull small dough chunks and roll into 1-inch balls.

Dip and roll: Dip each ball, one by one, in the melted butter and then generously roll in the cinnamon-sugar mixture to coat them well. You may not use all of the cinnamon-sugar or you may need more cinnamon-sugar depending how heavy you coat each ball.

Fill the bundt: Arrange the balls in the bundt pan as you go. Cover the pan with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel and allow the shaped monkey bread to rest for 20 minutes. The balls will slightly rise during this time.

Adjust oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). 

Make some caramel sauce: In a bowl, melt the butter and add the brown sugar and vanilla extract. Mix to combine, and pour it over the shaped monkey bread.

Bake for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown on top. Cover loosely with foil if the top is browning too quickly. 

Cool for 5-10 minutes, then invert onto a large serving plate or cake stand.

Top with caramel and chopped pecans or walnuts.

What if it Sticks to the Pan?

I recommend a generous coating of butter on your bundt pan. That will help the yummy sticky bits to pop right out of the pan when you turn it onto a plate.

What if My Dough Doesn’t Rise?

I’ve never had an issue getting this recipe to rise, but gluten-free recipes can often seem fickle, especially if you’re just starting out with this style of baking.

If you’re having trouble getting the dough to rise here are a couple of tips to help:

• Make sure your yeast is still good. If you had it for a while, there’s a chance it’s expired and you’ll need to replace it.
• Try bringing all your chilly items from the fridge to room temperature. This will help the yeast stay warm enough to activate and get that dough to puff up.
• If the room you’re trying to raise the dough in is too cold, it may not rise very well. Make sure you have a warm, dry place.

Can I Make this Recipe Dairy Free?

Yes! I’ve made this recipe dairy free a few times and it turns out great. Just use a dairy-free butter like Earth Balance and replace the milk with a good quality nut milk and it works great.

What if I Need a Nut Free Recipe?

Good news! This one is pretty easy. The only nuts in this recipe are the ones I sprinkle on top at the end. So, be sure to leave those off. 

Also, make sure the gluten-free flour blend you’re using doesn’t contain any nut flours. There are many out there that should be completely safe. If you’re making this recipe dairy free as well, then make sure you use a gluten-free oat milk rather than a nut milk.

A Note For Gluten-Free Newbies

Make sure you use a gluten-free flour blend for this recipe. That means you don’t want to just use almond flour or something like it. You need a blend of flours and starches to make it stick together without the gluten.

Gluten-free baking can be a bit of a learning curve because dough just doesn’t behave the same way without that pesky gluten. So, be sure to give yourself some grace and remember that practice makes all the difference. I’ve got you! This recipe is tried and tested!

I hope you love this monkey bread as much as my family and I do. Let me know what you think!

More Tasty Treats:

• Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls (The BEST and fluffiest!)
• Easy Cinnamon Roll Muffins
• Cinnamon Roll French Toast Casserole
• Gluten-Free Banana Cake
• Ebelskiver Recipe