Fruitcake Monkey Bread (+ video)
Cinnamon-sugar dusted bites of billowy yeast dough that's filled with tart dried cherries, candied ginger, craisins and pecans and elevated with a citrusy orange glaze. This is an easy and a fun baking project.
Yield: 1 monkey bread
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 packet (2¼ tsp, ¼ oz.) Platinum Yeast
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar, divided
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 Tbsp canola oil
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ cup dried tart cherries, cut in halves
- ½ cup craisins, infused w/ cherry juice
- ¼ cup candied ginger, coarsely chopped
- ½ cup pecans, coarsely chopped
For the coating:
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp kosher salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
For the orange glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp orange juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1 tsp unsalted butter softened
Instructions
- Heat milk until warm to touch, 110-115°F. Add to bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment. Stir in yeast and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Let stand 5 minutes, mixture will start to look frothy.
- Whisk eggs with vanilla, then add to mixer bowl. Add remaining sugar, butter, oil and orange zest. Mix on low speed until combined.
- Add 2 cups flour and kosher salt, stir on low speed until incorporated. Scrape bowl and switch to dough hook attachment. Gradually add remaining 2 cups of flour and continue to mix 2 minutes on low/med speed.
- Add dried cherries, craisins, ginger, and pecans; mix until just incorporated. Dough will be sticky.
- Turn dough on to lightly floured surface and use a dough scraper to help knead until dough has smoothed out and becomes more elastic, about 2-3 minutes. Form dough into a ball and place in lightly greased large bowl, turning dough to oil top. Cover and let rise at room temperature until doubled, about one hour.
- Make the coating: Add sugar, cinnamon, and kosher salt to a jar or covered container and shake to combine. Pour into shallow bowl. In a separate shallow bowl, melt butter in microwave.Spray a 9¾-inch or 10-12 cup Bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Forming the monkey bread: Punch down dough and turn out onto clean countertop. Pat out dough to approximately a 14-inch round. Using a bench knife, cut dough in to 1 ½ inch strips, then cut 60-70 one-inch pieces. Roll each piece of dough in to a ball, dip in melted butter, then roll generously in cinnamon sugar.
- Layer balls in prepared Bundt pan. Cover and let rise 20 minutes. Adjust oven rack to lower third position, then preheat oven to 350°F while bread is rising.
- Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then invert on serving platter.
- Make the glaze: Stir together powdered sugar, orange juice, orange zest, and butter. Drizzle over warm monkey bread and serve.
- In partnership with Ingles Table.
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