Recipes
Samantha Seneviratne’s Sticky Banana Monkey Bread
Makes 8 to 10 servings
Image Credits
Photo by Johnny Miller
Ingredients
for the dough
- ½ cup (120 grams) whole milk, warmed to 110°F to 120°F
- 2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (one 7-gram package)
- ¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 3½ cups (476 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (220 grams) mashed overripe banana
- 1 large (50 grams) egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons (¾ stick; 85 grams) butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
for the coating
- 1½ cups (300 grams) packed light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon (4 grams) ground cinnamon
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick; 113 grams) butter, melted
for the glaze
- 4 ounces (113 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon (8 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 grams) milk, warmed
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) bourbon
method
- Prepare the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, stir together the milk, yeast, and 1 teaspoon of the sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
- Add the remaining sugar and the flour to the yeast mixture.
- With the mixer on low speed, mix in the banana, egg, and salt, until the dough forms and it becomes elastic, about 5 minutes.
- Add the butter a bit at a time, mixing until it is incorporated, and then knead the dough until it is smooth, another 5 minutes or so. The dough will be sticky, but resist the urge to add more flour.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl, remove the bowl from the mixer stand, and shape the dough into a neat ball.
- Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled, 1 to 2 hours, depending on the temperature of your kitchen. (After the dough has doubled, you can also punch it down, wrap it well, and refrigerate for up to 2 days before proceeding.)
- Using a pastry brush, generously butter a 12-cup Bundt pan.
- A tube pan would also be fine here, but make sure it doesn’t have a removable bottom, or it might leak.
- Prepare the coating: In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Put the melted butter in another small bowl.
- Pat the dough out into a large square.
- Using a large knife or a pastry wheel, cut it into 36 equal pieces.
- Roll one piece of dough into a ball, dip it in the butter, toss lightly in the sugar mixture, and place in the prepared pan.
- Repeat with the remaining dough, stacking the balls on top of one another in the pan.
- Cover the pan lightly with plastic wrap and set aside until the dough has puffed and jiggles when shaken gently, about 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Uncover the pan and bake the bread until it’s puffed and set, about 35 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 190°F.
- Immediately and carefully flip the bread out onto a plate.
- Let cool slightly.
- Prepare the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, milk, and bourbon.
- Drizzle the glaze over the bread.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Monkey bread is best the day it’s made, but you can store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.
- Wrap them in foil and warm them in a toaster oven before serving.
Divider
Recipe from Bake Smart: Sweets and Secrets from My Oven to Yoursby Samantha Seneviratne. Copyright © 2023 by Samantha Seneviratne. Used with permission by Harvest, an imprint of HarperCollins. All rights reserved.Links
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