I am a Honey Bee

All about my adventures with cooking, crafts, and travel

monkey bread

Instant Pot Monkey Bread

Guys!!!! We have power!!!!! I still can’t believe it!!!!

Did you hear that yelling?! That was me in utter excitement that we still have power even after Irma has hit FL this weekend.

We occasionally lose power during an afternoon thunderstorm. It might just blink or we might lose it for 1-10 minutes, or a few hours. So I was sure that we would be without power for several days. It surged about 8 times last night, but we certainly lucked out and didn’t lose it.

At one point over the weekend, I pulled up a hurricane tracker and it basically had the eye of the storm going right over our community and continuing right on up through Tampa. I could zoom in enough to the map to see that the black spaghetti line was within walking distance to our house and you could zoom in and see our lot. WTF. That was scary to see.

I’m really glad that Irma changed its course and continued hits northerly trek up the state of FL further East of what was predicted, keeping us, and Tampa, on the West side of the storm, which is the weaker side. While it worked out well for us, I know a lot of people still effected here in the area, and elsewhere. I have a lot of friends without power in the Tampa area and I know people in Miami that have a lot of clean up to do. Shoot, my mom had a tree fall on her house! Thankfully, it landed on the part of the house that house where her garage is, but it still caused some damage. Plus, it scared the shit out of her when it happened! OMG!

Since I had thought that we wouldn’t have power for at least 3 days, I prepped and prepped and prepped for that. We had plenty of water, iced teat, juice, seltzer and soooo much food to get us through it. I bought bread and frozen it for PBJ’s. I organized the fridge so that I could know where everything was so I could open it, grab something, and close it immediately. I had prepped tons of meals that I frozen anticipating them staying chilled or thawing out and then we could just reheat them on the gas stove. My instant pot was my best friend during all of this.

I having been using my Instant Pot for everything that I can think of. Soup! Rice! Spaghetti! Taco Meat! Pulled BBQ Chicken! The list goes on and on. I really love how quickly everything comes together and there is so little clean up. I still love my slow cooker but there are times when I want something, like a roast, done in an hour or so and the Instant Pot is perfect for that.

Using a 6-Cup Bundt Pan, I made monkey bread in my 6-Quart Instant Pot in just 20 minutes. Normally it takes 45 minutes for a monkey bread in the oven, and you make a biiiiiig one. But this guy was a mini version and took half the time. It was great that I didn’t need to heat up the oven, which always makes our house so hot, and it was a smaller sized monkey bread.

The one thing that I would note is that it does have a spongier texture compared to the monkey breads I make in the oven. I certainly didn’t think it was a bad thing, still really enjoyable, but I wouldn’t be a good blogger if I didn’t give ya all the facts, now would I?

Let’s hope that we don’t have any other hurricanes for a long time, but at least now we know how to best prepare for it. Or how to get the hell out of dodge if it’s going up the West Coast of FL. With my Instant Pot with us, of course!

Instant Pot Monkey Bread

Makes 4 Servings

Ingredients

  • 1 large can of Grands Biscuits (16.3 ounce)
  • 1/3 Cup
  • 1/3 Cup
  • 2 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 Cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/4 Cup butter, melted

Process

  1. Spray a 6-Cup bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. Pour 1 1/2 Cups of water into your 6 Quart Instant Pot. With the handles folded under, place the trivet into the pot. Pull off about 6″ of tin foil and fold it over 2x to create a sturdy handle to help you remove the bundt pan, set aside.
  3. Cut each biscuit into 8 pieces.
  4. Combing the sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add the cut biscuit pieces to the sugar combination. Coat well.
  5. Sprinkle some nuts into the bundt pan, then place a layer of the coated pieces into the pan, sprinkle with more nuts, add the remaining the coated pieces.
  6. Sprinkle any remaining cinnamon and sugar mixture over the filled bundt pan. Pour the melted butter evenly over the pieces.
  7. Place the filled bundt pan into the pot on the trivet, with the piece of foil under it, with edges extending up for easy removal. Fold over so they don’t interfere with the lid.
  8. Seal and then set on MANUAL on HIGH for 20 minutes. When done, do a quick release.
  9. Remove and carefully invert onto a plate. Enjoy!

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Slow Cooker Monkey Bread

I am going to conquer our little office this weekend. Well, I hope.

I have a plan for our little office nook. It’s an outcove off our kitchen area, on the way to the bathroom. It’s quite efficient for space so there aren’t too many options for it. We have a folding table there now but that isn’t a long term solution.

Since there isn’t too much to it, we are going to install a counter there. This was an option for the builder to do but it was crazy expensive. There was no way we were paying $2K for this area. Sure, it would have been great to have a matching counter to our kitchen, but that was an expense that we were just not interested in paying.

So I am heading over to Ikea to pick up a kitchen counter for $45. It will need to be trimmed about a foot or so but there is not much to it. Then we’ll get some brackets up and set it on there. Done and done. Then Price will set up the computer again since I’m useless in that department. I need things color coded or something to hook it all back up properly.

One thing I can simply operate is the slow cooker. ha!

Making monkey bread in the slow cooker is as simple as it gets. You place the coated, cut-up biscuit pieces.

While this method takes longer than your typical baking method, I think it would work well on a morning when you are hosting people or need to get out the door and the rest of the family is sticking around.

I find that cutting the biscuits with kitchen shears to be the easiest way to cut the biscuits. It makes the job super quick as well.

You house will be filled with the sweetest cinnamon roll smell as it cooks.

Slow Cooker Monkey Bread

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients

For the monkey bread

  • 2 cans of large buttermilk biscuits (1 pound each)
  • 2/3 Cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon.
  • 1/2 Cup butter
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the glaze

  • 4 ounces of cream cheese, softened
  • 2 Cups powdered sugar
  • 1 -2 teaspoons milk

Process

  1. Cut each biscuit into 8 equally sized pieces.
  2. Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Coat the pieces with the cinnamon sugar mixture.
  3. Add the sugar coated biscuit pieces to the slow cooker that has been sprayed well with non-stick cooking spray.
  4. Melt the butter and then add the vanilla extract. Evenly pour the butter over pieces.
  5. Turn slow cooker on to  the 2 hour setting (high) for 2 hours. After 1 hour, run a rubber spatula between the monkey bread and the side of the slow cooker. Repeat 30 minutes later.
  6. Just prior to the monkey bread being done, make the glaze by combining all of the ingredients.
  7. When cooking is complete immediately remove the slow cooker vessel from the warming element. Drizzle with the glaze.

Sticky Bun Monkey Bread

It’s Babymoon time!!!!

We are going away for a quick Babymoon this weekend. I am so excited!!

Last time, we took a trip to the Florida to visit The Keys for a long weekend but since we are here in Florida now, we are just staying local. I’d love to take another trip to The Keys but I didn’t feel like flying, err spending money on flights, really.

Price found a local resort and spa for us to visit. The idea of a prenatal massage and bumming it by the pool without a toddler asking you to go in and out and in and out again is pure bliss.

Generally, I feel good at 32 weeks but I am so blah and sore all over so I just need my slightly ever present charlie horses to be worked out. (Seriously, they are the worst things ever to wake up to in the middle of the night!!!) Thankfully, Price snagged the last one available for the day and I picked up the required doctor’s note so I am just counting down the minutes until the appointment.

The worst part is that I keep reading things included in our package and it just makes me want to stay forever. Well, more specifically, go back AFTER the baby is born for the unlimited drinks. Hello, unlimited mimosas at brunch!

If you aren’t going away this weekend, I insist you make this Sticky Bun Monkey Bread. It’s stupid good. And goes great with mimosas too. (Truth be told, everything goes with mimosas. It’s a fact!)

 

But seriously, this Sticky Bun Monkey Bread is a real crowd pleaser. It tastes just like a sticky bun with the sticky caramel syrup that you drizzle all over the cinnamon and sugar coated biscuit pieces.

I used refrigerated canned biscuits to make this process easier, but you can follow my recipe for Homemade Monkey Bread for the dough, and then add the nuts and caramel sauce to it.

The caramel is everything. Whatever you do, don’t just dip a finger in there to try it. Nor is it a good idea to immediately grab a piece of monkey bread right after you flip it out on to the serving platter. No, I def didn’t try that and burn the crap out of my fingers and then my mouth as the quickest thing I could think of was ‘ahh my fingers!’ so shoving it in my mouth was the next logical thing to do. Nope…

Let’s fast-forward to the weekend, shall we?

I’ll be ready for my prenatal massage and you will be ready to enjoy this Sticky Bun Monkey Bread. And a few mimosas in my honor.

Sticky Bun Monkey Bread

Makes 16 servings

Ingredients

  • 3/4 Cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 3 cans refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (10 biscuits per can)
  • 4 ounces of chopped pecans
  • 3/4 Cup butter
  • 1 Cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/3 Cup heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Process

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Set aside.
  3. Spray a tube pan with non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle 1/3 of the nuts in the bottom on the tub pan.
  4. Cut the biscuits in 4 equal pieces. Roll them in the cinnamon and sugar mixture
  5. Add half of the coated biscuit pieces into the tube pan. Sprinkle with 1/3 more nuts. Add the rest of the coated biscuit pieces and then the remaining chopped nuts.
  6. In a small saucepan, combine the butter and brown sugar. Melt together over medium- high heat. Mix in the cream and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Bring to a boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and mix in the vanilla extract.
  7. Evenly pour the caramel mixture over the coated biscuits.
  8. Bake for 35-45 minutes.
  9. Flip over onto a serving dish. Enjoy!

Nutty Chocolate Chip Banana Monkey Bread

Damn, toddlers are difficult.

Under statement of the year, right?

Besides stating all the obvious things like them freaking the eff out over dumb stuff like what shoes they want to wear (I swear we can NEVER find the pair she wants to wear right that very minute!) or the Minnie/Dora/Disney Princess of the cup she wants, we have entered a whole new realm of ‘fun’.

We have now entered the fun bed time fights that involve me moving things because they scare her. Last night I had to move a stack of framed pictures and canvases sitting on her dresser to get hung up since they “look like an alligator” Say what?!?

Then a little while later I had to move a bag in the hallway since it, again, looked like animals trying to eat her. 

Can’t wait to see what tonight brings!

Also, I was asking her what I should put into the monkey bread. We settled on adding in chocolate chips (duh!) to the bananas and nuts. She was too into watching Shimmer and Shine on my phone (our cable isn’t hooked up yet… ugh!) to help me make it so understand what I was doing because…

as soon as it was ready and we offered her some “monkey Bread” she refused “EWWWWWW NO MONKEY’S BREAD.” Well then…

 

It’s like a

I almost called this Chunky Monkey Monkey Bread but I was afraid the double ‘monkey’ in the name would be confusing. Maybe?

And that’s all my silly stories for today!

Nutty Chocolate Chip Banana Monkey Bread

Makes 10-12 servings

Ingredients

  • 3 packages of refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
  • 1 Cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 Cup granulated sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
  • 2 bananas, thinly sliced (about 1/4″ thick)
  • 2/3 Cup finely chopped nuts, such as walnuts or pecans
  • 1 Cup chocolate chips
  • 1 Cup butter, melted

Process

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a fluted tube pan with non stick cooking spray
  • Cut each roll into 4 pieces.
  • Place half the banana slices, chopped nuts, and chocolate chips in the bottom of the pan.
  • Roll each piece into the blend of sugars and cinnamon. Then put into the tube pan.
  • Once half the pieces are in the tub pan, add the remaining slices of banana, nuts, and chocolate chips.
  • Finish putting the coated biscuit pieces into the tube pan then evenly pour the butter over all of the pieces.
  • Bake for 43-48 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before inverting on a platter for serving.

Individual Strawberry Monkey Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting

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I am loving winter in Florida.

It’s a joke to call it winter. It’s been amazing out. We had one cold weekend so far and you would have thought the end of the world was coming. People reacted to at the grocery store the same way that people in Boston reacted to snow storms. Everyone at the grocery store was all bundled up and talking about how cold it was. I was standing there in a sweat shirt like “yo, you have no idea…” It was like 45 out. ha!

…

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Homemade Monkey Bread

Homemade Monkey Bread is the breakfast that will have you pulling piece after piece away from this classic treat made popular in the 1950’s. Yum!!

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Happy New Year!!!!

I have some exciting news, besides my pregnancy (more on that for another day!), I have picked out the theme for my weekly foodie posts… Monkey Bread Mondays!

I am going to be focusing this year’s challenge theme on sweet and savory monkey breads. As well as, cinnamon rolls and pull apart breads. All that deliciousness right here, every Monday.

Why these sweet treats?

After all, they are down right delicious. Basically, they make you want to lick your fingers clean of the ooey gooey cinnamon sugar filling. You’ll want to sneak an extra piece. The frosting on top is the stuff of daydreams. The inventive way to fill pull apart breads is endlessly fun. Without a doubt, they are all addicting.

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Plus, here is just something so irresistible about taking fresh bread out of the oven. It’s all about that yeasty goodness smell. And when that fresh bread is loaded up with cinnamon, sugar, butter, chocolate, and nuts or cheese, herbs, and bacon things get even better, quickly.

So while I am making more than just monkey bread, I am calling it Monkey Bread Mondays. I just like alliteration!

It’s like my Taco Tuesday series, I didn’t just make tacos. I filled you up with tacos, enchiladas, sauces, rice, beans, soup, drinks, and desserts. So, get ready for everything. We’ll see how creative I get. and how fat. HA! At least I have the baby to blame now.

These great breakfast sweet treats are fun for the whole family, young and old.  It’s great to all share a big ring of sugary goodness.  I recommend these for holidays or weekends with family or friends from near and far away.  It’s easy to prep the night before and pop in the oven the next morning to feed a hungry crew.

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To kick things off, I made a classic Homemade Monkey Bread from scratch.

I have made plenty of Monkey Breads from the rolls you get from the can, but Homemade Monkey Bread is so, so good. The quick version is good, but the texture and flavors from the homemade ones is incredible. Things just need to get off on the right foot to kick off the year because a great foundation is the best way to learn.

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The Homemade Monkey Bread takes just about 15 minutes to prep, then the dough gets to hang out for an hour (or overnight). Then it’s a quick roll out, cutting, coating in cinnamon and sugar, then dumping a bunch of butter all over all of that. Butter is the best.

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My tips and tricks for a delicious Homemade Monkey Bread:

Get the milk at the right temperature, since this is what activates the yeast so you want to wake it up gently. Not too hot, not too cold.

Plenty of bench flour (flour on your work surface) because it makes rolling out the dough nice and easy.

Use a pizza cutter or a bench scrapper because it makes cutting the pieces out quick work.

Lastly, a nice large bundt pan or tube pan is key. However, an angel food cake pan will allow the melted butter you pour over the mix just seep out, so don’t use that!

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Above all, serve the monkey bread warm from the oven. This will have everyone pulling piece after piece right out of it. Surely, it will disappear in no time.

I hoop you enjoy this Homemade Monkey Bread, and I hope you stay tuned Monkey Bread Monday this year. It’s time to have some fun, loaded up, over the top, delicious breads.

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Homemade Monkey Bread

Yield: 12 people
Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 55 minutes

Homemade Monkey Bread is the breakfast that will have you pulling piece after piece away from this classic treat made popular in the 1950's. Yum!!

Ingredients

  • 1 package, 2 and 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1 and 1/2 Cups warm milk , 110F-115F, 2% or whole milk, no lower
  • 1/3 Cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2  teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 5 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 Cup granulated sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1 Cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 Cup butter, melted

Instructions

  1. Proof the yeast in the milk until the yeast is fragrant and bubbly, this takes a few minutes.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and eggs together. Add the milk to the bowl and mix again.
  3. Add 4 Cups of flour to the bowl and mix well. Scrape down the bowl, and add the remaining flour. Mix well to combine all the ingredients, about 4-5 minutes
  4. Remove the dough to a well greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let raise for at least 1 hour.
  5. When ready to assemble the monkey bread, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  6. Butter a large Bundt pan or tube pan.
  7. Combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl.
  8. Roll out the dough on a well-floured, clean, level work surface. The dough should be 1/2" thick. Cut into 1" x 1" pieces.
  9. Roll the pieces into the cinnamon and sugar mixture. Place a layer of pieces into the buttered pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar. Repeat with another layer of pieces, then sprinkle with more sugar. Repeat until the pieces and sugar are gone.
  10. Pour the melted butter over the pieces. Run a knife around the sides and central tube of the pan to help the butter get around the pieces.
  11. Bake for 33-37 minutes, until the top the golden brown.
  12. Run a knife around the sides and center tube. Flip out onto a large serving dish. Enjoy!

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© iamahoneybee
Cuisine: American / Category: Breakfast

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Monkey Bread

Over 4 years ago Price and I spent Memorial Day Weekend in Rockport, MA. We stayed at the Sally Webster Inn, a cute B&B that is walking distance to the historic district. While there we had this sweet, sticky, yummy breakfast… it was the first time we ever had Monkey Bread. We had never heard of it before so we eagerly asked what it was and how to make it. Our inn keeper told us how simple it was to make so we decide that we must try it at home later on. I have made it several times since but I don’t typically make it at home since it makes a lot, I have even cut it in half when we have had a few people stay over and it is a lot. Plus, let’s be honest, it’s not really healthy…. you’ll see.

Every friday my office has this thing called Pod Breakfast. It just means that 1 person brings in breakfast for our different pods (sections of open workstations). So today is my turn for Pod Breakfast. Since I started working at Gensler 3 years ago Sept I have made Monkey Bread for all but 1 of my turns. I’m kinda sad that I missed that one but I know at the time I correctly choose sleep over getting up early to bake.

I make Monkey Bread and either make something else or purchase something else. I have done everything from a large fruit salad to McDonald’s breakfast sandwiches. So I had to decide what my other item would be… since we just made waffles last weekend I had that on the brain and settled on that. I got up at 6 this morning (luckily I did not snooze for 30-40 minutes like usual) and went to the grocery store to get all the supplies I would need for monkey bread and buttermilk waffles.

Making the monkey bread was easy, like usual, and prepping for the waffles was a breeze however I put the eggs in the fridge and forgot them at home. Damn! I was so annoyed since I had to run out to the closest convenience store to get eggs. Just another thing to juggle this morning. The big scheme it was not a big deal since I made 3 batches of waffles but it slowed me down at the start. Once I got going everything went smoothly- I think I ended up making 45+waffles- which were served with syrup, strawberries, and whipped cream. I sent up a table for the monkey bread and the waffle prep. The monkey bread was a hit since it is a sugary, buttery, sweet breakfast bread. I felt bad that I forgot to invert it since I was so busy with the waffles but it was still good. Inverting the monkey bread allows the buttery ‘caramel’ to sink back into all of the pieces.

Monkey Bread

4 pack of buttermilk rolls (I use Pillsbury)
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons of cinnamon
1 to 1 1/2 sticks of butter (depends on if your heart/hips can take it)

pre=””>Preheat the oven to 350. Use a bundt pan or a loaf pan for the monkey bread. Spray with nonstick cooking oil.

In a large bowl mix the sugars and cinnamon together.

Using clean, sharp kitchen scissors cut every roll into 4 pieces.

While you are cutting the pieces melt the butter.

Roll all pieces in the cinnamon sugar mixture until coated. Place all pieces in the pan. Pour the butter overall the pieces. Cook for 30 minutes. be sure to check on the monkey bread so it does not brown to quickly. Invert the monkey bread onto a plate, serve warm.