If you love regular monkey bread, you will freak out over this Gingerbread Monkey Bread! This is one of my favorite recipes that uses my Gingerbread spice! Who’s ready?! Let’s do this!
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I am so excited to share this recipe with everyone! This recipe is a twist on a classic & beloved dessert. This is one of those recipes that won’t last long. I made it yesterday and it’s already half gone (for context, we don’t have kids yet. It’s just me & my husband – so you know we were really enjoying it!)!
This may be a tease because my gingerbread spice is a seasonal item – so as I write this, it’s not available yet. I promise it is available every year from October through the end of December – so keep your eye out and stock up when you can (I will have it in hand in the next few weeks and it will go up on the shop page ASAP)! I have a lot of customers who use my gingerbread all year long!
In this recipe, I use my salt & sugar-free gingerbread spice from my spice company – The Spice Girl Kitchen. I’m completely biased because it is, after all, my spice recipe and the best salt & sugar-free gingerbread spice on the market.
In this post, we are going to dive into all things Monkey Bread. Plus, we will dive deep into brown vs. white sugar and equipment needs. And end with the best Gingerbread Monkey Bread recipe!
This post is all about Gingerbread Monkey Bread!
All About Monkey Bread
Monkey bread is a sweet & sticky cake that we all know and love. It is made by coating balls of biscuit dough in cinnamon (or gingerbread) sugar. Those coated balls are piled on top of each other and the cake is finished off by drowning it in sugar dissolved in butter and baking until slightly crispy on the outside.
Homemade vs. Canned Biscuit Dough
You are more than welcome to make homemade biscuit dough, but I’m not going to lie to you – I bought the Pillsbury Grands and cut them into 4! Either way, your cake is going to turn out amazing. At the moment, I don’t have a homemade biscuit recipe on the blog. But once I do I will be sure to insert it here!
How Do I Know how long to bake it?!
Your oven and bundt pan can affect cooking time. You are looking for the tops to be crisp & golden brown. I am a big fan of using a food thermometer to ensure that your center won’t be doughy. Stick your thermometer in the center of the cake. It should be 190°F. If your center is not at 190°F and the top is already looking crisp, cover it with foil to prevent over-browning or burning.
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Brown Sugar vs. White Sugar
I don’t know about you, but I was curious about the difference between brown & white sugar. So I did some research to discover more about how brown sugar is made, how it affects baking, and any other noteworthy differences.
Color and Flavor
Brown sugar has a brown color and a slightly caramelized or molasses-like flavor because it contains molasses. The added molasses gives it its characteristic color and taste.
Regular sugar is white and has a neutral, sweet taste with no molasses flavor.
Moisture Content
Brown sugar retains more moisture due to the molasses content, which can result in baked goods being more moist and slightly denser.
Regular sugar is drier and tends to produce drier, crisper textures in baked goods.
Production
Brown sugar is made by adding molasses to white sugar, typically in varying amounts to achieve different shades and flavors.
Regular sugar is refined to remove molasses, leaving behind pure sucrose crystals.
Baking Outcome
When you use brown sugar in baking, it can add a richer, deeper flavor and a chewy texture to cookies, cakes, and other baked items. You will find brown sugar commonly used in recipes for chocolate chip cookies, gingerbread, and some types of cakes.
Regular sugar is versatile and is often used when you want a pure sweet taste without the caramel notes of brown sugar. It’s commonly used in recipes for sugar cookies, meringues, and many other baked goods!
Pro Tip: They can often be used interchangeably in some recipes, BUT the moisture content and flavor differences can affect the outcome, so it’s best to follow the recipe’s recommendations. [the_ad id=”3378″]
Equipment Needs
Here is a breakdown of everything you need for this recipe (click on the links below to shop my recommendations):
- a basic cutting board
- a knife
- a large bowl or gallon zip-lock bags
- a 12-cup capacity bundt pan
- saucepan
- food thermometer
That’s it!
You May Also Like
If you like this recipe, you may also like:
OR click here for the entire Gingerbread category!
Store & Reheat
Store monkey bread at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week. Reheat it in sections in the microwave, if desired. Or enjoy it at room temperature! [the_ad id=”3378″]
Gingerbread Monkey Bread
Ingredients
- 2 16.3-oz cans Pilsbury Grands! Southern Homestyle Buttermilk Biscuits or homemade biscuit dough
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp The Spice Girl Kitchen Gingerbread Spice
- 1 1/2 sticks butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease bundt pan with oil or butter.
- Separate dough. Cut biscuit dough into 4 equal sections.
- In a large mixing bowl or gallon zip-lock bag, combine sugar & gingerbread spice. Place biscuit sections inside the mixture and shake or mix until the dough is well coated on all sides.
- Drop the biscuit sections one by one into the bundt pan, scattering them in the pan evenly. There's no rhyme or reason to this, the pattern will figure itself out during baking!
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add in the brown sugar and about 1 cup of the remaining sugar/gingerbread mixture. Cook until sugar is just dissolved. Carefully pour the butter mixture on top of the biscuit dough in the pan.
- Bake for about 30-35 minutes. Use a thermometer to make sure the center of your cake reaches 190°F.
- Remove from oven and let cool for at least 5 minutes. Place a plate on top of the bundt pan and flip to release the monkey bread from the pan. Serve warm & enjoy!
Notes
Store & Reheat
Store Monkey Bread at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week. Reheat it in sections in the microwave, if desired. Or enjoy it at room temperature!Homemade vs. Canned Biscuit Dough
You are more than welcome to make homemade biscuit dough, but I'm not going to lie to you - I bought the Pillsbury Grands and cut them into 4! Either way, your cake is going to turn out amazing. At the moment, I don't have a homemade biscuit recipe on the blog. But once I do I will be sure to insert it here!How Do I Know how long to bake it?!
Your oven and bundt pan can affect cooking time. You are looking for the tops to be crisp & golden brown. I am a big fan of using a food thermometer to ensure that your center won't be doughy. Stick your thermometer in the center of the cake. It should be 190°F. If your center is not at 190°F and the top is already looking crisp, cover it with foil to prevent over-browning or burning.
This post was all about Gingerbread Monkey Bread.
Did you make this recipe? Make sure to tag me @thespicegirlkitchen_ on Instagram or @thespicegirlkitchen on TikTok! I love seeing your recreations! I will be your ultimate hype woman!
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