gluten free monkey bread

By Jody

Ingredients

• Dough:
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour (see note) OR 1 2/3 cup brown rice flour, 1/2 cup potato starch and 1/3 cup tapioca starch
• plus an additional 1/2 cup tapioca starch
• 1 Tbsp rapid rise yeast
• 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tsp xanthan gum
• 1/4 cup almond flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup cashew milk
• 3/4 cup cashew milk
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1 tsp cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp oil
• 1 tsp vanilla
• The Ooey-Gooey Goodness:
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1-2 tsp ground cinnamon (more or less depending on how cinnamon-y you like it)
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp cashew milk
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Preparation

Step 1

Place chopped pecans into the bottom of Bundt or tube pan. Set aside. Do not use a pan with a removable bottom, as the syrup would run through and make a huge mess.
In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix all dry ingredients until combined. Set aside.
Put margarine in a glass measuring cup and microwave just until the margarine has melted. Remove from microwave and stir. Add milk, stir. Add other wet ingredients and whisk to combine.
With the stand mixer running (using the paddle attachment), pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Scrap down the bowl if you have to.
Allow to mix on medium speed for 3 minutes.
In a mixing bowl, stir together the 1/2 cup granulated sugar and ground cinnamon. Form the dough into 3/4″ balls and roll them to coat them fully in the cinnamon/sugar mixture. I used my smallest cookie scoop and just dropped the dough into the cinnamon/sugar mixture.
Place sugar coated dough into the Bundt pan, on top of the pecans. Be sure to not tightly pack the dough into the pan, allow gaps between the dough. Repeat until all of the dough has been formed, rolled in the cinnamon/sugar mixture & placed in the pan. If you have any cinnamon/sugar mixture left, sprinkle it over the top of the dough in the pan.
In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Stir in the brown sugar, maple syrup, salt & vanilla. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the cashew milk. Pour mixture over the top of the dough.
If you want to freeze the dough, now would be the time to wrap the pan in two layers of plastic wrap and place in freezer.
To bake immediately, allow the dough to rise for 20-30 minutes in a warm, draft-free place. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. When you remove the Monkey Bread from the oven, allow to sit in the baking pan for 5 minutes before turning it out onto a serving dish or plate. To do this, place the plate upside down on top of the baking pan, and (while wearing oven mitts, just in case), quickly turn the plate and baking pan upside down. Your Monkey Bread should release from the pan without a problem. If there are still pecans and syrup in the baking pan, use a spoon and spoon the mixture over the top of the Monkey Bread. If you can wait, it is best to wait 10-15 minutes before serving. This not only allows the syrup to cool off a bit, but also allows the texture of the bread to improve (when gluten-free bread cools, it is less ‘gummy’).

If you froze your Monkey Bread for baking it later:

Remove your baking pan from the freezer and place it in the fridge the night before. This allows the dough to defrost, but not begin rising too much yet. When you are ready to bake it, you want to place the baking pan in warm, draft-free place and allow it to rise for 20-30 minutes, or until the dough has nearly doubled in size. Baking directions are the same as if you were to bake it immediately.