Quick Easy Monkey Bread Recipe (From Scratch) From Scratch

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This quick Monkey Bread has a melt-in-your-mouth texture made with simple ingredients in less than two hours. Make it once and it’ll become your family’s new favorite tradition.

a serving of monkey bread on a plate, with the rest of the monkey bread on the platter in the background

Table of Contents

Monkey Bread Homemade

Growing up, this pull-apart bread was a family favorite. When I moved out, I tried making it on my own and thought I had nailed it. Until I flipped it out of the bundt pan, and it collapsed into a soggy disaster! I swore off Monkey Bread for a while, convinced I’d never get it right like my mom did.

However, after more experience in the kitchen and a few lessons learned, I tried again, and finally mastered that golden, sticky, cinnamon-sugar perfection. Now this recipe is one I’m proud to share, because if I can conquer Monkey Bread… anyone can! I love making it for holiday mornings, brunches, birthdays, or other special occasions.

What I’ve Learned After 20+ years of making Monkey Bread

I made the mistakes so you don’t have to. Consider this your shortcut to Monkey Bread success. No soggy disasters, just plain gooey goodness coming your way.

Let it cool for 5–10 minutes before flipping it onto a plate to avoid a collapse.
Place a sheet pan underneath in case the buttery sugar mixture bubbles over.
If the top starts browning too quickly, loosely cover it with foil and continue baking.
Don’t panic if a few pieces stick to the bundt pan. Just tuck them back in with the other rolls. No one will ever know!
Place a heatproof plate over the pan when flipping, then commit with one confident flip.
Grease the pan thoroughly, especially in the grooves, to prevent the bread from sticking.
Add pecans, walnuts, or any other nut for an added crunch. Just sprinkle them on after each layer of the butter-and-sugar mixture.

Ingredients & Estimated Cost:

Recipe Cost: $4.60

Per Serving: $0.46

Here is everything you need to make this recipe, as well as a few simple substitution recommendations.

monkey bread with text overlay with the ingredients for making monkey bread

Water (1 ⅓ cups – $0): Make sure the water is warm, and not too hot, to activate the yeast.
Instant yeast (4 teaspoons – $0.50): Ensure the yeast is fresh so it will activate, which helps the dough rise.
Granulated sugar (4 teaspoons – $0.10): You can use honey as an alternative.
Salt (1 ¼ teaspoons – $0.05): Sea salt or kosher salt will work.
Vegetable oil (2 Tablespoons – $0.07): If you do not have vegetable oil, another neutral-flavored oil will work.
All-purpose flour (4 cups – $0.95): You can also use bread flour, but it will have a chewier texture.
Unsalted butter (12 Tablespoons – $1.82): Use real butter for the best flavor.
Light brown sugar (1 cup – $0.53): Dark brown sugar can also be used to achieve a richer caramel flavor.
Ground cinnamon (1 Tablespoon – $0.20): Pumpkin pie spice is a good substitute and perfect for Fall baking.
Ground nutmeg (¼ teaspoon – $0.10): Add a little extra cinnamon if you do not have nutmeg on hand.
Powdered sugar (⅔ cup – $0.23): Sift the powdered sugar first to avoid lumps in the icing.
Milk (4 teaspoons – $0.05): Any milk will work to help thin the icing to the correct consistency.

The recipe cost is calculated based on the amounts needed and may vary due to fluctuating grocery costs. The pricing for this recipe was updated in October 2025.

How to Make Monkey Bread Recipe

Make the dough and butter-sugar mixture, let it rise, bake, and pour on the icing.

Make the dough and let it rise for 30 minutes.
Roll the dough into dough balls.
Make the melted butter and sugar mixture.
Next, put half the dough in the bundt pan and pour half the bowl of cinnamon sugar butter mixture over the dough.
Repeat with the second half of the dough balls and the butter-sugar mixture. Let the dough rise for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven and then bake for 30-35 minutes.
Finally, make the icing, then flip the monkey bread out of the bundt pan onto a plate and drizzle the icing over the bread.

a plate with a spoon drizzling onto the monkey bread

Best Monkey Bread Recipe FAQs

Why do they call it Monkey bread?

My family grew up calling this pull-apart bread because to eat it, you pull the pieces apart. But think about how a monkey eats. They pick apart their food with their fingers. So it only makes sense that this pastry is called Monkey Bread because you use your fingers to pick it apart as you eat it.

Does monkey bread have to be in a bundt pan?

It is traditionally made in a bundt pan, so you can easily layer it into a donut shape that stacks easily and then pull apart to eat. However, if you don’t have a bundt pan, you can use a 9×13 pan instead. Just know it will not look as pretty.

Can I make monkey bread ahead of time?

There are two things to check when determining whether the bread is ready. The first is to ensure that the bread is puffy. The second is that it is a bit crispy on top. Once you’ve got those two things, you’re golden! You can also insert a skewer into the thickest part of the bread; if it comes out clean, it is ready!

Do I have to add icing?

No, the rolls still taste delicious without the icing. The icing adds an extra sweetness to this sweet treat. Instead of making this simple icing, a cream cheese icing would be yummy too.

Do I have to make homemade dough?

I use Rhodes rolls and let them rise overnight in the bundt pan when I am not able to make homemade dough. You can also use a tube of biscuit dough in place of the homemade dough.

Can I add nuts?

Yes, you can add pecans, walnuts, or any other nut variety for an added crunch. Just sprinkle them on after each layer of the butter and sugar mixture.

Monkey Bread

Recipe Cost 4.60

Serving Cost 0.46

Author Jess Jankowski

Course Bread, Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

This Homemade Monkey Bread recipe is easy to make and made of sweet and gooey dough balls and a simple icing. It serves 8-10, and takes 100 minutes and $3.17 to make. That’s just 40¢ per serving!

Servings: 10 people

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Total Time 1 40

Equipment

stand mixer
mixing spoon
bundt pan
measuring cups
Liquid measuring cup
Measuring spoons
small microwave-safe bowl
rolling pin

Ingredients

MONKEY BREAD DOUGH:

1 ⅓ cup warm water
4 teaspoons instant yeast
4 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
3 ½ – 4 cups all-purpose flour

BUTTER AND SUGAR MIXTURE:

12 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

ICING:

⅔ cup powdered sugar
4 teaspoons milk

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

PREPARE PAN:

Lightly grease a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

MAKE DOUGH AND RISE:

First, add the water, yeast, and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk the mixture together and let it sit for 3 minutes, or until it’s bubbly and frothy.
Next, add in the oil, salt, and 3 ½ cups of flour. Attach a dough hook and mix on low until the dough comes together. Increase the speed to medium-high and knead. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl. If it doesn’t, add more flour, 1 Tablespoon at a time, until it does. Then, knead the dough for 2 minutes on medium-high.
Remove the dough hook and cover the work bowl with a hot damp towel. Let the dough rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.

ROLL THE DOUGH

Punch down dough and lightly spray countertop with nonstick cooking spray.
Pat the dough into a 12-inch square.
Cut the dough into 12 long strips. Then cut each strip into 6 pieces. You should have 72 pieces of dough.
Roll each piece of dough into a ball.

MAKE BUTTER AND SUGAR MIXTURE :

Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl.
In a small bowl combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

ASSEMBLE MONKEY BREAD & SECOND RISE:

Pour ¼ of the butter mixture into the bottom of the bundt pan.
Place half of the dough balls (36 of them) into the pan. Pour half of the remaining butter mixture over the dough balls in the pan.
Place the remaining dough balls (36 of them) into the pan. Pour the remaining butter mixture over the dough balls.
Cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise for 20 minutes.

PREP OVEN AND BAKE:

While the dough rises, preheat the oven. Move the oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat to 375 degrees F.
Once the dough rises for 20 minutes, move the bundt pan to a baking sheet. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove the monkey bread from the oven and move to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes.

MAKE ICING:

While the monkey bread cools, make the icing. In a small bowl whisk together powdered sugar and milk until smooth.

TO FINISH:

Place a large plate on top of the bundt pan. Carefully flip out the monkey bread onto the plate.
Use a spoon to drizzle the icing over the monkey bread. Serve warm.

Video

Notes

Storage Tips

SERVE: This bread is best served warm. There is simply no other way to eat it!

STORE: Cover the bread tightly with foil and keep it at room temperature for up to 24 hours. You can warm leftovers in an oven-proof pan for 20-25 minutes at 300 degrees F.

FREEZE: Unfortunately, we do not recommend freezing this bread.

Nutrition

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