Apple-Stuffed Monkey Bread with Salted Maple Caramel

Monkey Bread is a classic in the US. Truly, you can eat it any time of year, but its cinnamon-y profile always makes me crave it when fall rolls around.

This year, for my inaugural fall monkey bread, I decided to kick up the "fall-ness" even more and include more autumnal ingredients like apple and maple. I've been thinking about how to add in those flavors when the thought, "What if I STUFFED the monkey bread dough balls?" popped into my mind. So, I developed this Apple-Stuffed Monkey Bread with Salted Maple Caramel. I don't think monkey bread will ever be the same anymore. It is absolutely delicious this way.

I can't wait to play around with this recipe and see what else I can stuff it with in the future. If you're looking for a seasonal treat that checks all of those fall-flavor boxes, you've got to give my Apple-Stuffed Monkey Bread with Salted Maple Caramel a go!

Apple-Stuffed Monkey Bread with Salted Maple Caramel Recipe

Ingredients

Dough

• 1 1/4 cup (300ml) warm dairy-free milk (about 105 to 110 degrees F)

• 1/4 cup (50g) caster sugar

• 18g fresh yeast or 6g instant yeast

• 1/4 cup (60g) salted dairy-free butter, melted but not hot

• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract or paste

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 3 1/2 cups (435g) all-purpose flour, sifted (plus more for flouring the surface). If you’re using a stand mixer and won’t knead by hand, use 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour.

Stewed Apple Filling

• 3 large apples (or 4-5 small ones), cored and cubed

• 1 tablespoon dairy-free butter

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
  

Cinnamon Sugar Coating

• 2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar

• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

• 1/2 cup (100g) salted dairy-free butter, melted but not hot

Salted Maple Caramel Topping

• 1/2 cup (100g) salted dairy-free butter

• 1/2 cup (120ml) dairy-free heavy cream

• 1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar, packed

• 3 tablespoons (50g) maple syrup

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste

Method

1. In a large bowl, combine the warm milk, caster sugar, and yeast. Gently mix and let sit for 5 minutes.

2. Mix in the melted butter, vanilla, salt, then slowly add in the sifted flour as you mix. If you’re using a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment let it knead for about 5-7 minutes (make sure your stand mixer stays put and doesn’t move). If you’re kneading by hand, flour your hands and work surface and knead for 8-10 minutes. Add a little more flour as you go if the dough is too sticky. When you’re done, the dough should be more firm and no longer sticking to your hands or your work surface.

3. Place the dough ball in a large, lightly-greased bowl. Flip the dough ball around until the surface is lightly coated all around. Place a damp tea towel over the bowl and let proof for 1 hour (in the warmest spot in your house) or until doubled in size.

4. In the meantime, let's make the Stewed Apple Filling. In a small saucepan on medium heat, add all of its ingredients except the vanilla. Stir occasionally until it reaches a jammy, yet still a little chunky, consistency (this should take about 10-15 minutes). Stir in the vanilla then set aside.

5. When the dough is done proofing, roll out the dough on your cleaned work surface into a square/rectangular shape, about 1/4 in (6 mm) thick. Using a pizza cutter or bench scraper, cut 2.5 x 2.5 in (6.35 cm x 6.35) squares, which should total somewhere around 35 squares.

6. Drop about 2 teaspoons of the apple mixture into the center of the squares. Fold each corner of the square towards the center, encasing the apple mixture. Pinch the seams closed into a ball shape. Roll each ball against your work surface to tighten and seal it further if needed. If a hole forms, pinch off and flatten a little dough from another square to patch it up.

7. Place the dough balls on your work surface as you go. If you're left with some uneven scraps, squish them together and flatten to make another piece. When you finish making all the balls, cover them with your tea towel to let rest and rise a bit more (about 20-30 min) while you make the Salted Maple Caramel Topping and the oven preheats.

8. Preheat your oven to 350 F or 180 C.

9. In the same pan as the Stewed Apple Filling (no need to wash it yet!) on medium heat, add in all of the Salted Maple Caramel Topping ingredients except the vanilla. Mix to combine. Once it starts to bubble, lower the heat and whisk occasionally for about 5-7 minutes, then whisk in the vanilla. The mixture should have a maple syrup consistency (it doesn't need to thicken more than that, since it will continue to reduce in the oven).

10. Once the sugar has fully melted and the Salted Maple Caramel Topping has reached the maple syrup consistency, remove from heat.

11. Next, let’s make the Cinnamon Sugar Coating. In a small/medium bowl, mix the caster sugar and cinnamon together until well-combined then set aside. In a separate bowl, prep your melted butter and set aside as well.

12. Now back to the dough balls. Brush or drop each ball into the melted butter, followed by the cinnamon-sugar mixture one by one, tossing to coat. As you go, place the coated dough balls into a lightly-greased bundt pan or loaf pan. Continue until you've just about filled the pan (3/4 of the way).

13. Pour over all of the Salted Maple Caramel Topping and tap the pan a few times to make sure it moves downward, too.

14. Place the pan on a parchment-lined baking sheet in case it bubbles over as it cooks. Bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until golden on top and cooked through but not dry. It's a good idea to do the fork or toothpick test in the middle.

15. When ready and removed from the oven, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, then flip the pan over a cooling rack or platter. Don’t wait longer than that or the sauce may harden.

16. Once flipped, wait another 5-10 minute to let cool a bit before digging in. When I use a loaf pan, I like to slice it up like banana bread, but you can definitely use your fingers the old-fashioned way. Dig in and enjoy!