Blue Ribbon Group Maple Cream Cheese Monkey Bread
Single Serve Sweet Treat, Minnesota State Fair Winner
Maple Cream Cheese Monkey Bread – Mini Size: If you want a yummy, buttery, gooey pull-apart bread that you can have all to yourself, bake this best-ever recipe. All you need is milk, instant yeast, cream cheese, an egg, and a few other pantry staples. You bake them in cupcake or muffin tins…so you get single servings… and no sharing required. Ha! Now is when you can hear my hushed, evil voice saying: mine mine mine! All mine!
Recipe credit goes to Kaitlyn Wiener who created these for a best-ever bread baking contest at the Minnesota State Fair (Fleischmann’s Yeast, 2013).
Monkey Bread Made Easy
To get rolling on this maple cream cheese monkey bread recipe, you make a quick-rise, plump dough, cut it into squares, then wrap a cream cheese/maple syrup filling inside. Do a quick toss in a bowl of cinnamon and sugar. Drop them into muffin tins, top them with a butter/maple syrup sauce, and pop them in the oven! So darn simple, and so completely delish.
I really love the ease of working with instant yeast like Fleischmann’s RapidRise yeast. It’s fast acting and consistent (always reliable.) RapidRise yeast also works great in coffee cakes. Watch for one of those, another state fair winner, coming in the next couple weeks.
My niece Crystal and fellow Blue Ribbon Foodie was the lucky one to recreate these mini maple cream cheese monkey breads. She gave it two thumbs up and had this to say:
- This recipe was fun to make and a great chance to get kids involved because of the simplicity of the steps.
- The cream cheese filling adds a nice tang, especially when paired with the frosting and the sauce.
- If by chance they don’t all disappear, the mini monkey breads do reheat well, however I recommend eating them right away when the bread most soft and light, fresh out of the oven. Enjoy!
By the way, if you’re looking for a great full size monkey bread to make, try this pumpkin pull apart bread.
Crystal and Cyndi
Maple Cream Cheese Monkey Bread: Mini Size
Bread Dough:
1 cup warm milk (120-130 degrees F)
1 (1/4 ounce) packet RapidRise yeast
3-3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 large egg
2 tablespoons butter, unsalted, melted
Cream Cheese Filling:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened, regular or low fat
1/4 cup maple syrup + 2 tablespoons for drizzle
Sugar Mixture:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Sauce:
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup brown sugar
Bread Dough: In bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm milk and yeast. Let sit until foamy, about 2-3 minutes. Using paddle attachment, stir in 1 cup flour, salt, vanilla, brown sugar, egg, and melted butter until the mixture is smooth. Switch to dough hook attachment, and continue mixing. Slowly, add more flour (2 to 2 ½ cups), while mixing, just until dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl and forms a ball. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm area until doubled in size, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile make the cream cheese filling, sugar mixture, and sauce.
For Filling: In medium bowl, mix cream cheese and 1/4 cup maple syrup until smooth; set aside. For Sugar Mixture: In small bowl, combine granulated sugar and cinnamon (for rolling dough balls in); set aside. For Sauce: combine melted butter and brown sugar; set aside.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray. Move dough to nonstick or lightly-floured surface. Pat into a square (flour on fingers if needed). Cut into 36 squares. One at a time, flatten each square into a circle. Fill with about 1/2 teaspoon cream cheese filling, seal edges, and roll into a ball. Note, you will have extra cream cheese mixture. Save for frosting. Roll each ball in sugar mixture, then place three balls in each muffin cup. Once complete, pour the butter/brown sugar sauce over the dough in each cup. Bake 17-20 minutes, until golden brown. Cool slightly. Heat cream cheese mixture until stirs smooth, up to 30 seconds in microwave. Add 2 tablespoons maple syrup, stir, and drizzle over monkey bread. Serve immediately. Makes 12 individual servings.
