An Easy Cararmel and Chocolate-Filled Monkey Bread

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...For the next week, I'll be sharing recipes for breads and sweet rolls that I think would be wonderful addition to your holiday breakfast or brunch table. I've searched for, and was able to find, a series of recipes for breads that are usually associated with the Christmas holidays. Some of the recipes will be new to you, but they are for breads that are part of old-world holiday traditions. Others may be familiar, but as you scan the recipes you'll see they are actually new takes on breads you may already be making. I am going to start the series with a monkey bread that is unlike any that I have seen before. If you, or your family, like to start the day with something sweet, this bread has your name on it and it might find its way to your Christmas table. Because its main ingredient is prepackaged biscuits, I think you'll find it amazingly easy to make. This monkey bread is delicious, beautiful to look at and extremely rich. Each of the pull-aparts is filled with chocolate and drizzled with butter and caramel syrup. This bread is definitely meant for those who love sweets and are not concerned with calories. I do have one caution to share with you. While the bread can be assembled well ahead of time, it should be served warm, fresh from the oven. It stales quickly and does not reheat well, so I assemble mine, save for the final drizzle of syrup, the night before I plan to serve it. I let it come to room temperature the next morning and then pop it in the oven. I do hope those of you who enjoy sweet breads will give this recipe a try. Here is how this rich bread is made.

Caramel and Chocolate-Filled Monkey Bread...from the Kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Midwest Living

Ingredients:
1/2 cup sliced almonds or chopped pecans, toasted, divided use
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 (16.3-oz.) packages refrigerated large flaky biscuits (16 total)
32 milk chocolate Kisses with almonds or milk chocolate Kisses, unwrapped
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1/4 cup caramel-flavored ice cream topping
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
1) Generously grease a 10-inch fluted tube pan. Sprinkle 1/4 cup almonds in bottom of the pan. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2) In a small bowl, combine sugar, cocoa powder and cinnamon; set aside.
3) With a sharp knife or kitchen scissors, cut each biscuit into 2 pieces. Using your hands, flatten each dough piece into a 3-inch round of dough. Place a chocolate kiss, point side up, in center of each round of dough. Bring edge of the dough up and around chocolate kiss to form a ball. Pinch edges of the dough together to seal firmly.
4) Dip each ball of dough into melted butter, then roll it in sugar mixture. Layer coated balls of dough in prepared pan. Drizzle with any remaining butter; sprinkle with any remaining sugar mixture.
5) In a small bowl, stir together ice cream topping, maple syrup and vanilla; drizzle topping mixture over rolls. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup almonds on top.
6) Place tube pan on a baking sheet. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, covering with foil during last 15 minutes if needed to prevent overbrowning. Place pan on a wire rack; cool for 5 minutes. Place an inverted platter on top of tube pan. Using hot pads, turn platter and tube pan over so platter is on bottom. Carefully lift tube pan off rolls. Spoon any topping and nuts that remain in tube pan onto rolls. Cool slightly. Serve warm. Makes 16 servings.

                    

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