This Vegan Monkey Bread is just as fun to make as it is to eat! Coated in cinnamon brown sugar and a sweet vanilla glaze, it’s a fluffy, gooey, and soft treat that’s delicious for breakfast and dessert.
This sweet and fluffy Vegan Monkey Bread has everything you love from classic cinnamon rolls: a brown sugar coating, sweet vanilla glaze, and soft and fluffy dough. The only difference? Balls of sticky cinnamon dough are baked together in one pan to create a super fun treat that’s perfect for a crowd.
Making pull apart bread from scratch does take a little bit of effort but I promise it’s worth it. It goes a little something like this:
- Make bread dough from scratch using quick yeast.
- Coat small balls of dough in a brown sugar coating and layer them into a bundt pan.
- Bake until the bread is gooey, sticky, and soft. Flip the pan upside down for a beautiful presentation.
- Drizzle the sweet vanilla glaze overtop, then pick it apart!
I think you’re really going to love this! For an extra special brunch, serve this cinnamon pull apart bread along with a second batch of my Caramel Monkey Bread. The only thing better than one treat is two, right?
Why is it called monkey bread?
Balls of bread dough are all pressed together in one pan when making monkey bread. When it’s done, the sticky loaf is flipped out of the pan and served to a crowd. Everyone uses their hands to pick the gooey balls of dough right from the loaf, just like how a monkey picks its at its food!
How to make monkey bread from scratch
Mix the milk, yeast, sugar, butter, flour, and salt together using a stand mixer with a dough hook. Continue adding flour until the dough is slightly sticky.
Knead the finished dough on a floured surface. Let the dough rise until it’s doubled in size.
Prepare the sugar coating by mixing the melted butter together with the sugars and cinnamon.
Form the dough into a square and cut it into about 50-60 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, dip in melted butter, then the sugar mixture, and place into your greased bundt pan. Keep building layers until you run out of pieces.
Bake until it’s bubbling around the edges. Let it cool for a few minutes before flipping the pan over onto a platter. After 10 minutes, drizzle the vanilla icing on top and start picking away!
Make ahead instructions
You can start this recipe the night before and finish baking it the next morning. Just follow the instrutions until the coated balls of dough are in the pan. Cover the top with plastic and leave the pan in the fridge overnight.
Take the bread out of the fridge at least 1 hour before baking so the dough has time to come down to room temperature (this helps it bake evenly). Then bake, drizzle with icing, and enjoy!
Tips and substitutions
- Baking with yeast – I like using instant yeast because it makes the recipe faster. Regular yeast works just as well, but you’ll need to let the dough rise for about two hours instead of one.
- Vegan butter – Coconut oil should work in place of the vegan butter in the brown sugar coating.
- Dairy free milk – Any dairy free milk works in this recipe!
- If you don’t have a stand mixer, mix the dough by hand using a wooden spoon.
- Don’t let the bread sit in the pan for longer than 5 minutes or else some of the pieces will stick to the sides.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I have to use a bundt pan? Nope! You can make monkey bread in a regular pie pan or a large rectangular pan instead.
- Can it be made gluten free? I haven’t tested this recipe with a gluten free flour. You can try a 1:1 gluten free flour instead of the all purpose flour but the results may vary.
- Can I freeze it? You can freeze uncoated monkey bread balls for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the refrigerator before baking, then coat and bake as directed.
- How long does it last? The baked bread lasts for 4 days in the fridge when covered well. Warm it in the oven before serving.
More soft and sweet vegan treats
Vegan Monkey Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups soy milk, warmed
- 1 packet (2 1/4 tsp) instant yeast
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup vegan butter, melted
- 4-5 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
Coating
- 3/4 cup vegan butter, melted
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons soy milk
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Generously grease a 10-12 cup bundt pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
Prepare the dough
- Place the soy milk in a microwave safe bowl or measuring glass cup and heat for 1 minute and 30 seconds, or until warm like bathwater.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or other large bowl), add the warm milk, yeast and sugar. Stir.
- Now add the melted vegan butter, 1 cup of flour and salt. Using the dough hook (or a large wooden spoon if you don't have a stand mixer), mix on low speed for about 30 seconds.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add 3 more cups of flour, beating with the dough hook until the dough comes together and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Touch the dough; if it's still quite wet and sticky, add an additional 1/2-1 cup of flour, until you have a slightly sticky dough. Don't add so much flour it becomes dry, a little bit of stickiness is good.
- Knead the dough with the dough hook for another 2 minutes OR knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes.
- Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with nonstick spray and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with a tea towel and allow it to rise for about 1 hour, until double in size.
Meanwhile, prepare the coatings
- In a small bowl, melt the vegan butter.
- In another bowl stir together the sugars and cinnamon. Set aside.
Shape the dough and coat
- Remove the dough form the bowl and press into a square, about 8 inches.
- Now using a knife, cut the dough into about 50-60 pieces. It doesn't have to be perfect and they don't all have to be exactly the same. Just make them quite small, about 1 inch big.
- Shape each piece into a ball, but again, they don't have to be perfect. Dip into melted butter then roll in sugar mixture. Place in the greased bundt pan, building layers of coated dough balls.
- Cover the pan with the dough balls and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake and make the icing
- Uncover, place in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until bubbling around the edges. Cool for 5 minutes them invert onto a plate or platter. Don't let it sit for longer before removing from the pan or some will stick! Let cool 10 minutes before serving.
- Make the icing: Whisk all of the glaze ingredients together in a bowl. Drizzle over the monkey bread. Serve and enjoy! We usually just let everyone pick off the pieces of bread themselves until it's gone, which doesn't take long!
- Monkey bread is best served the same day, but it can still be enjoyed the next day, or up to 4 days if stored in the refrigerator covered well.
Notes
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Make ahead: Follow the instructions until you have coated all the balls of monkey bread and placed them in the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight. About an hour before you want to bake it, remove it from the refrigerator and let it warm at room temperature. Then bake as directed.
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Freeze: You can freeze uncoated monkey bread balls for up to 3 months. Before baking, thaw in the refrigerator, coat and bake as directed.
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I like using instant yeast because it makes the recipe faster, but regular yeast works, too. You will need to let it rise for about 2 hours with regular yeast.
Do you think you could make the dough 2 days in advance of baking?
Yeah I think so, and keep it in the fridge, covered.
Im obsessed with this recipe!! I’ve made it dozens of times and it never fails. I was wondering if you know how I can make this recipe into two batches – maybe in a loaf pan??? What adjustments would I need to make? Thank you!
I made this for one vegan and two non-vegans. Everyone loved it!!!! Almost the entire batch was gone before dinner time (I made it for breakfast). I’ll definitely make this again!
I’m glad the bread was a hit! Thanks for your wonderful feedback! Happy cooking!
Excellent recipe! I underestimated the size of the pan I needed (I don’t have a Bundt pan), and my bread rose a ton during baking. It all worked out, though, and it tastes delicious!
That visual makes me smile! I’m thrilled you loved the monkey bread! Thanks for sharing your terrific feedback!
This was good and turned out well. Thanks for the recipe! Gave it 5 extra minutes because I used a ceramic pan instead of metal.
Would regular dairy milk work with this?
I haven’t tested it, however, I think that should work.
Have you tried gluten free?
I haven’t tested it, but maybe someone else has.
I’ve loved baking your recipes, as I am currently dairy/egg/soy free while breastfeeding my little one. I recently cut out gluten and attempted this for Christmas morning and it did NOT work well. Nothing about your recipe, just doesn’t translate well with 1:1 gluten free flour.
Sooooooooo delicious, almost a bit sinful. Vegan desserts once again for the win! As with most baking, it’s all about ensuring there’s time and the right environment for the dough to rise. Warmth, moisture and don’t forget to stretch the gluten midday.
I’m so glad you loved the monkey bread! Thank you for your feedback!
Never fails! Love making this on a winter weekend!
Isn’t it cozy and wonderful! I’m glad you are loving the bread! Thank you for your wonderful review!
For 22 years I’ve made monkey bread on New Year’s with refrigerated biscuits. Not any more! This monkey bread is so light and melt in your mouth delicious, we couldn’t stop eating it even though we were full. Each bite reminded us of Cinnabon. My husband said it reminded him of a decadent dessert at a high-end restaurant. This is another delicious recipe from your site with pantry-friendly ingredients.
How long for second rise? Can’t wait to try it!
Hi! Just as long as it takes for the oven to preheat, about 15 minutes, a little more or less is fine. Enjoy!
Made this last week for an office potluck. It was a hit! So tasty and was one of the first things to go. Instructions are very easy to follow, my two year old even helped. Thank you!
I’m so glad the monkey bread was a hit! Also great to hear the instructions are easy to follow! Thank you for taking time to share your wonderful review and comments!
This recipe never fails! I love how you can make it ahead of time and cook when ready. It is SO delicious and a great Sunday morning food.
I’m so glad you love the monkey bread! It is so perfect for a weekend breakfast! Thank you for sharing your great review and comments! Happy cooking!
I have a 6c bundt pan and I plan to half this recipe. Do you have any tips on if /how much I should decrease the bake time?
You will probably have to cut down the baking time quite a bit, I would just check it, when the balls are no longer doughy, it’s done. Enjoy!
My 7th grader had to choose a recipe, make it and then write about the techniques used, like “knead” and “glaze”. He chose this recipe and is making it all on his own. It’s in the oven now and smells so good!
We live at high altitude and the dough seemed a tad dry on first mixing. We added about 2 Tbsp. Soy milk to compensate.
How fun that your son chose my monkey bread for his school project! I love it! Thank you for taking time to share your wonderful and fun review and comments!
This is one of the best recipes I’ve made from you, and I’ve tried a lot (all of which are incredible)! I don’t think I’ve ever had dough/bread this soft and pillowy. This was 100% worth the effort.
The only thing I did differently was use dark brown sugar instead of light, because that’s what I had on hand.
I’m glad you loved the monkey bread and that it turned out wonderful for you! My kids love this recipe! Thanks so much for taking your time to share your wonderful review and comments!
Thank you Nora for another great recipe. My son and his family are visiting and I made it for breakfast, everyone enjoy it.
So glad it was a hit! We love monkey bread around our house! Thank you for sharing your review!
So delicious and simple to make
Thank you for sharing your review! Glad you love the bread!
Do you think it will work with a nut or coconut milk instead?
Hi Jen. Any dairy free milk works in this recipe!
I love this!!!!! Please give more recipes and keep the coming!??!!!!!!
Thanks Judith! I’m glad you love the bread! I hope you’ll check out my other recipes! Stay tuned, more on the way!