Apple Fritter Monkey Bread

The following recipe and photography was provided by recipe developer and food photographer, Ashley Durand of Plate & Pen.

There’s no dessert better suited for apple season than this baked Apple Fritter Monkey Bread!

Midwest-grown apples are ripening on the trees of farms all over our region at this very moment, and soon they’ll be filling Heinen’s Produce Department for all of us to enjoy!

If you’re looking to take advantage of this fresh-picked produce, you simply must make this sweet-tart monkey bread.

Layered with caramel-covered apples and spice-coated premade rolls, this easy seasonal dessert is made even sweeter with an apple brandy glaze that can only be described as heavenly.

Grab a spoon or just use your fingers and dig into this delicious dessert while the season is ripe!

Ingredients

For the Apples

3 honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
2 Tbsp. light brown sugar
1/2 tsp. Heinen's nutmeg
1 tsp. Heinen's ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. Heinen's butter
1-2 Tbsp. water, if needed

For the Monkey Bread

1-2 packs Rhodes yeast dinner rolls, thawed and cold
2 sticks Heinen's butter, melted
2 cups Heinen's brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Heinen's ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Heinen's all spice
1 tsp. pumpkin spice

For the Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar, add more for thicker consistency
1-2 Tbsp. apple brandy or regular brandy
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions

Thaw the yeast dinner rolls on a lightly greased baking sheet covered with greased plastic wrap for 1-2 hours at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator. When ready to use, the rolls should be thawed, but cold, and barely risen.
Preheat the oven to 350˚F.
Peel, core and dice the apples into 1/4-inch pieces. Add them to a bowl and toss with the brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and lemon juice.
Melt 1 Tbsp. of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the apples and sauté for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples are fork-tender and all of the liquid is gone. Cool slightly.
Cut the thawed rolls into fourths and set aside for a moment.
Grease a Bundt pan generously with cooking spray and add a layer of caramelized apples to the bottom.
Melt the two sticks of butter in a bowl. In another bowl, add the brown sugar, all spice, pumpkin spice and cinnamon.
Dip each piece of dough into the melted butter and shake off any excess. Then, coat the dough with the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture.
Alternate layering dough pieces and apple chunks in the Bundt pan until all of the dough pieces are used. Pour any remaining butter over the top of the Bundt pan.
Cover the pan with greased plastic wrap and let rise up to 1 hour, or until the dough almost reaches the top of the pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown and the dough pieces are touching. Cover with foil if it’s browning faster than the dough is baking.
Remove from the oven and immediately invert the Bundt pan onto a large plate. Be careful not to spill any of the hot and sticky butter-sugar mixture. Allow the bread to cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
Whisk together all of the glaze ingredients and drizzle it over the slightly cooled monkey bread. Enjoy while warm.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Heat leftovers in the microwave for 10-15 seconds before eating.