Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread

This won me one of the favorite appetizer prizes at an appetizer exchange I went to last night. It didn't quite do the monkey bread thing properly, we had to cut it, but it tasted great. I loved how it had a bit of a foccacia bread feel, with all sorts of fun pizza flavors added. I'm definitely adding this to our Christmas appetizer dinner menu.

Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread
Courtesy of What's Gaby Cooking



2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
2 cups bread flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup Asiago cheese, finely grated
1/2 cup pepperoni slices, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
Pizza sauce

Preheat oven to 400°F.

In a medium bowl, combine the bread flour, all-purpose flour and salt. Set aside.

Combine the active yeast and water in a mixing bowl fitted with a dough hook. Let it sit for a few minutes to make sure your yeast is working. Add the sugar and mix for a quick second. Add the flour mixture in batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Let the dough hook work its magic for 5-6 minutes until the dough has come together into a large mass. Remove the dough to an oiled bowl and let rise for 60 minutes.

After an hour, remove the dough from the bowl and cut into small 1/2 inch cubes. Dust with flour to prevent them from sticking together. Set aside.

Spray 6 small bundt pans with PAM or cooking spray. (You could also use a large bundt pan)

Melt the butter in a small bowl.

Combine the cheese, pepperoni, oregano, salt and garlic in a large bowl. Add the melted butter and mix together with a spoon. Toss in the cut dough and make sure it all gets a coat of the butter mixture. Start layering the cubes into the bundt pans until they are 3/4 of the way full. Let sit for 30 minutes for the dough to rise a little more.

Place bundt pans into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until the bread and cheese is golden brown. Serve with warmed pizza sauce.