Keto monkey bread offers a delightful twist on a classic treat, reimagined for a low-carb lifestyle. Whether you crave a sweet breakfast pastry or a savory game-day snack, there's a keto monkey bread recipe to satisfy your cravings.
Sweet Keto Monkey Bread: A Brunch Sensation
Gorilla Bread is classic monkey bread with an amazing twist. Every ball of sweet, cinnamon dough is filled with cream cheese. This kicked up keto monkey bread is the ultimate brunch indulgence!
The Inspiration
Many people grew up making Cinnamon Pull-Apart Bread. It’s one of the first things people remember making. People would open a can of biscuit dough, cut each circle into four pieces, dip each in butter, roll them in cinnamon sugar, and put layers of them in a bundt pan. After getting married, some became a Paula Deen fan. Her Gorilla Bread is basically Cinnamon Pull-Apart Bread marrying a Cheesecake.
Like the other delicious recipes they have memories of from childhood, some just had the make this one healthier. The same dough from Keto Cinnamon Rolls and Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns was used but each piece was stuffed with cream cheese. There was concern the cream cheese would ooze out but it didn’t.
Key Ingredients and Techniques
The recipe uses a basic mozzarella-based dough. The trick to these is to have the cheese super gooey before mixing in the other ingredients.
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- Mozzarella Dough: In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the mozzarella and cream cheese for 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until the cheeses are melted together. Next, add the eggs and vanilla extract, and stir to combine. Using your hands, knead the dough until well combined.
- Cinnamon-Sweetener Mixture: In a small bowl, stir together the Swerve sweetener and ground cinnamon.
- Caramel Sauce (Optional): In a medium saucepan, melt the butter, heavy cream, brown Swerve, and salt together over medium-low heat and bring to just a boil.
Step-by-Step Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 350. Spread 1 teaspoon of the butter in the bottom of a pie plate. Mix the 1/2 cup sweetener with the cinnamon. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of this in the buttered pie plate. Set aside the rest. Sprinkle the pecans on top.
- Put the mozzarella and one ounce of cream cheese in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave one minute. Stir. Microwave 30 seconds. Stir. At this point, all the cheese should be melted. Microwave 30 more seconds until uniform and gloopy (it should look like cheese fondue at this point).
- Add the rest of the dough ingredients and the cheese to a food processor. Mix using the dough blade until a uniform color. If you do not have a food processor you can mix in a medium bowl with a wooden spoon but you may need to dump it onto wax paper and knead it by hand to thoroughly incorporate the ingredients. Once it is a uniform color wet your hands and press it out into a 9x12 ish rectangle on a piece of parchment.
- Cut the dough into 24 pieces. Cut the cream cheese into 24 pieces. Sprinkle each piece of dough with 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon sweetener. Place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each, wrap and seal the dough around the cream cheese. Dip the dough ball in butter. Roll it in the cinnamon sweetener. Put it in the prepared pie plate. Repeat with all 24 pieces. (If you have extra sweetener sprinkle it on top. If you run out of the sweetener before you are done just mix up a little more).
- Drizzle the caramel sauce over the top, if using.
- Bake at 350 45-50 min until the rolls are golden brown and the sweetener is bubbling.
- Cool for 5-10 minutes.
- Invert onto a serving plate and serve immediately. The caramel sauce is optional. It is lightly sweetened like a breakfast pastry without it.
Baking and Serving Tips
Traditionally this is baked in a bundt pan but there was concern the bundt pan was too big. A cute little 6-cup, 8-inch bundt pans to make this recipe in is really wanted. So it was just went ahead and baked it in a pie plate. Recipes made with mozzarella dough freeze okay but not great. It is best to eat them right away. If you would like to freeze this anyway simply reheat until warm in the microwave or oven. You’ll love this amazing pull-apart keto monkey bread.
Savory Keto Monkey Bread: A Game Day Delight
Savory keto monkey bread makes a fun and delicious Game Day snack! It’s essentially a savory version of a keto monkey bread, and it’s tender and flavorful. And it’s such a fun keto appetizer! The simple joy of pulling off a piece of warm, cheesy bread and popping it straight into your mouth can’t be beat.
Cheddar Cheese Fathead Dough
Fathead dough made with Cabot Creamery cheese? It’s a match made in heaven! Most fathead dough recipes call for mozzarella and Cabot does make a very good shredded mozzarella. But cheddar makes fabulous, tender dough that works perfectly for keto monkey bread like this. It’s buttery, cheesy, and bursting with flavor.
- Cheddar cheese: Cabot Seriously Sharp is recommended for the best cheesy flavor!
- Coconut flour: Nut-free keto fathead dough!
- Protein powder: Whey protein or egg white protein can be used, but collagen protein won’t work in this recipe.
Preparation and Baking
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF and grease a round 8-inch metal baking pan. Set a small ovenproof ramekin upside down in the center and grease the sides of the ramekin as well.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, whey protein, baking powder, garlic powder, and salt.
- In a large microwave safe bowl, melt the cheese on high in 30 second increments until well melted and you can stir it together.
- Working quickly, cover the cheese with the coconut flour mixture, and add the eggs, sour cream, and half of the jalapeno. Use a silicone spatula to stir everything together, kneading the mixture hard against the side of the bowl with the spatula until mostly uniform.
- Use wet hands to roll the dough into scant 1-inch balls, and place them in the prepared baking pan. Sprinkle with the remaining jalapeno.
- In a small bowl, mix the melted butter and garlic. Drizzle over the bread.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the bread is golden brown and the top is just firm to the touch.
- Remove and let cool at least 20 minutes.
Tips for Success
- If you prefer not to use a microwave, you can melt the cheese in a pan over low heat. Keep the heat as low as possible and stir frequently, until the cheese is very melted.
- As long as you work quickly to mix the dough, the hot cheese won’t cook the eggs.
- You need to use a little elbow grease to knead the dough and get everything incorporated together. Use a silicone spatula to really mash the ingredients hard against the sides of the bowl.
- This is a coconut flour recipe, and it won’t work with almond flour.
Adapting and Personalizing Your Keto Monkey Bread
- Sweetness Level: Adjust the amount of sweetener to your preference.
- Spice: Add a pinch of cayenne pepper to the cinnamon-sweetener mixture for a spicy kick.
- Nuts: Incorporate chopped pecans, walnuts, or macadamia nuts for added texture and flavor.
- Cheese Variations: Experiment with different types of cheese in the savory version, such as Gruyere, pepper jack, or Parmesan.
- Add-ins: Get creative with add-ins like bacon crumbles, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, or roasted vegetables.
The Joy of Keto Baking
Creating a keto version of monkey bread wasn’t even on the radar. Remove the savory, add the sweet, and you have an amazing pastry dough that is tasty enough to eat raw. And, it was so good that it even got the attention of one of people's favorite YouTubers.
Addressing Common Concerns
Don’t be intimidated looking at the ingredient list in the recipe carb. There aren’t nearly as many ingredients as it seems because there are a lot of repeats.
Read also: Keto Calorie Counting: A Detailed Guide
Serving Suggestions
Leftovers are best warm. It was eaten this for breakfast for almost a week.
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