Chai Spiced Monkey Bread Recipes

Steps:

• In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. In a large bowl, combine milk, sugar, yeast mixture and 1.5 cups flour; beat on medium speed until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (dough will be sticky)., Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour., Punch down dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 4 portions. Roll each into a 12-in. circle. Place 1 circle on a parchment-lined 14-in. pizza pan. For filling, combine butter, brown sugar, vanilla and spices. Spread circle with a third of the filling. Repeat twice, layering dough and filling; top with pears. Top with final portion of dough., Place a 2-1/2-in. round cutter on top of the dough in center of circle (do not press down). With a sharp knife, make 16 evenly spaced cuts from round cutter to edge of dough, forming a starburst. Remove cutter; grasp 2 strips and rotate twice outward. Pinch ends together. Repeat with remaining strips., Cover with a kitchen towel; let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°. Brush with beaten egg. Bake until golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Use 2 tablespoons of the softened butter to generously grease a 10-inch bundt pan. Use your fingers to ensure that butter gets into every nook and cranny of the pan. Combine the warm milk, water, sugar, and active dry yeast in a small bowl. Let sit until the yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes. While the yeast is proofing, combine the flours and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. When the yeast is ready, turn the mixer on low and stream in the yeast mixture. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of softened butter and the egg. Knead the dough until it is shiny and smooth, 6 to 7 minutes. The dough should be soft and sticky, but if it seems like it is overly wet, add more flour a few tablespoons at a time. Coat a large bowl with oil or cooking spray and turn the dough into the bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and set it in a warm place to rise until it has doubled in size, about 1 hour. While the dough is rising prepare the chai spiced coating by mixing the spices and vanilla bean seeds into the sugar. Brown the butter by cooking it over medium heat in a small saucepan, stirring frequently until the milk solids turn light brown and the butter has a nutty fragrance. Set aside to cool slightly. When the dough is finished rising, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and pat it into a square about 8 inches by 8 inches. Use a pizza wheel or bench scraper to cut the dough into 32 pieces. (If you're feeling ambitious, make 64.) Working with a few pieces at a time, roll each piece of dough into a rough ball, then roll in the cooled browned butter followed by a roll in the brown sugar. Layer the dough balls in the bundt pan snugly. Repeat until all dough balls are used. Cover the bundt pan with a clean towel and set it in a warm place to rise until it reaches 1 to 2 inches below the rim of the pan. This should take about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350° F. Bake the bread until the top is dark and caramelized and the sugar is bubbling around the edges, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool the bread in the pan for 5 minutes then carefully turn it out onto a plate. Cool for 5 more minutes then dig in. This bread is best served warm the day that it is made.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°F. Grease bottom only of 8x4- or 9x5-inch loaf pan with shortening or cooking spray.
• In large bowl, beat granulated sugar and butter with electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. On low speed, beat in tea, 1/3 cup milk, 2 teaspoons vanilla and the eggs until ingredients are well combined (will appear curdled). Stir in remaining bread ingredients just until moistened. Spread in pan.
• Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (do not underbake). Cool in pan on cooling rack 10 minutes. Loosen sides of loaf from pan; remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool 30 minutes.
• In small bowl, stir powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and 3 teaspoons of the milk, adding more milk by teaspoonfuls, until spreadable. Spread glaze over bread. Sprinkle with additional cinnamon. Cool completely, about 2 hours, before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days.