Easy Gluten-Free Monkey Bread Recipe

This Easy Gluten-Free Monkey Bread Recipe is just what the name says… EASY! No yeast or eggs are needed for this recipe. Plus these sticky cinnamon spheres are gluten-free, nut-free, use all simple, wholesome ingredients and can easily be made vegan!

Easy Gluten-Free Monkey Bread Recipe

If you were raised calling it Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread, there is no judgement here. No matter what you call it, this bread is still delicious. And this healthier version pretty much tastes like mini donuts! I’ve already made this bread twice in one week if that gives you any indication for how good it tastes. It’s also a breeze to make! No dough rolling required (which I love)!

Gluten-Free Monkey Bread From Scratch

Making monkey bread from scratch is not as difficult as you would think! Being completely honest right now… THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME EVER MAKING MONKEY BREAD. Therefore, If I can make it right the first time, you can surely make it! This recipe was a hit as soon as I pulled it out of the oven too. I had to ward my husband off so I could get pictures before he devoured it (and he’s skeptical about healthy baked goods so that’s saying a lot). 

This monkey bread would be perfect for any Holiday breakfast or brunch too! Think of it… you wake up Christmas morning to the warm smell of cinnamon and sugar, baking in your oven. You hop out of bed, pour yourself a tall mug of Superfood Hot Chocolate, and cozy up by the fire with your family as you all snack on sticky, gooey, monkey bread. I don’t think there’s a better way to start Christmas morning.

Gluten-Free Monkey Bread Dough Ingredients

We use a simple list of pantry staples to make this monkey bread dough. The only flour you need is oat flour! If you have oats, then you can make oat flour at home in 3 simple steps! Feel free to sub King Arthur gluten-free flour for this recipe if needed.

Ingredients:

• Unsweetened Almond Milk (or milk of choice)
• Organic Apple Cider Vinegar (white vinegar or fresh lemon juice also work)
• Vanilla Extract
• Pure Maple Syrup (or honey)
• Oat Flour (can sub King Arthur Gluten-Free Flour)
• Pink Himalayan Salt
• Baking Powder

How to Make Healthy Monkey Bread

Although it looks like a lot of instructions for this recipe, it’s really quite simple.

Simplified Steps to Making Homemade Monkey Bread:

1. Mix plant based milk and apple cider vinegar together and let sit (this makes a vegan buttermilk).

2. Mix cinnamon and coconut sugar together in a small bowl.

3. Melt the butter.

4. Combine dry ingredients with vegan buttermilk, then form dough into spheres.

5. Roll the dough spheres in butter, cinnamon sugar, then pop in your baking pan.

6. Bake the monkey bread and make the simple cream cheese icing.

7. Enjoy warm monkey bread with a drizzle of healthy cream cheese icing!

How to Make Monkey Bread Vegan

This gluten-free monkey bread recipe is vegan because there are no eggs or even flax eggs needed. We also make a vegan buttermilk with plant based milk (read how below)! The only swap you’ll do to make this monkey bread vegan, is use coconut oil or vegan butter for dunking the monkey bread spheres in before rolling them in cinnamon sugar.

How to Make Vegan Buttermilk

Traditional monkey bread recipes call for buttermilk, which is high in fat and obviously not dairy-free or vegan. The reason this monkey bread recipe can be made with no yeast is by incorporating a vegan buttermilk. It’s the EASIEST thing you’ll ever make! (okay that’s a big claim. But, it’s really easy!)

1. In a small bowl or pourable measuring cup, mix together plant based milk and organic apple cider vinegar and let sit for 5-15 minutes until it thickens a bit and curdles.

THAT’S IT! Only, 1 step, and now you are a kitchen scientist! The acidic properties found in apple cider vinegar allow your baked goods to rise and soften with ease. And because we use plant based milk, it’s a vegan buttermilk! Simple. Easy. Fluffy monkey bread here we come.

Can I Make This Monkey Bread Ahead of Time/The Night Before and Bake In the Morning?

Make-Ahead: You can make this monkey bread the night before and store it UNCOOKED in the refrigerator with cling wrap covering it. When ready to bake in the morning, remove it from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature before baking as instructed.

More Easy Healthy Breakfast Recipes:

• Melt In Your Mouth Vegan Banana Bread

• Lemon Baked Oatmeal

• 12 Easy Vegan Protein Breakfasts

• Chunky Monkey Baked Oatmeal

I cannot wait for you to give this Easy Gluten-Free Monkey Bread a try! Please snap a picture and share it with me! 

Seeing your kitchen creations makes my day and encourages me to keep creating new recipes for you!

Happy Monkey Bread Bakin’!

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Yield: 10 Servings

Easy Gluten-Free Monkey Bread Recipe

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This Easy Gluten-Free Monkey Bread Recipe is just what the name says… EASY! No yeast or eggs are needed for this recipe. Plus these sticky cinnamon spheres are gluten-free, nut-free, use all simple, wholesome ingredients and can easily be made vegan!

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

For the Dough:

• 1 Cup Unsweetened Almond Milk or Any Milk Of Choice
• 2 tsp Organic Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 Tbs Pure Maple Syrup
• 2 ¾ Cups Oat Flour (+ about ½ cup more for rolling into spheres depending on the type of oats you use) (See Note 4) 
• ¼ tsp Pink Himalayan Salt
• 3 tsp Baking Powder

Cinnamon Coating:

• 1 Heaping Tbs Cinnamon
• ¼ Cup Coconut Sugar
• 3 Tbs Grass Fed Butter (Can Sub Coconut Oil or Vegan Butter, See Note 1)

Healthier Cream Cheese Icing:

• 2 Tbs Softened Low Fat Cream Cheese (Can Sub Vegan Cream Cheese or Regular Cream Cheese)
• 2 tsp Pure Maple Syrup (or to taste)
• 2 tsp Plant Based Milk (or Milk of Choice)
• Opt: ¼ tsp Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Make Vegan Buttermilk: In a small bowl or pourable measuring cup, mix together milk and apple cider vinegar. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until congealed and slightly thickened.

2. While the milk is sitting, line a 9x5 loaf pan with parchment paper or grease with coconut oil and preheat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, mix together oat flour, salt and baking powder.

3. Make Cinnamon Coating: In a small/medium bowl, mix the cinnamon and coconut sugar until combined.

4. In another small bowl, melt the grass-fed butter.

5. After milk has congealed, mix in vanilla and maple syrup. Pour the milk mixture into the bowl with the oat flour and gently fold together until combined. Let dough sit for about 5 minutes to allow oat flour to absorb liquid (dough should be sticky, but able to be rolled into spheres with flour on your hands).

6. Generously flour your hands with oat flour. Push dough to one side of the bowl. Scoop out about 1 Tbs of dough and roll it between the palms of your hands until a sphere forms. Place the dough ball back into the bowl and continue to form dough spheres until you’ve used all the dough. Coat your hands in oat flour when needed (it’s okay if the dough balls stick together when placed back in the bowl on top of each other, they come apart easily).

7. Roll each sphere in the melted butter (shaking off any excess), then roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture until well coated. Place dough sphere in bottom of loaf pan. This should make 23-25 monkey bread dough balls. (I did 5 rows of 3 spheres on the bottom layer of pan then 4 rows with 2 spheres on top layer. You can really do whatever though!)

8. Pour any leftover butter over the top of monkey bread and bake at 350 F. for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean (or if you like it doughy, pull it from the oven around the 15-minute mark).

9. Make Cream Cheese Icing: While monkey bread bakes, make the icing. Mix together softened cream cheese, maple syrup, and milk until smooth.

10. Enjoy monkey bread warm with a drizzle of cream cheese icing.

Notes

1. Butter Sub: If you want to cut the calories even more you can sub the butter for plant-based milk. I haven’t tried this, but it should still turn out delicious. All that matters is that your cinnamon and sugar mixture sticks to the dough spheres.
2. Storage Tips: Store monkey bread in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days, in the refrigerator for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months (I have not tried reheating them after frozen so let me know if you do. I’d love to hear how they reheat.)
3. Reheating: Similar to other baked goods, this monkey bread does dry out a bit while stored in the refrigerator after baking. Drizzle with a little water before microwaving or reheating in the oven to add more moisture. 
4. Oat Flour Amount: If your batter seems too runny after adding all the oat flour, just keep adding 1 Tbs of oat flour at a time until it's a nice dough and able to form into spheres.
5. Make-Ahead: You can make this monkey bread the night before and store it UNCOOKED in the refrigerator with cling wrap covering it. Remove from refrigerator and let it come to room temperature before baking as instructed.

Be sure to tag @secretlyhealthyhome on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest with a picture of your gluten-free monkey bread!

I love seeing your kitchen creations so please leave a comment and rate the recipe if you make it! It really helps support me and encourages me to keep making recipes for you!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12

Serving Size:

2 Pieces With Icing
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 179Total Fat: 5.5gCarbohydrates: 28.5gNet Carbohydrates: 27gFiber: 1.5gSugar: 7.9gProtein: 4.1g

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