Carrot Cake Monkey Bread

With Easter coming up soon, I know we all probably have carrot cake on the brain. I’m the first to always whip one up year after year. This time around though I wanted to throw some non-cake, carrot cake recipes into the ring. Over the past few years, I’ve tried my best to break out of the cake mold. Like with these thumbprint cookies for instance. Or perhaps this carrot cake soda bread is more your speed? This year, I have a few fun options for you to choose from. Starting with this Carrot Cake Rice Pudding that I shared over the weekend on my IG reels. It’s really good and I can’t recommend it enough. Today, I’m sharing an out-of-this-world Carrot Cake Monkey Bread. It’s all the flavors we love from the classic Easter dessert but in a fun shareable pull apart treat.

To make the dough, place the milk and butter in a saucepan and heat until the butter is just melted. Set to the side and allow to cool to room temperature.

**Note: You can also do this step in a measuring cup in the microwave for about 30 seconds or so. It’s important to let the mixture cool or else it’ll kill the yeast if it’s too hot.**

In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine 4 1/2 cups of flour, sugar, yeast, spices, orange zest, and salt. Stir in the shredded carrots and raisins.

Add the cooled milk mixture along with the eggs. Mix until the dough comes together, adding as much of the remaining 1/2 cup flour as needed to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Increase the speed and knead on high for 5 to 10 minutes until soft and smooth.

Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover loosely with plastic wrap and a damp kitchen towel and allow to rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Once the dough has risen, transfer to a lightly floured work surface. Separate into about 40 to 50 pieces, weighing about 25g each. Roll into smooth balls.

Meanwhile, prepare the coating by placing the melted butter in a shallow dish. In a separate dish, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and walnuts. Set both aside. Dip each into the melted butter and then roll around in the cinnamon sugar mixture.

Place the coated ball pieces into a well-greased bundt pan, piling them on top of each other. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and a damp kitchen towel. Allow to rest in a warm spot until slightly risen, about 45 minutes.

To make the caramel, melt the butter in saucepan and whisk in the brown sugar and salt and cook, stirring often, until the bubbly and the sugar has melted. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla.

Once the dough has risen, carefully pour the caramel over the top. Place on a baking sheet to catch any drips and bake in a preheated 350*F oven until well-risen and golden brown, about 40-45 minutes.

To make the glaze, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Stir in the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla and enough milk to create a pourable but somewhat thick glaze.

Remove from the oven and carefully loosen the bread from the edges using a skewer or butter knife. Allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Then invert onto a serving plate or platter and allow to sit for 5 minutes before removing the tin completely.

Drizzle the glaze over the top of the bread and sprinkle with chopped walnuts, if desired. Serve warm and enjoy!

The bread is best eaten the day it’s made as it’ll be the softest then, but any leftovers can be wrapped well in plastic wrap and kept at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can rewarm it for about 10 to 15 seconds in the microwave.

I know that this recipe is a lot of steps and it might appear to be a lot of work at first, but I promise you, it’s 100 percent well worth all of the effort! You’ll be so thankful that you made it once you’re enjoying this delicious dessert. I hope you give it a try whether it’s for Easter or a fun springtime treat! Let me know what you think below and as always, thank you for reading and following along.