
This Sourdough Monkey Bread is a trip down memory lane. From the fun pull apart pieces to the delicious dripping caramel sauce. This recipe is great for a special occasion or a simple Saturday morning treat, either way it will be a hit!
Growing up, my mom would let us pick whatever special breakfast we wanted on our birthdays. Of all the things to choose from I always asked her to make me monkey bread. So this bread brings back a lot of good memories for me.
My Mom made her Monkey bread with good ol’ fashioned canned biscuits cut into small pieces, dredged in refined sugars and baked in a sea of margarine.
As delicious as that was, I was determined to re-create my favorite birthday breakfast for my own children. Instead of canned biscuits I use sourdough. I switched the refined sugars for coconut sugar and real maple syrup. And I swapped that factory made margarine for some real grass fed butter.
It’s not hard to make these kinds of switches. My kids will still have the same kind of memories that I had, but they will have the benefit of a healthier, more real option. Trust me, this Sourdough Monkey Bread is by far one of our favorite treats!
Before we get started you will need a sourdough starter. If you do not have one yet, here is a Day by Day Guide to help you make your own Sourdough Starter. If you’d like to learn more about the benefits of sourdough, check out my “Why Sourdough?“

Ingredients to make Sourdough Monkey Bread
- Active Sourdough Starter
- Unbleached Flour (I always recommend Organic)
- Filtered Water
- Melted Coconut Oil or Butter
- Honey
- Salt
- Sugar (I love using coconut sugar)
- Cinnamon
- Maple Syrup
- Butter
- Vanilla
Helpful tools to make Sourdough Monkey Bread
- Stand mixer. You can mix by hand too, just double the mixing time.
- Large glass bowl to ferment dough in.
- Bundt Pan, but any baking dish will do. Even muffin tins will work to bake in.
- Gallon sized Ziplock bag to shake dough balls in.
How to Make Sourdough Monkey Bread
If you have never made Monkey Bread before, do not be intimidated, this is a simple process. Just keep in mind that this is sourdough, so it will take some additional time to make. But I promise the end result will be worth the extra wait! That being said, here is how to make Sourdough Monkey Bread.
First mix the active starter, flour, water, melted coconut oil, honey and salt together in a stand mixer for 5 minutes. You want the dough to be silky and have a smooth texture. It will be sticky to the touch but not so much where it sticks to your hand.
Ferment
Place the dough into a large greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap or Bee’s Wrap and let it ferment for 8-12 hours. It should double in size. In a gallon sized plastic bag shake together the coconut sugar and cinnamon.

Take the dough and break off 1 inch pieces. One at a time, roll each piece into a small ball. Add the ball to the plastic bag and shake it into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Continue ripping off dough, rolling 1 inch balls and adding to the bag until the dough is gone. Shake the bag around every so often to cover the dough balls well.
Grease a bundt pan, angel food cake pan or any other oven safe baking dish you want. Once I used muffin tins and made individual servings. Whatever you choose, add a thick layer of maple syrup to the bottom of the pan then add in the cinnamon sugar dough balls.
Proof

It will appear the dough balls aren’t enough, but remember they still need to proof again. Proof for 2 hours. They will puff up and fill the pan. And then grow even more while baking.

After the proof, melt the stick of butter and add real maple syrup in a small sauce pan on the stove. Remove from heat and add in vanilla.
Bake
Pour the mixture over the proofed dough balls. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Immediately after removing from the oven, place a plate on top of your pan and flip it over. Lift away your pan so that the monkey bread is left on the plate. Serve warm.

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Let’s Make some Sourdough Monkey Bread!

Sourdough Monkey Bread
This Sourdough Monkey Bread is a trip down memory lane. From the fun pull apart pieces to the delicious dripping caramel sauce. This recipe is great for a special occasion or a simple Saturday morning treat, either way it will be a hit!
Ingredients
Ferment Sponge
- 100 g Active Starter
- 450 g Flour
- 200 g Filtered Water
- 1/2 cup Melted Butter or Coconut Oil
- 2 Tbsp Honey or Sugar
- 1 tsp Salt
Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- 1/2 cup Brown Sugar or Coconut Sugar
- 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
Caramel Sauce
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) melted butter
- 1/2 cup Maple Syrup
- 1 tsp Vanilla
Instructions
- Ferment the Sponge: mix the active starter, flour, water, melted butter or coconut oil, honey or sugar and salt together in a stand mixer for 5 minutes. You want the dough to be silky and have a smooth texture. It will be slightly sticky to the touch but not so much where it sticks to your hand. Place the dough into a large greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap or Bee's Wrap and ferment for 6-12 hours. (It should at least double in size)
- In a gallon sized plastic bag shake together the coconut sugar and cinnamon. Roll the fermented dough into 1 inch balls. Add the balls to the plastic bag and shake it into the cinnamon sugar mixture until ball in completely covered. Continue until the dough is gone.
- Grease a Bundt Pan and add 2 Tbsp Maple Syrup to the bottom. Add cinnamon sugar dough balls evenly around bundt pan. Proof for 2 hours. They will puff up and fill the pan. (Tip: Turn oven on for a few seconds to get slightly warm then turn it off. Proof pan in warm oven)
- After proof, melt butter in small sauce pan on stove. Mix in 1/2 cup maple syrup. Remove from heat and add in vanilla.
- Pour caramel sauce over proofed dough balls.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.
- Immediately after removing from the oven, place a plate on top of your pan and flip it over. Lift away your pan so that the monkey bread is left on the plate. Serve warm. Enjoy!
Notes
See post for other options to bake in if you don't have a bundt pan.
Double the caramel sauce if preferred
Leave a comment and tell me what occasion will you make this Sourdough Monkey Bread. Maybe breakfast, an afternoon snack, dessert or a special holiday or birthday? Whatever it may be, this will be your new favorite indulgence!
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Do you think I could do the second proof in the fridge overnight instead of 2 hours on the counter?
Yes. But it may fall flat in the fridge and not double in size during the cold proof. You can still do that, but What I suggest is in the morning, slightly warm your oven and add the dough to a warm oven to finish the proof. This will help the dough become puffy again and double in size. Do this before baking or else the dough will be dense.
This is the best Monkey Bread I have ever tasted in my LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I loved this recipe so much! It is not too sweet, and it light and airy! I’m going to make again because I made a mistake on my fermented dough. Long story, but my mistake, and I recouped. But this is a wonderful sweet treat without it being so over the top. I used coconut sugar in my cinnamon mix. Perfect!
Hi there. I’d like to try this as a make-ahead recipe so I can bake it first thing in the morning and not have to worry about proofing for 2 hours and waiting. Do you have any tips for this? Planning it for Thanksgiving morning. Thank you!
After the 2nd proof, cover tightly and place in fridge until you’re ready to bake in the morning. Increase cooking time several minutes to make up time for the cold dough.
This was incredible. For anyone who is lazy like me: I made the dough the night before (I didn’t even have a mixer and just mixed it with a spoon until I got tired), let it ferment overnight and formed the dough in the morning. I skipped the proof because we didn’t want to wait and I think we will do it that way every time because the texture was lovely and just a little doughy. I also drastically reduced the amount of carmel sauce and we agreed we wouldn’t want it any sweeter. This is way less fussy than cinnamon rolls and better, in my opinion.
I love this! I’m so glad you made adjustments according to your family’s preferences and it worked so well. Love to hear you enjoyed, Thanks for sharing!
Never again will I use tube biscuits dor monkey bread!! this recipe is superb! Thank you for sharing.
Yay, so glad you enjoyed 🙂
I made this and it was splendid! I halved the ingredients for the caramel sauce and added cinnamon and it was perfect. My husband has “bubble bread” every year for Christmas since he was little and this was a close copy cat. Added bonus, I was able to use my starter since I don’t have yeast at home.
Yay, I’m so glad to hear this! Thanks for sharing!
Would this dough work for cinnamon rolls? Roll out after the overnight rise and then let rise again after forming the rolls?
I’ve not tried, because I have another sourdough cinnamon roll recipe on my website that I love, but if you give it a try, I’d love to know! Yes, you’d roll out and have to let it rise once more before baking
Okay help! This is my first time using my sourdough starter and I’m learning everything for the first time. I made the mix and kept it in the fridge for 12 hours overnight instead of leaving it out on the counter♀️ didn’t realize I did anything wrong until I noticed it didn’t rise at all when I woke up. I’ve left it covered with a towel in a warm spot outside for the last 4 hours while I figure out how to fix it. Can anyone help me?!?!?
It’s okay. It should still rise after several hours on the counter even after it sat in the fridge overnight. Then just continue with the recipe
Hi Sammi! Giving the dough that long to cold ferment in the fridge should actually give it a deeper flavor. Dont worry about the lack of rise in the fridge. If it’s like any other sourdough Ive made, it should still have a great spring straight from fridge to oven
This is one of the best Monkey Bread recipes I have ever made. I did not used brown sugar and golden syrup since I didn’t have coconut sugar or maple syrup on hand. This turned out so light, fluffy and delicious. Thank you for sharing this easy sourdough recipe. The dough was absolutely dreamy to work with!
Yay Karla! Thanks so much for sharing! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe 🙂
Can I used discard for this and add to the proofing times? I just fed my starter and want to find other things to save the discard for.
Yes you could!
Yes you could!
Just made this for Easter and it smells heavenly in here! I don’t know if it’s going to make it to brunch tomorrow
Yay, hope you enjoyed!
Hello. Looks delicious. Is there a flour type you prefer to use with this recipe (bread or AP?)
You can use either. Bread flour will give you a better rise, but AP works too 🙂
Help!! Hello! Making this just because my daughter wants it! Lol. My fermented dough rose lovely but it’s quite sticky and won’t roll into balls. Should I add more flour??? If you can help me today, great; if not I’ll try adding a little flour. TIA
Oh never mind! I’m just plopping the dough sections in sugar mixture! They don’t have to be perfect balls!
Hi! Sorry I didn’t answer in time. Sounds like the dough got over proofed. Sorry about that. Next time ferment for less time and it shouldn’t be so sticky. Hope your daughter still enjoyed 🙂
I don’t bake much but this recipe turned out perfect!! I followed the times in recipe and everything was spot on. I like how it’s not overly sweet. I think it might be fun to add some chopped pecan next time.
Yay Michele, I’m so glad to hear this! Thanks for sharing. The addition of nuts sounds delightful!
Do you use a dough hook or the regular batter attachment when mixing up the dough in an electric mixer?
I use a dough hook, but the batter attachment would be just fine too.
Have you by any chance used this recipe with GF flour? My daughters are both Celiac and I would love to make this recipe for them for Christmas morning.
Oh My gracious this was amazing. Monkey Bread is a holiday tradition for us and I was skeptical, but this is by far the best! Thank you so cut for finding healthier ways to make this favorite!
Yay Kary, I’m so glad you and your loved ones enjoyed 🙂