Stuffed Black Garlic Monkey Bread for #BreadBakers

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the BreadBakers home page. 

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. This month Jenni of Pastry Chef Online has selected stuffed breads as our theme.

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email with your blog URL to Stacy at foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.

Here's our Stuffed Breads Basket...

Sweet Breads

• Chocolate Caramel Stuffed Monkey Bread from Robin at A Shaggy Dough Story
• Cinnamon Roll Quickbread from Laura at Baking in Pyjamas
• Cream Pan - Japanese Custard Filled Buns from Shireen at Ruchik Randhap
• Figgy Olive Oil and Sesame Challah from Sarah at What Smells So Good?
• Jam filled Danish Pastries from Holly at A Baker's House
• No-Knead Apricot Sweet Rolls from Renee at Magnolia Days

Savory Breads

• Baked Peas Kachori from Shilpi at SimplyVeggies
• Cauliflower, Paneer & Peas Stromboli from Priya at I Camp in my Kitchen
• Cheesy Bacon Stuffed Pretzel Buns from Allison at The PinterTest Kitchen
• Cheesy Pizza Wheels from Tara at Noshing with the Nolands
• Chicken Stuffed Casserole Bread from Vimala at Cooking Club
• Cuban Sandwich-Stuffed Cuban Bread from Jenni at Jenni Field’s Pastry Chef Online
• Figgy Olive Oil and Sesame Challah from Sarah at What Smells So Good?
• Gruyère Stuffed Crusty Loaves from Adam at Bakers and Best
• Jalapeño Cheddar Stuffed Pretzel Rolls from Heather at Hezzi D’s Books and Cooks
• Jamaican Meat Loaf from Kelly of Passion Kneaded
• Paneer Kulchi from Anshie at Spice Roots
• Prosciutto, Salami and Mozzarella Stromboli from Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Russian Pirozhki from Mireille at Chef Mireille's East West Realm
• Sri Lankan Seeni Sambol Buns from Pavani at Cook's Hideout
• Stuffed Bazlama - Turkish Bread from Sneha at Sneha's Recipe
• Stuffed Black Garlic Monkey Bread from Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Stuffed Pretzel Bites from Karen at Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Tiganopsomo - Feta-Stuffed Fried Bread from Stacy at Food Lust People Love
• Zucchini and Goat Cheese Stuffed Bread from Aisha at La cocina de Aisha

...and What I Made...

My Stuffed Black Garlic Monkey Bread was a great snack while we played Monopoly and sipped some stout beer. Yum.

Have you tried monkey bread? Do you know why it's called monkey bread? If you know, please clue me in because I haven't dug up any satisfactory explanation.

I don't make it very often, but since my family loved the Persimmon Monkey Bread I made last year, I decided to try a savory version...and to stuff it! Woohoo. Here we go. Oh, and if you're unfamiliar with black garlic, click to read a brief intro: here. You have to try it!

After making this version, I would make two changes. Next time, I would use twice as much black garlic; and I would make the balls smaller.

Ingredients

• 1 T active dry yeast (1 packet)
• 1 1/3 C warm water
• 1 t organic raw turbinado sugar
• 3 1/2 C flour
• 3 cloves black garlic*, minced
• 1 t freshly ground sea salt
• 2 T olive oil (I used a garlic-infused olive oil)
• 1/2 C butter, melted
• 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, cubed
• marinara sauce for dipping

Procedure

Combine yeast, warm water and sugar together in a mixing bowl. Stir gently and let stand till the yeast blooms, about 10 minutes. Stir in flour, black garlic, and salt until a sticky dough forms.

Knead dough on a floured surface for 4-5 minutes or until very elastic. Pour the olive oil into a mixing bowl and transfer dough to the bowl. Turn dough over to make sure the oil coats it completely. Cover bowl with a clean dish towel and place in a warm spot for 45-60 minutes.

While dough rises, melt the butter and cube the cheese. Butter a bundt pan.

Once dough has risen, punch dough down. Tear off chunks of dough and press a cube of cheese into the center. Pull the edges up to enclose the cheese.

Roll the balls in melted butter and drop into the prepared bundt pan. Repeat until you have covered the bottom of the bundt pan with a layer of filled dough balls.

Sprinkle with cubes of cheese cheese. For a second layer..,and a third if you have enough dough. Complete with any remaining cheese cubes. Cover pan with a towel and let rise until doubled in size, approximately 30 to 40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Uncover dough and bake until golden brown, approximately 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and move to a wire rack to cool slightly.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes then turn out onto a serving plate or cutting board. Serve warm with marinara sauce for dipping.

*After a few people have commented that they are unfamiliar with black garlic, I decided to add a link to the product that I use and love! This is an affiliate link.