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How to make cheesy garlic monkey bread

Tear off a piece of this cheesy monkey bread to reveal pockets of Cheddar, mozzarella, sundried tomato and basil. Our easy-to-follow step-by-step recipe shows you how to fill, roll and bake these stuffed garlic dough balls, creating a patchwork monkey bread that guests will love. Don’t forget to screengrab the handy ingredients list at the bottom before you go shopping.

  1. Prepare the garlic butter

    Put 150g butter into a small pan over a medium-low heat. Crush 3 garlic cloves and add to the pan, then cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter has completely melted. Set aside while you make the dough.

    Prepare the garlic butter
  2. Make the dough

    Put 4 x 145g packs of pizza base mix in a large mixing bowl. Pour in 400ml lukewarm water and mix with a wooden spoon to make a soft dough. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead well for 5 mins or until smooth.

    Make the dough
  3. Shape

    Pat the dough into a rough circle, then cut into quarters. Roll each piece into a long sausage shape, about 3cm wide. Cut each sausage into 2-3cm pieces – you should get about 16 from each one. 

    Shape
  4. Prepare the filling

    Cut 200g Cheddar and 200g mozzarella (drained) into small cubes and add to a bowl, along with 250g roughly chopped sundried tomatoes. Chop a 30g pack fresh basil and add most of it to the bowl, reserving 1-2 tbsp for coating the balls later. Mix together to form the filling.

    Prepare the filling
  5. Fill and roll

    Flatten each piece of dough with the palm of your hand to form a small square. Add a spoonful of filling to the middle of each piece, then pull up the dough edges around the filling and press together to seal. Roll gently between the palms of your hands to form a ball. Repeat with all the dough and filling.

    Fill and roll
  6. Assemble the bread

    Preheat the oven to gas 4, 180°C, fan 160°C and grease the base and sides of a 25cm round cake tin. Sprinkle 2 tsp crushed chillies (or more for a spicier loaf) over a plate/shallow dish, 50g grated Parmesan over another, and the reserved chopped basil over a third. Dip the dough balls in the garlic butter to coat and arrange in the tin, keeping some plain but rolling some in the chillies, some in the Parmesan and some in the basil so that there is a mixture of flavours throughout the bread. Drizzle over any remaining garlic butter.

    Assemble the bread
  7. Bake

    Bake for 30 mins, then cover with tin foil to stop the top from browning too much. Bake for another 15 mins. The bread should be golden and springy to the touch.

    Bake
  8. Serve

    Rest in the tin for 5-10 mins before running a knife around the edge of the tin and turning out on to a wire rack to cool slightly. Serve warm as a tear and share bread or allow to cool completely and cut into slices.

    Tesco RFO monkey bread Autumn final shot 7

  9. Ingredients

    We've made a handy shopping list so you can get everything you need to make this irresistible cheesy tear and share bread. Don't forget to screenshot before you go shopping!

    150g butter, plus extra for greasing
    3 garlic cloves, crushed
    4 x 145g packs pizza base mix
    plain flour, for dusting
    30g basil, roughly chopped
    250g sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped
    200g Cheddar, cut into small cubes
    200g mozzarella, drained and cut into small cubes
    2 tsp crushed chillies
    50g Parmesan, or vegetarian hard cheese, finely grated

    Serves 10

    Each serving contains

    • Energy

      2405kj
      579kcal
      29%
    • Fat

      34g 49%
    • Saturates

      17g 86%
    • Sugars

      3g 3%
    • Salt

      1.8g 30%

    of the reference intake
    Carbohydrate 45.4g Protein 21.3g Fibre 6g