Friday, August 19, 2011

Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread

I loved this recipe!! It was a little time consuming but so worth it! I am not a big fan of just plain pepperoni as I have mentioned before, but this recipe makes it better then just plain old pepperoni. 
There is something about dipping pieces of bread in dips that just makes me smile, whether it be into cheese fondue, artichoke dip or marinara sauce. 
Plus there was an extra bonus of course when you add the cheese and pizza sauce already in the delicious pieces of pizza dough. 
This is definitely a good meal for those with young kiddos, or would be a good menu item for a watching a sporting event. Football has started everyone! :) Oh how I love fall.

Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread


2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4 Tbsp butter
2 lbs pizza dough (I used this recipe because it makes enough for two pizza)
6 oz mozzarella cheese, cut into small cubes (you'll need ~48 pieces)
48 slices of Turkey pepperoni (from 1 package)
2-3 cups marinara sauce, warmed, for serving

Heat garlic and butter over medium heat just until the garlic begins to brown. Remove from heat and let sit.
Lightly brush the inside of a bundt pan (or other oven-safe dish) with garlic butter.
Pull off large marble-sized balls of dough and flatten (a kitchen scale makes this very easy). Top with a slice of pepperoni and a cube of mozzarella.
Wrap the dough around the pepperoni and cheese, pinching well to seal.
Very lightly brush the pizza ball with garlic butter and place into the bundt pan (I dabbed the pizza balls on a butter-dipped silicon brush to keep butter use low - there will be 1+ Tbsp leftover - and my hands butter free. Buttery hands make it hard to get the pizza balls to seal).
Repeat until all of the dough is used.
Cover and let sit for 30 minutes, while preheating the oven to 400.
Bake for ~35 minutes, until the top is very brown.
Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
Turn out onto a platter and serve with warmed marinara sauce for dipping.

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