If you love the ease of a simple monkey bread but want to add sautéed apples, this is the recipe for you! This one bakes up in a casserole dish. It’s easy to serve and oh, so tasty! Perfect for fall or any time of year!
What is Monkey Bread?
About a year ago I posted a recipe for a simple monkey bread. Basically, it’s a couple cans of store-bought biscuits with a caramelly liquid poured over them before they bake up in a bundt pan.
That recipe came together so easily and perfectly. You might wonder why I wanted to mess with it!
Well, it all started with these sautéed apples. I was making them for a completely different project (to upload to my son-in-law’s grilling blog).
But I happened to have two cans of Grands Biscuits in the fridge and knew the apple would be a perfect complement.
So, I decided to merge two completely different ideas into one in this Apple Pie Monkey Bread recipe. And it worked!
How do I Sautée my Cinnamon Apples?
Basically, you peel and chop 4 – 5 apples and set them to simmer in a pan then add a sugar and cinnamon sugar mixture on top to season them.
I’ve loved sautéed apples all by themselves since I was a kid. And I knew I would love them in this simple breakfast dish, (which I happened to be taking to a women’s event).
Boy, I wasn’t wrong to mix these two flavors. This Apple Pie Monkey Bread was lovely!
More about that later. Let’s look at what you’ll need to make this. Let me start by saying that you don’t have to make your apples from scratch. You can use a can of apple pie filling, if you like.
Apple Cinnamon Monkey Bread Ingredients
You will find a full printable recipe card at the bottom of this post but here’s a look at what you’ll need to make this delicious breakfast treat. These are simple ingredients you might already have in your kitchen.
- canned biscuits (Grands or brand of your choice)
- white sugar (granulated)
- cinnamon
- butter (salted or unsalted, your choice)
- peeled/cored apples (sliced or chopped)
- cold water
- cornstarch
- brown sugar
- cinnamon
- sautéed apples (or apple pie filling)
- chopped pecans
How to Make Sautéed Apples
These came together so easily.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Prep the Homemade Apple Pie Filling
Start by peeling, coring, and slicing your apples. You can really cut the apples any way you like but I opted to leave them in slices.
Go ahead and get the butter melting in the skillet so it’s ready when the apples are sliced. You don’t want to leave them sitting out exposed or they’ll start to discolor.
Place apples in butter and simmer over medium-low heat for about 7 minutes or until they start to soften. You don’t want them to get mushy.
In a small bowl combine the cornstarch and water. Stir well. Pour over the apples. Now add the brown sugar and cinnamon.
Stir well. You’re going to want to let this simmer over a low heat for another 3 minutes or so. Stir to make sure the brown sugar and butter mixture doesn’t stick. You’ll notice this is a soupy, wet mixture. That’s fine! You want it to be!
Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
Prep the Biscuit Layer
Cut biscuits into small pieces. (I cut each biscuit into eight pieces.)
Place granulated sugar and cinnamon in a gallon-sized baggie and gently shake biscuit dough pieces, a few at a time.
Place half of the coated biscuit pieces in the prepared 9×13-inch casserole dish. Spread evenly.
Pour half of the apple and brown sugar liquid over the biscuits.
Sprinkle 1/2 of the chopped pecans on the biscuits.
Place the rest of the coated biscuits into a layer on top of the rest.
Add the rest of the apple mixture.
Cover with pecans.
Place in preheated 350 degree oven on medium rack and bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove and place pan on wire rack to cool. You can serve this one warm or cold.
Store leftovers in refrigerator (in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap) for up to three days. I don’t recommend freezing this one.
What to Expect from this Recipe
If you like Cinnamon Rolls you’re going to love this dish. It’s a cross between a cinnamon roll and a luscious apple pie, a lovely pull-apart bread that’s just perfect!
I love that the apples still had a bit of a “bite” to them. And those cinnamon-sugar infused biscuits? Covered in that caramelly layer of brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon they were sheer perfection.
I’m going to start calling this my Apple Pie Stuffed Monkey Bread because it’s stuffed full of cinnamon apple goodness!
I’m so glad I decided to put this in a casserole dish instead of a bundt pan. I doubt it would have held together as a bundt. As a casserole it’s sheer perfection! And trust me when I say it’s simple! This is one of those easy recipes you’re going to turn to again and again!
Variations to this Simple Recipe
I’m already thinking of fun ways to change this up next time. Here are some ideas that are coming to mind:
Cream cheese glaze: I would love to add a layer of drizzled cream cheese glaze to the top of these next time. I think it would send the dish over the top!
Drizzled caramel: I make a lovely caramel sauce out of sweetened condensed milk. I think it would be great drizzled over the top of this dish!
Walnuts: Walnuts are perfect in the fall and this would make a lovely fall brunch offering, so adding walnuts would be perfect!
Apple pie spice: I don’t know why I didn’t think of this! A half teaspoon would probably add depth of flavor to the dish.
Loaf pan: I think this might be okay in a loaf pan, but I’m not 100% sure it would hold its shape when turned out. Still, if you want to scoop it out with a spoon a loaf pan would probably work.
Other Cinnamon Favorites from Out of the Box Baking
If you love this dish you’ll enjoy our other cinnamon favorites. Here are some we love to recommend:
The Ultimate Cinnamon Roll Casserole: This recipe is so simple, you will almost feel like you’re cheating! It starts with two cans of refrigerated cinnamon rolls but it definitely doesn’t end there!
Easy Cinnamon Breakfast Cakes: This is our master list, filled with great cinnamon-infused Breakfast treats!
That’s it for this post, friends! I hope you enjoyed this delicious apple monkey bread recipe.
If you make this recipe and love it, don’t forget to leave a review and a comment below. And while you’re at it, go ahead and pin some photos to your Pinterest boards!
Follow me on social media!
Apple Pie Monkey Bread Casserole
Apple Pie Monkey Bread Casserole from Out of the Box Baking
Ingredients
- 2 cans biscuits (Grands or brand of your choice)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons cinnamon
- 1 cup butter (salted or unsalted, your choice)
- 4 large (or 5 medium) peeled/cored apples (sliced or chopped)
- ½ cup cold water
- 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cups sautéed apples (or apple pie filling)
- 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- These came together so easily.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Prep the Apple Pie Filling: Start by peeling, coring, and slicing your apples. You can really cut the apples any way you like but I opted to leave them in slices.
- Go ahead and get the butter melting in the skillet so it’s ready when the apples are sliced. You don’t want to leave them sitting out exposed or they’ll start to discolor.
- Place apples in butter and simmer over medium-low heat for about 7 minutes or until they start to soften. You don’t want them to get mushy.
- In a small bowl combine the cornstarch and water. Stir well.
Pour over the apples. - Now add the brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Stir well. You’re going to want to let this simmer over a low heat for another 3 minutes or so. Stir to make sure the brown sugar and butter mixture doesn’t stick. You’ll notice this is a soupy, wet mixture. That’s fine! You want it to be!
- Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
- Prep the Biscuit Layer: Cut biscuits into small pieces. (I cut each biscuit into eight pieces.)
- ?Place granulated sugar and cinnamon in a gallon-sized baggie and gently shake biscuit pieces, a few at a time. ?
- Place half of the coated biscuit pieces in the prepared 9x13-inch casserole dish. Spread evenly.
- ?Pour half of the apple and brown sugar liquid over the biscuits.
- ?Sprinkle 1/2 of the chopped pecans on the biscuits.
- ?Place the rest of the coated biscuits into a layer on top of the rest.
- Add the rest of the apple mixture. ?
- Cover with pecans.?
- Place in preheated 350 degree oven on medium rack and bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown. ?Remove and place pan on wire rack to cool. You can serve this one warm or cold.
- Store leftovers in refrigerator (in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap) for up to three days. I don’t recommend freezing this one.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 240Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 63mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 3gSugar: 35gProtein: 2g
The nutrition information is a product of online calculators. I try to provide true and accurate information, but these numbers are estimates.
Gluten Free Apple Granola Bread - Out of the Box Baking
Friday 16th of February 2024
[…] Apple Pie Monkey Bread Casserole: […]
Miz Helen
Wednesday 11th of October 2023
Thanks so much for sharing your awesome post with us at Full Plate Thursday, 661. Hope you are having a great week and we hope to see you again soon! Miz Helen
Mary
Thursday 5th of October 2023
This sounds yummy. Why all the ? marks throughout the recipe? It sounds a little unsure.
booksbyjanice
Thursday 5th of October 2023
Thank you for bringing that to my attention! It was a formatting issue. I hope I've corrected it. Will you look at see if it's any better on your end? (Thanks!)