Pull Apart Breakfast

Lately we have been enjoying monkey bread, a quick and sweet pull-apart bread, that uses refrigerated biscuits. I don't like buying canned biscuits so I have tried making my own dough for this treat. But to me it seemed a bit dry compared to the ready to go method.



Then I came across a recipe for Lemon-Poppy Seed Pull-apart Coffee Cake while planning breakfasts for our full house. It wasn't difficult to make and it came out better than the monkey bread {in my opinion}. I think the next time I make monkey bread I will use this recipe and just leave out the lemon rind and poppy seeds and use brown sugar instead of the white.


The lemon rind was like pieces of candied lemon peel. It was sublime {no pun intended, really}.

I was worried that the butter was way too much. The bread dough pieces just seemed to swim in it.


But as it baked, the butter made a gorgeous and crunchy crust for the bread dough.

It was fluffy on the inside and a bit crispy on the outside.


After tasting it, I decided this is a treat and I should certainly not cut back on the butter!



We enjoyed these tasty breads with some fresh berries. I would also recommend some cheese to cut the sweetness.

Lemon-Poppy Seed Pull-Apart Coffee Cake
from Betty Crocker Spring Brunches

Ingredients
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour {I used a bit more, added as I kneaded, ha!}
1/4 cup white sugar
2 packages or 4 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cup warm milk {between 105-115 F}
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel {I used the zest of one large lemon}
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 butter, melted

Recipe
1. In large bowl stir 4 cups flour, 1/4 cup sugar, yeast, salt, milk and 1/2 cup melted butter; mix well. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead for 5-6 minutes, adding flour as needed; continue to knead and add flour till dough is no longer sticky. Grease large bowl. Place dough in bowl; cover and let rise in warm place for 30-40 minutes until doubled in size. {I use a tea towel to cover my bowl. To warm the oven just the right amount, turn it on 350 F for 10 seconds, turn it off, and keep the light on.}
2. Grease bundt pan. In a small bowl mix 1/2 cup sugar, lemon zest and poppy seeds.
3. Gently push fist into dough to deflate; divide the dough in half. Roll half of dough at a time into a rope, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Cut each rope into sixteen pieces. Return dough to greased bowl. Pour 1/2 cup melted butter over dough pieces and toss gently with hands. Sprinkle poppy seed mixture over buttered dough and toss with hands to coat each piece. Place pieces into prepared bundt pan. {The original directions called for the dough at this point to rise again, but I forgot. The bread turned out beautifully in spite of my mistake.}
4. Heat oven to 350 F. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Immediately turn onto serving dish.