There are certain recipes that feel tied to very specific moments in life. Monkey bread is one of them for me. Sleepovers. Church brunches. Someone’s mom bringing it to a softball tournament in a foil pan sometime around 1992. The entire kitchen smelling like cinnamon sugar and melted butter in the best way. And honestly? It still holds up.

This small-batch monkey bread gives you all of that soft, sticky, pull-apart goodness without making enough to feed seventeen people standing around your kitchen island pretending they’re “just having one piece.” It’s baked in a loaf pan instead of a bundt pan, which feels significantly more reasonable for regular life.

Also, this is one of those recipes that looks like you worked harder than you did. We love that.

Why You’ll Love This Monkey Bread in a Loaf Pan

This loaf pan monkey bread is warm, gooey, buttery, and aggressively hard to stop eating. The refrigerator biscuit dough makes it easy, the cinnamon and sugar do most of the heavy lifting, and the smaller size means you can make it on a random Saturday morning without committing to three straight days of monkey bread leftovers.

Which, to be clear, I could still accomplish if I really applied myself.

Ingredient Notes

• I like to use use Pillsbury Grands! Homestyle buttermilk biscuits. They bake up soft and fluffy and give you that classic monkey bread texture without having to make dough from scratch before coffee.
• You can use light or dark brown sugar for this monkey bread. I feel like dark brown sugar gives it a deeper caramel flavor, so it’s usually my go-to, but honestly you can use whatever is already open in the pantry and it’ll be great.
• The walnuts are totally optional. As an adult, I’ve discovered I like the little bit of crunch, but I also fully understand that nuts in baked goods can become a deeply divisive family issue and that they’re not for everyone.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F and lightly grease an 9×5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large zip-top bag, combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon.
3. Open the biscuits and cut each one into quarters. Toss the biscuit pieces into the cinnamon sugar mixture and shake until coated.
4. Arrange the coated biscuit pieces in the loaf pan, sprinkling in the walnuts if using.
5. In a small bowl, stir together the melted butter and brown sugar until combined. Pour evenly over the biscuit pieces.
6. It will probably look like too much butter. This is not the moment to panic. Trust the process.
7. Bake the monkey bread for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the top is deeply golden brown and the center no longer jiggles or looks doughy. If the top starts browning too quickly, loosely tent with foil during the last 10 minutes or so.
8. Let the monkey bread cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then carefully invert onto a plate or serving tray. Pull apart and serve warm.

Recipe Tips & Notes

• If you want extra gooey monkey bread, add an additional tablespoon of butter to the brown sugar mixture.
• A 9×5 inch loaf pan works the best for this recipe. A smaller 8×4 inch pan will make the monkey bread taller and it’s really hard to get it done in the center. I linked my two favorite options for you.
• Don’t underbake monkey bread. The top can look done before the center fully cooks through, so make sure the middle pieces aren’t still doughy.
• This is best served warm, ideally the same day. Technically it keeps overnight, but the texture is never quite as magical the next morning. Still good, though. I’ve certainly continued eating it.

Storage & Reheating

Store leftover monkey bread tightly covered at room temperature for up to 2 days. Reheat individual pieces in the microwave for about 10 to 15 seconds to soften the caramelized sugar again.

You can freeze monkey bread, but honestly, it’s one of those recipes that’s significantly better fresh and warm the day it’s made. The texture tends to soften quite a bit after freezing and reheating, especially with refrigerated biscuit dough.

If you do want to freeze it, let it cool completely first, then wrap tightly and freeze for up to 1 month. Reheat in the microwave or warm in the oven before serving. Still good? Yes. Exactly the same magical gooey situation? Not quite.