Overnight Monkey Bread
This monkey bread, called Sweet Potato Monkey Bread in Make Ahead Bread, is simple and delicious.
Ingredients
For the Dough
For the Coating
Instructions
On Prep Day (Day 1)
  1. Combine all the dough ingredients and knead by hand (mix first in a large bowl, then turn out and knead) or in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, until the dough is elastic.
  2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until it has double in size, about 1 hour in a warm room.
  3. Divide the dough into at least 24 pieces. They don’t all need to be the same size. (Donna encourages you to make them random and suggests that you can cut more than 24 pieces.)
  4. Spray an 8-inch round or square baking pan with baking spray.
  5. Combine the coating ingredients in a small shallow bowl or plate and roll each peice of dough in the coating, then pile them in the prepared baking pan. (Donna emphasizes that it can – and should – be “bumpy-lumpy interesting-looking bread.”)
  6. Cover the pan with plastic wrap or place it in a large plastic bag and tie the open end closed. Place the pan in the refrigerator overnight or up to 24 hours.
On Baking Day (Day 2)
  1. Remove the pan from the refrigerator and heat the oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. Remove the plastic and bake the bread until it is nicely browned and the internal temperature registers 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 45 minutes. Let the bread cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool for another 20 minutes or so before serving.
Recipe Notes

Donna advises making the sweet potato by microwaving it or wrapping it in aluminum foil and baking it at 350 degrees F for about an hour, until the potato is soft. I did a microwave/toaster oven baking combination and happily gobbled up the skin and leftover potato after I scooped out my 1/2 cup for the bread.
I used a stand mixer to mix/knead the dough and that took only a few minutes. Kneading would take longer, but would be infinitely more satisfying if you have the time. I didn’t (have the time) yesterday when I prepared the dough.
For the coating, I used finely chopped hazelnuts (made in my food processor) which had a slightly crunchier look than Donna’s coating, but which I liked a lot.
My dough wouldn’t cut when I made the pieces, but it was easy enough to handle once I pulled off a bit and rolled it in the coating.
I had extra coating leftover and couldn’t bear to waste it, so I sprinkled it over the dough before baking the bread.
I made about 30 pieces and my finished bread was definitely lumpy-bumpy.