gorilla bread

man, i wish i could take credit for this recipe. unfortunately, i cannot. it's from paula deen. she kind of bugs me a little bit, because she's always so damn cheery and not a hair is ever out of place, but dammit she loves butter. and i love butter. so i love her. and some of her recipes are just darn good.

have you ever made monkey bread? this is JUST like monkey bread, only better. i always make monkey bread for christmas breakfast, but this is going to take its place this year. another note: i've made the monkey bread with both rhodes rolls and with canned buttermilk biscuits. use the biscuits. they are so much easier and i think they turn out better. with the rhodes, you have to let them defrost and then you have to let them rise. plus, the biscuits are cheaper.

now go. make this bread. you won't be sorry and your family will love you forever.

gorilla bread

*1/2 cup white sugar
*3 tsp cinnamon
*1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
*1 cup packed brown sugar
*1 8-oz pkg. cream cheese
*2 12-oz. cans refrigerated biscuits (10 count)
*1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans

preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. mix the white sugar and cinnamon. in a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over low heat, stirring well; set aside. cut the cream cheese into 20 equal cubes. cut it into 4 strips lengthwise, then cut each strip into 5 pieces. press the biscuits out with your fingers and sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon sugar. place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each biscuit, wrapping and sealing the dough around the cream cheese. sprinkle 1/2 cup of the nuts into the bottom of the bundt pan. place half of the prepared biscuits in the pan. sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, pour half of the melted butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle on 1/2 cup of nuts. layer the remaining biscuits on top, sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar, pour the remaining butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of nuts. bake for 30 minutes. remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. place a plate on top and invert.

does that sound yummy or what? in my opinion, i think the cream cheese is a bit much, so i use 3 cans of biscuits and i cut the cream cheese into 30 pieces (5 strips lengthwise, and then into 6 pieces). i increase the butter to 1 1/2 sticks and the brown sugar to 1 1/2 cups to accommodate for this. you also might need a little bit more cinnamon/sugar mix, but it all fits into the bundt pan nicely. i also don't worry about the nuts if i don't have any. i've also wanted to try that pre-made cheesecake filling in the center, but i've never gotten around to that.

if you want to just make plain old monkey bread, omit the cream cheese and cut the biscuits into halves before rolling in cinnamon and sugar. it almost as good as this gorilla bread and it's easier. your kids will still think you're the best mom ever.