This post may contain affiliate links, view our disclosure policy.
Cranberry Orange Monkey Bread will be a showstopper at any gathering – whether it’s for breakfast, brunch, or dessert. Fresh orange zest and tart cranberries are tucked between pillowy soft rolls, and a sweet caramel style glaze from cook and serve pudding mix. Premade frozen dinner rolls make assembling this monkey bread so easy!
Do you love fresh orange + cranberries 🍊 Try my Cranberry Orange Scones and Orange Cranberry Cheesecake.
Cranberry Orange Monkey Bread Recipe (With Rhodes Frozen Rolls)
This cranberry orange monkey bread is the perfect sweet treat for Christmas morning or for a holiday brunch.
I love that you prep it the night before, refrigerate overnight, and then bake it up in the morning. And the best part is that it starts with frozen dinner rolls! No making dough or dealing with yeast.
Pillowy bread is filled with pockets of dried cranberries, fresh orange zest, mandarin oranges and it bakes up in a self-made caramel sauce from the cook & serve pudding mix.
It’s then topped with a simple orange glaze right before serving it warm from the oven.
Ingredients Needed
- Cook & Serve Vanilla Pudding Mix : This is the Jell-O brand and it’s similar to instant pudding mix, but instead of instant, it’s a cook & serve; meaning it needs to be baked to activate it. Make sure you are getting the box that says ‘cook & serve’ on it. It looks very similar to the instant vanilla pudding mix.
- Light Brown Sugar
- Freshly Grated Orange Zest : From one large orange.
- Frozen Rhodes Rolls : You need 20 of the frozen, regular-sized (not the larger Texas ones) Rhodes dinner rolls. No need to thaw beforehand, as they will thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Dried Cranberries
- Mandarin Oranges : Drain the juice from the can but be sure to reserve some of the mandarin orange juice for the glaze later on. Roughly chop up the mandarin oranges so you have smaller pieces that can spread out more all over the monkey bread layers.
- Butter : I use salted butter.
- Powdered Sugar
- Mandarin Orange Juice : Reserved from the can of mandarin oranges used in the monkey bread.
- Vanilla Extract
How To Make Cranberry Orange Monkey Bread (Printable Recipe Card)
In a small bowl, whisk the cook & serve vanilla pudding mix (dry, do not prepare), light brown sugar, and the fresh orange zest until evenly combined. Set aside.
Spray a 10-inch bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Lay 10 frozen rolls in the bottom of the bundt pan.
Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the pudding mixture evenly over top the rolls. Evenly spread 1/2 cup of the dried cranberries, then half of the roughly chopped mandarin oranges, and scatter half of the butter cubes.
Repeat the layers one more time by adding the remaining 10 frozen rolls, the rest of the pudding mixture, and the remaining dried cranberries, chopped mandarin oranges, and butter cubes.
Cover the bundt pan tightly with plastic wrap, that has been sprayed with cooking spray (the side that touches the rolls), and refrigerate overnight for 10-12 hours, allowing the rolls to thaw and begin to rise.
In the morning, set the bundt pan in a warm place at room temperature for 2-3 hours, or until the dough has risen properly to nearly the top of the bundt pan.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Remove the plastic wrap and bake for 35-40 minutes. After the first 20 minutes, loosely cover the top with a piece of aluminum foil and keep it tented for the remainder of the baking time to prevent over-browning.
Remove the bundt pan from the oven and let it cool on a cooling rack for 20 minutes.
While the bread cools, prepare the glaze by whisking together the powdered sugar, mandarin orange juice, and vanilla extract until smooth.
Invert the bundt pan onto a serving plate. Drizzle the glaze over top of the monkey bread before serving. Serve warm and enjoy!
How To Store Leftovers & Reheat Monkey Bread
Monkey bread is best served warm, within a few hours, of baking it. If there are leftovers, transfer the monkey bread to an airtight container and store at room temperature for 1 to 2 days. Or you can refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Reheat portions in the microwave for 10-20 seconds or until they are soft and warm.
Monkey bread is the perfect make-ahead breakfast treat! All the preparation is done the night before, then the bread thaws and rises slightly in the fridge, and in the morning it will be ready to bake.
Pro Tips From The Test Kitchen
- It’s vital that you use the Cook & Serve vanilla pudding, NOT instant vanilla pudding. The cook and serve melts into a glossy caramel sauce that coats the rolls perfectly. It combines with the butter and brown sugar to make an amazing caramel-style sauce. Instant pudding does not behave the same way in the oven.
- Drain the mandarin oranges very well (making sure to reserve 1-2 tablespoons of the juice). Excess juice inside the bundt pan can pool at the bottom and slow the browning process and create a soggy texture.
- If the center of the monkey bread still looks slightly underdone and pale, bake for an additional 3-5 minutes. I lightly pull apart some of the rolls on top just to make sure the bread looks cooked all the way through towards the bottom of the bundt pan.
- Do not thaw the rolls before assembling the monkey bread. They will thaw overnight in the fridge. You want them frozen when preparing the cranberry orange monkey bread.
- To speed up the morning rise process, put the bundt pan on top of a heating pad that is set at a low setting – such as a 2 or 3, or a 1 depending on your heating pad settings.
- My family loves lots of glaze so I always double the glaze recipe. Just make sure to save extra mandarin orange juice when draining.
More Cranberry Recipes
- Cranberry Brie Bites
- Cranberry Muffins
- White Chocolate Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
- No Bake Cranberry Fluff Pie
- Cranberry Cider Sparkling Punch
- Citrus Cranberry Punch
- Cranberry Fluff
Cranberry Orange Monkey Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
Cranberry Orange Monkey Bread
- 1 box (3 oz) Cook & Serve vanilla pudding mix
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- orange zest from 1 large orange
- 20 frozen Rhodes dinner rolls
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 can (15 oz) mandarin oranges (drained, reserve juice, roughly chopped)
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter cut into small cubes
Sweet Orange Glaze
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon reserved mandarin orange juice (from the can when drained)
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Night Prep For Monkey Bread
- In a small bowl, whisk the cook & serve vanilla pudding mix (dry, do not prepare), light brown sugar, and the fresh orange zest until evenly combined. Set aside.1 box (3 oz) Cook & Serve vanilla pudding mix, 1 cup packed light brown sugar, orange zest from 1 large orange
- Spray a 10-inch bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Lay 10 frozen rolls in the bottom of the bundt pan.20 frozen Rhodes dinner rolls
- Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the pudding mixture evenly over top the rolls. Evenly spread 1/2 cup of the dried cranberries, then half of the roughly chopped mandarin oranges, and scatter half of the butter cubes.1 cup dried cranberries, 1 can (15 oz) mandarin oranges, 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
- Repeat the layers one more time by adding the remaining 10 frozen rolls, the rest of the pudding mixture, and the remaining dried cranberries, chopped mandarin oranges, and butter cubes.
- Cover the bundt pan tightly with plastic wrap, that has been sprayed with cooking spray (the side that touches the rolls), and refrigerate overnight for 10-12 hours, allowing the rolls to thaw and begin to rise.
Morning Rise & Baking
- In the morning, set the bundt pan in a warm place at room temperature for 2-3 hours, or until the dough has risen properly to nearly the top of the bundt pan. *To speed up this process I like to put the bundt pan on a heating pad at a very low setting (like a 2 or 3).
- Preheat your oven to 350℉.
- Remove the plastic wrap and bake for 35-40 minutes. After the first 20 minutes, loosely cover the top with a piece of aluminum foil and keep it tented for the remainder of the baking time to prevent over-browning.
- Remove the bundt pan from the oven and let it cool on a cooling rack for 20 minutes.
Make The Glaze & Serve Warm
- While the bread cools, prepare the glaze by whisking together the powdered sugar, mandarin orange juice, and vanilla extract until smooth. *The glaze recipe easily doubles (I usually do this!). Make sure you save extra of the mandarin orange juice when draining.1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon reserved mandarin orange juice, ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Invert the bundt pan onto a serving plate. Drizzle the glaze over top of the monkey bread before serving. Serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
- It’s vital that you use the Cook & Serve vanilla pudding, NOT instant vanilla pudding. The cook and serve melts into a glossy caramel sauce that coats the rolls perfectly. It combines with the butter and brown sugar to make an amazing caramel-style sauce. Instant pudding does not behave the same way in the oven.
- You can use salted or unsalted butter – salted butter will give it a very slightly salty taste (not a huge difference). I have used both kinds with great results.
- Drain the mandarin oranges very well (making sure to reserve 1-2 tablespoons of the juice). Excess juice inside the bundt pan can pool at the bottom and slow the browning process and create a soggy texture.
- If the center of the monkey bread still looks slightly underdone and pale, bake for an additional 3-5 minutes. I lightly pull apart some of the rolls on top just to make sure the bread looks cooked all the way through towards the bottom of the bundt pan.
- Do not thaw the rolls before assembling the monkey bread. They will thaw overnight in the fridge. You want them frozen when preparing the cranberry orange monkey bread.
- To speed up the morning rise process, put the bundt pan on top of a heating pad that is set at a low setting – such as a 2 or 3, or a 1 depending on your heating pad settings.
- My family loves lots of glaze so I always double the glaze recipe. Just make sure to save extra mandarin orange juice when draining.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love to see it! You can share it with me on @togetherasfamilyblog and follow on Pinterest @together-as-family-blog-recipes or Facebook @togetherasfamilyblog for more!
Did you love this recipe?
Make sure to comment below so we can chat about it! Or follow on your favorite social network for even more family recipes.