Cook a Big Gay Thanksgiving

Art Smith's Thanksgiving Dinner Monkey Bread With Cranberry and Orange

Monkey Bread:
3 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup warm water
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
1 stick butter, melted plus 2 tablespoons for greasing bundt pan
2 eggs, whisked
Canola oil, for greasing proofing bowl
1 14 ounce can cranberry sauce

Cinnamon Sugar:
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 stick butter, melted

Cranberry Orange Sauce:
1 14 ounce can cranberry sauce
2 tablespoons orange liqueur
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 orange, juiced
Powdered sugar, for dusting

For Monkey Bread Dough
1. Heat water to 110 degrees. Add honey and active dry yeast and allow to sit in a warm place for 10 minutes until the yeast foams.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the flour and salt and mix to combine.
3. In a small pot heat together the milk and butter until melted.
4. Add to the flour mixture the bloomed yeast, heated butter mixture, and eggs. Mix on medium-high speed for six minutes. The dough will completely combine, become sticky and pull away from the sides of the bowl. Remove to a floured board and knead the dough by hand until it becomes smooth. Place the dough in a bowl coated with oil, cover with plastic wrap, and place in a warm place for an hour; the dough will double in size.

For Cinnamon Sugar
1. Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish.
2. Melt the butter in small saucepan.

To Assemble Monkey Bread
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease a bundt pan with butter, set aside.
3. When the dough has doubled in size turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough into 32 equal pieces. Take one piece of dough at a time and slightly stretch the dough to fit into the palm of your hand. Fill the middle of the dough with one teaspoon of cranberry sauce, fold the dough over the filling, pinching it together to seal completely, then roll the filled dough into a ball. Brush the ball with butter and coat in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place seam side up in the bundt pan. Continue to form the dough and fill the bundt pan, brushing each new layer with butter before adding more dough on top. When finished assembling the monkey bread, cover the bundt pan with plastic wrap and place in a warm place to proof for one hour; the dough should double in size and reach the top of the bundt pan.
4.When the dough has proofed, place in the preheated oven and cook for one hour; the dough will become golden brown and crusty. Allow to cool for five minutes, then invert the monkey bread onto a serving platter.

For Cranberry Orange Sauce
1. Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pot and heat until warm and combined.
2. Generously spoon sauce over the monkey bread, and fill the center of the monkey bread with additional sauce. Dust with powdered sugar and serve.