Gluten and Dairy Free Monkey Bread!

This weekend was a much needed break from the everyday. It was so needed...

The party weekend started with this...

Max's Friday night hair. He cracks me up with his hair. Seriously, how did I make such a boldy stylish kid? I was so shy and reserved as a kid...I wish I had just an ounce of his confidence.

Saturday it was so overcast and humid. Tony and I headed to the gym early to get in a workout. I hit the treadmill for a short run and then did some free weights. The run was incredible on my legs! Seriously, the Mizuno Wave Nirvana 8 were like angel slippers (and super cute to boot!).

My legs felt like they could keep going forever. My lungs however, they were not loving the humidity. I give props to all those who can run in humidity like we have been having. I just could not breathe even inside. It was like trying to breathe underwater...I am NOT a fish. Anyway, I am excited to get more mileage on those shoes! They seriously felt amazingly supportive and light! Perfect!

After the workout and getting in a little lunch at home, we decided to head to the movies to see Brave. When it's that dreary and overcast, there is only one thing to do...go see a movie. We all loved Brave. It was incredibly beautiful and being the girl that I am, I liked seeing a strong female roll in a Pixar film. Can't say I was incredibly thrilled with the amount of talking that was going on with kids (semi excusable) and adults (not excusable), but it was a good movie and sometimes you just have to overlook stupidity and enjoy the moment. When we came out of the movie...it was pouring! The movies proved to be a good call!

Sunday, well, that felt like a complete vacation! We went out on the lake, just the four of us. Tony and I have been checking the weather for weeks hoping to get out there and when I saw on Saturday night that there was a change in the forecast, I was so excited! Tony and I woke up Sunday morning, packed lunches and out we went! We found a beautiful beachy area complete with waves from the other boats going by and hung out all day. It was AMAZING! We stayed out there for 6 hours. I could have stayed out for longer! I'm hoping for another weekend like that next weekend!

As for my eats, well, we kept things really simple here this weekend. Sandwiches, salads and leftovers. However, I owe you recipes from this past week! One of the major highlights was the Monkey Bread.

Did you grow up eating this stuff? I sure did...well the gluten and dairy laden version.

Monkey Bread was one of those things that I remember making way back as a kid because all I did was cut up biscuit rolls, roll them around in cinnamon sugar and then pour butter all over them...heaven, right?! There's a little more to it these days, but the same happy delicious moments are enjoyed while eating it! I have a version where I use biscuit mix, but I wanted to try out making it from scratch this time since I didn't have any biscuit mix on hand. This is really easy to throw together and so delicious to eat!

Gluten and Dairy Free Monkey Bread
(makes one loaf pan)

3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (I used Almond Breeze)
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 cup brown rice flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1/2 cup white rice flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1 cup gluten free all purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1 TBSP baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp xanthan gum (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup Smart Balance Light
1/2 cup egg whites

1/2 cup sugar
1 TBSP cinnamon
1/4 cup Smart Balance Light, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a bread pan with nonstick spray (I use olive oil).

Combine the almond milk and lemon juice; set aside.

In a bowl, combine the brown rice flour, white rice flour, gluten free all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt; mix well. Next using a fork, cut the Smart Balance into the flour mixture until it resembles a course meal (pebbles). Using the fork, stir in the egg whites and almond milk to combine the mixture into a dough. Set mixture in the fridge or freezer while you assemble the cinnamon sugar mixture and melt the butter.

In a tupperware, combine the cinnamon and sugar. Next, scoop the dough into tablespoon sized balls and put them in the sugar mixture a few at a time.  I used a small cookie scoop to scoop the dough to make it really easy. Shake the dough balls around to coat them in sugar and then put them in the prepared pan.  Do this with all of the dough.  When all the dough is coated in sugar, pour the melted Smart Balance evenly over the dough.  Place it in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the bread is firm to the touch in the center.

Here is the tricky part...wait 2 minutes to let it set and then flip it out on a serving dish.

This is doughy, sweet, gooey and cinnamony...YUM!

I'm sharing this on Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Allergy-Free Wednesdays.