Easy Cheesy Pesto Monkey Bread!?

This bread is as much fun to make as it is to eat. The juxtaposition between the flavors of the sour dough and the sweet basil pesto blend beautifully with the gooey, aromatic melted cheese. We frequently serve this as finger food while watching the Rugby World Cup or the Super Bowl. Everyone enjoys a bit of cheesy finger-licking bliss…

 

Easy Cheesy Pesto Monkey Bread

 

Ingredients

1 round loaf of quality sour dough French bread

1/2 cup Le Voov! Basil Pesto

12 – 16 ounces finely grated Swiss/Gruyere blend

Add freshly ground black pepper & sea salt to taste

 

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350°. Place Silpat non-stick baking mat (available at our Amazon Store) on baking sheet in oven to warm. If you don’t have a Silpat, use parchment paper or foil.

While the oven is heating, use a quality bread knife to score the French bread loaf lengthwise, being careful not to cut through the base of the round. (Leave ½ inch on bottom of loaf intact.) Turn the loaf and score across the width of the loaf, holding the round together with your hand on top while cutting. Once completed, the loaf will look like a cute flowering bloom with little square pedals.

With a marinade brush, smear basil pesto both length and width-wise across loaf, making sure to get it deep into every little crevice and cranny. Once the pesto is sufficiently slathered throughout the round, place finely grated cheese deep into all the valleys of pesto, making sure most of the cheese is nestled well so as not to ooze out during heating.

Place loaf on the heated baking sheet and cook until cheese is beautifully bubbly and blended with the pesto. Approx. 15 – 20 min. Remove from oven and let cool for 4-min. prior to serving.

Le Voov! Notes: ? We usually serve Monkey Bread with a soup such as Savory Wild Mushroom Soup. You can substitute other cheeses such as dill Havarti, smoked mozzarella, or hot pepper jack to add a fun zing of heat to your mouth.

Wine Paring: ?A dry Pinot Gris or Viognier