Baklava-Inspired Monkey Bread

Ready to throw your diet out the window? Or just feeling indulgent? This recipe is the treat your mouth has been waiting for! I actually combined two recipes to make this and I'm super glad I did (yep, this is another 10 out of 10 :)) The original recipe has the dough being made from scratch; though I enjoy making things from scratch (obviously), I did not have time to do so when I wanted to make this. When I make regular monkey bread, I use Pillsbury dough's recipe and no need to fuss with dough from scratch. Thus, I figured to cross the two ideas and see how it turned out (spoiler alert: wonderful). The result was perfect--it really is like a cross between the two treats. Without further ado, here is the recipe...

And the link to my YouTube "making of the recipe" video: https://youtu.be/P5-F-AzDF8U

Original link 1:  http://www.midwestliving.com/recipe/baklava-monkey-bread/

Original link 2:  https://tinyurl.com/y9urpngt

Ingredients:

1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 cans (16.3 oz. each) Pillsbury Grands! Flaky Layers refrigerated original biscuits
1 c. brown sugar (packed)
1/2 c. honey
1/3 c. heavy cream
1/4 c. butter
1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
1/2 c. walnuts
1/2 c. pistachio nuts
1/3 c. butter, melted

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F and grease a 10" or 12" fluted tube/Bundt pan very well.

2. Add the sugar and cinnamon to a large zip top plastic bag and shake to combine.

3. Cut each biscuit in fourths and add to cinnamon-sugar mixture in bag. Shake to coat until all pieces are coated.

4. Prepare the syrup: in a medium saucepan, combine brown sugar, honey, cream, 1/4 c. butter, and the lemon zest. Bring to boiling, then reduce heat to simmer.  Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until reduced to 1 1/2 cups. Cool completely.

5. In food processor, combine/chop walnuts and pistachios.

6. Arrange coated biscuit pieces on a rimmed baking sheet or large bowl. Drizzle with the melted butter and toss pieces gently to coat evenly.

7. Spoon/pour 1/2 c. of the cooled syrup into the prepared fluted tube/Bundt pan. Sprinkle with about a third of the nut mixture. Arrange about a third of the buttered dough pieces over the nuts.  Repeat layering twice to complete.

8. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes after removing from oven, then invert onto large serving platter/plate. Serve warm and enjoy!!