You might be familiar with Monkey Bread, which is typically made with biscuits.

These praline rolls use yeast dough, so you can prepare them in advance and leave them in the fridge until you're ready to bake them. It's a big hit with house guests and hosts alike, kids enjoy rolling the dough, and the baking rolls make the house smell wonderful.

We're using prepared bread dough from the grocery freezer, but if you have a favorite buttery yeast dough you make from scratch, that would be delicious as well!

Overnight Praline Pull-Apart Rolls

2 pounds good-quality white or whole wheat bread dough

1/2 cup white sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1/3 cup butter

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

1 cup pecans, roughly chopped

Coat a large metal bowl with cooking spray. Place 2 pounds of frozen bread dough in the bowl. Coat a piece of plastic wrap with cooking spray, place loosely over the top of the bowl. To quickly thaw the dough, turn your oven to 175 degrees for 5 minutes, then turn it off. Place the covered bowl in the oven and leave the door slightly ajar. The dough should be thawed in about 4 hours. Alternatively, seal the plastic wrap over the bowl and place the dough in the fridge overnight to thaw.

Once the dough is thawed, assemble the ingredients. Melt the butter In a flat bowl with low sides. Mix the white sugar, cardamom, and cinnamon together in a separate small bowl. Coat a 10-inch bundt or angel food pan liberally with cooking spray.

With wet hands, take half the dough and roll it into a 2-inch tube between your palms. Place the tube on a cutting board and cut into 2-inch pieces with a sharp serrated knife. Or squeeze roll-size pieces between your thumb and forefinger. Roll each piece into a ball (it doesn't need to be perfectly round) and dip into the melted butter. Roll in the sugar-cinnamon mixture and drop in the tube pan. Repeat the process with the rest of the dough, dropping the rolled pieces onto the first layer.

Cover the tube pan with plastic wrap coated in cooking spray, refrigerate anywhere from 8 to 18 hours. Yeast bread is very obliging and will usually rise regardless of the length of time it's in the fridge. I once forgot I had made this and left it for 24 hours in the fridge with no problems. Don't worry if the rolls don't appear to have risen much in the refrigerator. They will double in size once they hit the heat in the oven.  

When you're ready to bake the rolls, preheat your oven to 325 degrees and whip your cream. In a bowl with high sides, beat the whipping cream with an electric mixer, just until you see soft peaks form when you lift up the beaters. Sprinkle in the brown sugar and beat just until incorporated. Be careful not to over-beat the cream. Sprinkle the pecans over the rolls, pour on whipped cream.

Just in case, place the tube pan on a cookie sheet that you have lined with foil. Baked-on sugar is not fun to get off the oven floor! Bake for 55-60 minutes until golden brown. Cool in the pan only 10 minutes. Carefully invert onto a pretty platter and serve.  

On the off chance you have leftovers, don't re-heat in the microwave. Microwaving yeast bread really destroys the texture. Wrap any leftovers in foil and reheat in the oven for a few minutes at 325 degrees.