roasted garlic-nori monkey bread

I love a Thanksgiving shortcut, especially when there’s already so much to make and manage. This monkey bread is a great shortcut because it starts with a bag of storebought pizza dough, which takes out the most cumbersome part of making anything bread-like (in my opinion). Add in two umami components: roasted garlic and seaweed, and you have a perfect carb option for your dinner table.

i used

• 1 bag pizza dough (mine was whole foods, 1 lb 6 oz)
• 2 heads garlic
• olive oil + salt
• 4 tbsp butter, melted
• 2 sheets roasted seaweed
• 1 tsp neutral oil
• 1/2 tsp soy sauce
• pinch of salt
• flaky salt + sliced scallions for serving

to make

• pull the dough out of the fridge about an hour before baking so it can soften up
• while it warms, heat the oven to 400F and roast your garlic. slice the tops off both heads, drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt, wrap them in foil, and bake for 45–50 minutes until the cloves are caramelized and completely soft
• make the garlic–nori butter by melting the butter and mashing in the roasted garlic from *one* of the heads. use a spice grinder to blitz the seaweed into a chunky powder and stir it in with the butter, neutral oil, soy sauce, and a pinch of salt. adjust to taste — it should taste buttery, savory, and a tiny bit ocean-y.
• divide the pizza dough into 16 pieces. then, tuck a small clove of roasted garlic, or have a large clove, (from the second head garlic) into each piece and roll it into a ball
• brush the dough balls generously with the garlic–nori butter — you’ll probably have 1–2 tablespoons left, which is perfect for serving later
• grease an 8″ cake pan or a loaf pan with a little oil or butter and stack the dough balls inside so they’re nestled together but not crammed. let the dough rise in a warm spot for ~30 minutes
• bake at 400F for 25–30 minutes
• let them cool on a wire rack for a few minutes, then finish with flaky salt and scallions.
• serve warm, with extra nori butter on the side.