Rosie Bakes Sticky Buns.

 

It's the weekend.  It's cold outside.  And I need a project.
I think I'll make sticky buns.

I have lots of recipes for sticky buns.  This one's just the latest.

It's dripping in a sweet and sticky syrup featuring brown sugar, butter, and pecans.

It's pretty darn good, but then I don't think I've ever had a bad bun.

I'll give you the recipe first, then you can check out the step-by-steps.

Sticky Buns

For the dough:
1 cup skim milk
1/2 cup cream
2 pkgs yeast
1/3 cup sugar
5 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp salt
2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened

For the filling:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup crushed pecans
2 tsp cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, softened

For the syrup:
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 TB light corn syrup
1/4 cup heavy cream

Make the dough:

Rosie Note:  Instead of 1 cup skim and 1/2 cup cream, you could use 1 1/2 cups whole milk.  I just never have whole milk on hand so I substitute with what I do have, which is always skim and cream.  I think the actual ratio for a cup of whole milk is 1 1/2 TB heavy cream and the balance skim.  But I like to err on the side of fat.  Don't think you can go wrong there.

Heat the milk/skimandcream to slightly warm  (105° - 115°).

Pour 1/2 cup of the milk/cream into a small bowl and sprinkle the yeast and a little sugar over top.  Let stand until the yeast "proofs."  That means it "proves" it's alive by eating the sugar and getting all poofy and bubbly.  If it doesn't, then your yeast is no good.  Throw it out and use good yeast.

In a stand mixer, combine flour, sugar, and salt.  Mix with dough hook until combined.

In another small bowl, whisk remaining 1 cup warm milk/cream with eggs.  Add to dry ingredients, along with yeast mixture.  Mix at medium speed about 2 minutes, until a soft dough forms.  Add butter and continue beating until dough is smooth and elastic, about 4-5 minutes.

Rinse a large bowl with hot water, pour it out, then put dough in wet bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in volume.  About 2 hours.

Make the filling:
Combine brown sugar, pecans and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Mix well.

Make the syrup:

In a small sauce pan, combine butter, sugars, corn syrup, and heavy cream.  Heat over low until butter is melted.  Bring to a simmer and simmer, stirring, for about 2 minutes.

Make the buns:

Turn the risen dough out onto a large well-floured surface and dust with more flour.  Roll it out into a 12 x 16-inch rectangle, with long side towards you.  Using an offset spatula, spread butter evenly onto dough, then sprinkle filling over dough.  Roll up dough to form a 16-inch log, pressing seam to seal.  Let rest about 10 minutes, then cut log into 16 equal slices.

Assemble:

Using 2 8x8-inch baking dishes, pour half the syrup into each dish.  Arrange 8 buns, cut side up, in each dish.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Bake:

Heat oven to 350°.  Bake buns until puffed and golden About 32 minutes.  After the first 20 minutes, rotate the pans and cover with foil if needed.  Let buns rest in pans on a rack for about 15 minutes, then invert onto platters.

Now, for the step-by-steps:

Sprinkle the yeast onto the warmed milk.

Yeast is hungry, so give it some sugar to munch on.

And wait...

Numyumnumyum.

It's ready.

In another small bowl, whisk together remaining warm milk and eggs.

Add egg mixture to dry ingredients.

Pour in yeast mixture.

Knead away until you get a nice ball like this.

Knead in butter.

Then place dough in the wet bowl.

Cover and let rise.

Back right - risen dough.
Back left - brown sugar, pecan, and cinnamon filling.
Front - makings of syrup mixture - butter, sugar, dark brown sugar, cream.

Turn out dough onto floured work surface.

Using additional flour and flipping the dough, as needed, roll it out into a 12 x 16-inch rectangle.

Dot surface with a stick of butter and then ...

schmear it out.

Sprinkle on the brown sugar/pecan/cinnamon mixture.

And now, you're ready to roll.

Start rolling lengthwise...

...and press the seam to seal.

My baking dishes are ready with the syrup.

Start slicing the log.

Into 16 pieces.

Tuck pieces into the baking dishes.

And let rise until doubled.

And bake.

 
Invert.

And here ya go.

Gooey, ooey goodness.

A Saturday well spent.

Enjoy!

Rosie Makes Sticky Buns.

Who doesn't love sticky buns?

Over the years, I've made a bunch of 'em

and I think this recipe rates right up at the top.

There's a twist to the recipe.

Instead of making a 9 x 13-inch baking dish 

full of rising, pull-apart buns,

these are individual buns, made in muffin tins.

And they're delicious.

 Sticky Buns

1 package yeast 

1/2 cup skim milk

1/2 cup cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, softened, cut into pats

2 eggs

about 4 1/2 cups flour - give or take

1 tsp kosher salt
3 TB unsalted butter, melted

1 cup brown sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 TB melted unsalted butter

For the dough:

Rosie Note:  You can use whole milk instead of skim and cream.  I never have whole milk on hand, but I always have skim and cream, so that's what I use.  And I tend to go heavy on the cream.  Because more fat is better, right?  Actually, if you want to approximate whole milk using skim and heavy cream, you'd use a scant 1 oz. cream to 7 oz. skim.  (Or 1 1/2 TB heavy cream and the balance skim milk to make one cup.)

Heat the milk until lukewarm, not hot.  Pour into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Add the yeast, sugar, and butter pats.  Mix at medium speed a minute or so to break up the butter.  It will look curdled.  That's normal.   Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then add the flour (1/2 cup or so at a time) and salt, beating at low speed  until incorporated, 4-5 minutes, scraping down the side of the bowl.  There's a bit of play in the amount of flour.  You don't want the dough too sticky and you don't want it too stiff.  You want it juuuuuusssssst riiiiiiight. 

Turn dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until almost doubled, about an hour.

Heat oven to 325°.

Grease a 12-cup muffin tin.

Working on a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a 9 x 18-inch rectangle.
 Or around abouts.
Brush the 3 TB melted butter over surface of dough.
Mix brown sugar with cinnamon in a small bowl and evenly sprinkle over dough along with the chopped pecans.

Beginning at the long side, tightly roll up the dough.  Cut the log into 12 equal pieces and place into muffin cups, cut side up.  Brush tops with remaining 2 TB melted butter.  Cover and let sit in a warm place for about an hour.

Bake 25 - 30 minutes, rotating at halftime, until golden brown.

Make the syrup:
4 TB unsalted butter

1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup cream

2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup toasted pecans, crushed

In a small saucepan, melt butter with sugar and cream.  Bring to a simmer.  Stir vanilla into syrup.  Remove from heat.  Spread pecans on a baking sheet and toast until fragrant.  Cool pecans, place in a plastic bag, then run over with a rolling pin to crush. 

Remove buns from muffin tins, place on a serving dish, and spoon syrup over top.  Sprinkle with toasted pecans.

Now, for the step by steps:

Mix warm milk and cream with yeast and sugar.
Let the yeast proof.
Yeast is hungry.  It wants to eat the sugar.   Carbon dioxide and alcohol will be by-products of this little meal.  That means the mixture will get all poofy and bubbly.  That means the yeast has "proved" it's alive.  If the mixture doesn't get bubbly, dump it and get good yeast.

Add in the butter and process away.

Then work in the eggs and flour and mix until it all comes together in a nice, elastic ball of dough.
And yes.  There's wiggle room with the flour.
Roll it around in an oiled bowl, cover it, and let it rise.

Roll out on a lightly floured work surface and brush with melted butter.

Sprinkle on cinnamon and brown sugar mixture.

Sprinkle on pecans.

And roll up.

Cut into 12 equal pieces.

Set into muffin tins and brush tops with melted butter.

Let rise.

Bake until golden.

Let buns cool a bit, remove from tins, and pour the syrup over top.

And pour.

And pour some more.
Let 'em soak up any syrup that spills over.

Sprinkle toasted pecans over top.

Then, sit back and gaze upon your creations.

Admire them.

You may drool a bit.  That is allowed.

Dig in!

Enjoy!