sticky buns

The flavor of these sticky buns are hands-down fantastic, but boy are they messy!

Ingredients

Dough:
1 tsp instant yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
4 tbsp butter, melted
3 egg yolks
1 tbsp orange zest
2 tsp kosher salt
4 cups all-purpose flour
melted butter for greasing
Filling:
4 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
Topping:
4 tbsp butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp honey
2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped

15 buns

Directions

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine water and yeast. Sprinkle about a teaspoon of the sugar into the water. Let sit for 10 minutes.

Add the rest of the sugar, as well as the milk, butter, yolks, zest, salt, and 3 cups of flour. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Add the rest of the flour, increasing the speed to medium until the dough becomes smooth (about 3 to 5 minutes). Remove dough from mixer and shape into a ball.

Use a little butter to grease a deep glass bowl. (I use a 2 quart pyrex.) Roll dough around in the butter until it is coated all over. Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and place in a warm, draft-free spot for 2 hours. (I use my oven as my warm place, and if I'm looking to speed things up, I heat the oven to 200º and then turn it off before I put the dough in.)

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes. Then use your hands and a rolling pin to shape the dough into a 12x18" rectangle.

For the filling, brush the top of the dough with 4 tablespoons of butter. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl, and then sprinkle it on top of the melted butter.

Roll the dough lengthwise into a 12" cylinder. Use your hands to shape the cylinder so that it's fairly uniform, and then cut it crosswise into 15 slices.

Grease a 9x13" baking dish with a little butter.

For the topping, whisk together the butter, brown sugar, and honey in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once combined, remove from heat and pour into the baking dish. Sprinkle pecans on top.

Place the dough slices 5 across with the flat side down on top of the pecans. Cover with the moist tea towel and let rise another 2 hours in that warm place of yours. (Or you can cover with plastic wrap and let rise in the refrigerator overnight. Just be sure to let it return to room temperature before baking.)

Preheat oven to 375°. Bake on the middle rack for 30 minutes or until golden. Remove the pan from the oven and carefully invert it onto a large cutting board or serving tray.

Separate the buns and serve warm.

5 hours