a wonderful recipe made EVEN BETTER!

a couple of weeks ago i shared with you the "official bread recipe" that i always use whenever making buns for my family. I've modified it a bit more, and created a special treat that is very popular, especially on Sunday mornings: sticky buns!

using the official recipe, make it just the same as if you were going to make buns (or bread) with the exception of adding 1 cup of sugar. divide the dough into thirds.

working with only 1/3 of the dough at a time, roll it out on a floured counter into a rectangle. then brush the dough with melted butter.



next, sprinkle it with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. our mixture here is heavier on the sugar than cinnamon, as I'm not a huge fan of cinnamon. at this point, you can also sprinkle the sticky buns with chopped nuts or raisins. we didn't do either for several reasons: we didn't have nuts (yummy) and i don't like raisins in my sticky buns. (yucky)


starting with a shorter side, roll up the dough rectangle into a log.


cut off about the last 1 inch or so on either side (it will make weirdly shaped sticky buns, so you don't really want them), and then divide the remainder of the log into eighths.

put them in your pan, and let rise in the oven (set at 200) and then bake. rising will take a bit longer than the regular recipe, due to the higher sugar content.


when they are nearly done baking, melt 1 stick butter and 1 cup brown sugar in a small saucepan on the stove top. bring this mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. when your sticky buns are done, turn them out onto a serving platter (i forgot to take a picture of that step) and drizzle the syrup mixture over the tops.

wow! you won't believe how yummy they are! i love to have them with a cup of coffee, and just peel them apart savoring each bite.

now, you may be asking yourself "how in the world does she make these on a Sunday morning?!" I'll let you in on my little secret. when you have the buns rolled out/up, and placed in your baking dish, instead of putting them in the oven to rise, put the buns in the refrigerator. (make sure you've covered them tightly or they will dry out) then on Sunday morning, just pop them in the oven to rise. it will take a bit longer for the buns to rise, but well worth the few minutes earlier you'll need to get up.

another "secret" was shared by my reader Annette. it's a good one, and i plan to do this the next time i make buns. here is what she shared: "I have a suggestion for when you make a double batch. Bake the rolls until just thoroughly baked, but not browned. Then freeze them. When it's time to eat them, put them in the oven, frozen...for a few minutes...maybe ten. And voila: fresh hot rolls! and not burned."

what a great idea! i hope your family enjoys these recipes as much as our family does. maybe I'll go back to making the sticky buns a Sunday morning tradition. what traditions does your family have?