Easy-to-make homemade sticky buns filled with cinnamon brown sugar and topped with a rum toffee pecan glaze!
This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill. All opinions are my own.
In South Florida, there’s a spot called Knaus Berry Farm that opens every year from November to April and serves the most delicious sticky buns. SOOO GOOD! Sometimes, we have to make a huge line just to buy a dozen. That’s why I decided to develop my own sticky bun recipe for all those times where we’re unable to make that long line or when Knaus Berry is closed.
And I have to say… they live up to the hype!
For this recipe, I used Bob’s Red Mill’s Organic Unbleached All-Purpose Flour. This flour is a premium baking flour freshly milled from certified organic, hard red wheat. You can use this high-quality wheat flour product for baked goods, including yeast breads, quick breads, biscuits, muffins, cookies, and cakes. It’s unbleached and unenriched, with no potassium bromate added. Bob’s Red Mill is one of my favorite brands of all time for baking.
Here’s how I brought these sticky buns to life!
How To Make Rum Toffee Pecan Glazed Sticky Buns
- Make the dough. Into a stand mixer, mix together the milk, instant dry yeast, brown sugar, eggs, butter, and salt. Switch to the dough hook, add flour and mix until a dough forms. Cover the bowl with a towel and rest for 1 hour. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Make the filling. In a bowl, mix together brown sugar and cinnamon until all is combined. Set aside.
- Make the topping. In a saucepan, combine the brown sugar and butter. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer for 4 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in rum. Pour mixture into the baking dish and top with the chopped pecans. Set aside.
- Cut the dough into rolls. Lightly sprinkle your work surface with flour. Transfer the dough onto your work surface and roll into a rectangle with the long. Brush melted butter over the dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon brown sugar mixture evenly over the melted butter. Roll the dough into an 18-inch long log. Using a sharp knife, cut into 12 rolls. Transfer the rolls on top of the rum toffee pecan topping in the baking dish. Cover the rolls with a towel and let them rise for 30 minutes.
- Bake the rolls! Preheat the oven to 375º F. Bake the rolls for 30 minutes or until golden brown on top. At the 15 minute mark, cover the top of the rolls with aluminum foil to avoid them browning too much. Remove from the oven and let them cool for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, carefully invert the rolls onto a large serving dish. Serve warm. Enjoy!
Questions about sticky buns
Yes! Once you transfer the buns to the baking dish on top of the rum toffee pecan topping, brush the tops of the sticky buns with melted butter then cover the dish in plastic wrap. The butter will help the plastic wrap come off easily the next day. Place the dish in the fridge overnight for 8-12 hours. Once you’re ready to bake, bring the sticky buns to room temperature, about 30 minutes or so, before baking.
Yes, you can however you need to partially bake them first before freezing. When you get to step 6, bake the buns for 12-15 minutes instead of the full 25-30 minutes then cool completely. Cover the baking dish in plastic wrap before placing them in the freezer. You can freeze them for up to 1 month. Make sure to thaw them 24 hours before baking in the fridge and bake them the next day at 350ºF for the remaining time (10-15 minutes) until golden brown.
Both cinnamon rolls and sticky buns are sweet, rolled up pieces of leavened dough. Sticky buns are a bit denser while cinnamon rolls are fluffier. They’re both “sticky” because of their respective glaze – icing for cinnamon rolls vs a brown sugar glaze for the buns. I’d say the main difference is sticky buns have pecans and cinnamon rolls do not. Both are delicious either way!
Sticky buns may be kept at room temperature for 2 days covered in aluminum foil to prevent them from drying out. You could also transfer them to an airtight container and place them in the refrigerator for 1 week or the freezer for up to 3 months. Just thaw and heat them up for 45 seconds in the microwave.
Can’t wait for you to make these sticky buns!
You may also like:
- The BEST Chewy Fudgy Brownies
- Guava Cake Bars (Cuban Masa Real de Guayaba)
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Rum Toffee Pecan Glazed Sticky Buns
Ingredients
Sticky Buns Dough
- 1 cup warm milk
- 2 1/4 teaspoons instant dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 4 tablespoons butter melted
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Flour
Rum Toffee Pecan Topping
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup dark spiced rum
- 1 cup toasted pecans chopped
Sticky Buns Filling
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Into a stand mixer, mix together the milk, instant dry yeast, brown sugar, eggs, butter and salt. Switch to the dough hook, add flour and mix until a dough forms. Cover the bowl with a towel and rest for 1 hour.
- Spray a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a saucepan, combine the brown sugar and butter. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer for 4 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in rum. Pour mixture into the baking dish and top with the chopped pecans. Set aside.
- In a bowl, mix together brown sugar and cinnamon until all is combined. Set aside.
- Lightly sprinkle your work surface with flour. Transfer the dough onto your work surface and roll into a rectangle with the long. Brush melted butter over the dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon brown sugar mixture evenly over the melted butter. Roll the dough into an 18-inch long log. Using a sharp knife, cut into 12 rolls. Transfer the rolls on top of the rum toffee pecan topping in the baking dish. Cover the rolls with a towel and let them rise for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown on top. At the 12 minute mark, cover the top of the rolls with aluminum foil to avoid them browning too much. Remove from oven and let them cool for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, carefully invert the rolls onto a large serving dish. Serve warm. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Thank you Bob’s Red Mill for sponsoring this post and a HUGE thank you to all the readers of this blog for all your support! xo
10 out of 10! This was super easy to make especially for someone like me who isn’t very kitchen friendly.
Could I freeze the buns before baking, then thaw and proof them before baking?
Hi! Yes, but you need to partially bake them first before freezing. When you get to step 6, bake the buns for 12-15 minutes instead of the full 25-30 minutes then cool completely. Cover the baking dish in plastic wrap before placing them in the freezer. You can freeze them for up to 1 month. Make sure to thaw them 24 hours before baking in the fridge and bake them the next day at 350ºF for the remaining time (10-15 minutes) until golden brown.