Red Walnut Sticky Buns Recipe

The sticky buns do take a little preparation time, but the good news (besides ending up with sticky buns) is that you get two pans of them, so you can take one to the office or stick one in the freezer for later, doubling the yumminess. This also makes them perfect for holiday brunches—especially since you can make them ahead and have a no-stress day-of super shareable treat. They freeze well wrapped in foil. Just pop them in a 350-degree F oven straight from the freezer to warm them up. If you’re a recipe tinkerer, feel free to add extra chopped red walnuts or dried fruit on top of the filling mixture before rolling them up. Note to butter lovers! This recipe requires margarine instead of butter, keeping the glaze from crystalizing. Don’t be tempted to swap it out. Recipe makes two pans with seven sticky buns each.

Everything is better with RED walnuts....

Directions:

Make the dough:

1. In a small saucepan, scald the milk. Set aside to cool to lukewarm.

2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water, with 1 teaspoon of the granulated sugar, whisking briefly to mix. Allow the yeast to bloom, 5 minutes.

3. When the yeast looks bubbly, add the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar, the lukewarm milk, sea salt, beaten egg, 1/4 cup of the margarine, and 2 cups of flour. Stir until smooth. Add just enough of the remaining flour (1-1/2 to 1-3/4 cups) to make the dough easy to handle.

4. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, 5 to 10 minutes. You can also use a stand mixer and knead with the dough hook for about 5 minutes.

5. First rise: Put the dough in a greased bowl, turning it to coat. Cover the bowl with a cloth and let rise in a warm location until doubled in size, about 1-1/2 hours.

Toast the nuts during the first rise:

6. During this first rise, toast the red walnuts. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the nuts evenly on a light-colored baking sheet and toast for 8 minutes, until fragrant, being careful not to burn. Pour toasted nuts into a shallow bowl to cool completely. Give the dough a second rise:

7. Second rise: Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and let it rise again, covered, until doubled once again, about 30 minutes.

Make the glaze during the second rise:

8. During these 30 minutes, prepare the glaze by melting the 10 tablespoons of margarine in a small saucepan on low. Add the brown sugar and cane syrup, stirring until the sugar is fully dissolved (do not boil).

9. Grease two 9-by-2-inch round cake pans and divide the glaze between them. Sprinkle evenly with one cup of toasted red walnuts each. Set aside.

Roll and fill the dough:

10. Roll dough out on a floured surface, making an oblong strip, about 15-by-9 inches and 1/2 inch high. Spread with 2 tablespoons softened margarine, leaving a 1-inch border of unbuttered dough on the long side.

11. For the filling, mix 1/2 cup granulated sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle evenly on top of the buttered dough. 12. Roll up tightly, beginning on the long, buttered edge, and working toward the unbuttered edge. Seal long side by pinching tightly. Cut into 1-inch slices. You should have 14 or 15 slices, depending on your precision

13. Place cut sides of rolls on top of the red walnuts in the prepared pans, with the largest one in the center and the others spaced evenly around the outside. Leave a gap between the e buns and the edge of the pan, and between each bun, which will allow them to continue to rise.

Give the dough one last rise:

14. Final rise: Cover with a towel and let rise again, 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bake and unmold:

15. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool in their pans 3 to 5 minutes before carefully turning each pan upside down onto a plate while still hot. Use oven mitts and be careful, since the sugar syrup will be very hot. If there’s any glaze left in the pan, use a silicone spatula to remove it and drizzle it on the buns.

16. Cool to warm and wrap in foil until ready to eat. When wrapping, place the buns on top of the foil and close the foil top. Reheat in their foil wrapping in the oven as necessary before serving. Buns can be frozen, tightly wrapped in foil for up to 3 months, then reheated from frozen, in the foil.