Sticky Bun Dough:

4 1/2 cups white bread flour (I prefer King Arthur Organic Bread Flour)
2 tsp. instant yeast (1 packet)
2 tsp. sea salt
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tbsp. honey
1/4 cup powdered milk (I use Bakers dry milk)
1 1/4 cup water (lukewarm)

Mix all the dry ingredients together. Mix wet ingredients together and add to dry. Use a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment to mix the dough. The dough will start out sticky and become smooth and not sticky but still soft. Put the dough in a lightly greased bowl large enough for the dough to double in size. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming on the dough.

Sticky Buns:

4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) butter
1 3/4 cups brown sugar packed, divided
1 tbsp. cinnamon (Vietnamese)
3/4 cup heavy cream, divided
1 1/2 cups pecans, optional (I use halves)

Prepare the 9x13-inch pan by adding 1/2 cup heavy cream and 2/3 cup brown sugar to the bottom of the pan. To the 9x9-inch pan add 1/4 cup heavy cream and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Thoroughly mix the cream and brown sugar with a spoon or whisk. Sprinkle the optional 1 cup of pecans on top of the cream/brown sugar in the larger pan and 1/2 cup in the smaller pan. May add less or more as desired.

Once the dough had doubled in size lightly flour your work surface and put the dough on the work surface. No need to deflate prior to rolling out.

Roll the dough into a rectangle roughly 16x21-inches. Spread the dough with the 4 tablespoons soft butter. Spread 3/4 of a cup of brown sugar on the dough. Sprinkle with the cinnamon and roll the dough into a 21-inch log. Cut the log into approximately 18 or 19 one-inch thick cinnamon rolls. Place 12 rolls in the large pan on top of the heavy cream mixture. Place the rest of the rolls in the smaller pan.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cover pans with plastic wrap and let the rolls rise until almost doubled in size. Rolls will be barely just touching each other. This takes 20 to 30 minutes.

Bake for 10 minutes at 375°F, then reduce the heat to 350°F and bake another 30 minutes or until the rolls are browned on top and the cream on the bottom has a caramel color.

Once cool enough to handle remove from the baking dish and turn upside down. Scrape out any extra topping left in the pan onto the rolls. Rolls can be stored at room temperature for 24 hours or refrigerated for 5 days, or frozen for 2 months. Reheat refrigerated rolls in an oven or toaster oven at 400°F for 5 to 7 minutes.

Submitted by: Doctor Jo