A Sticky Situation.

The first time I made sticky buns, I was so excited to taste them.  They are really a whole-morning or afternoon endeavor--though during the dough rises you're free to do other things--so I felt a sense of accomplishment when they were finally baked and ready.  Unfortunately, I was disappointed in the "sticky" part of the sticky bun.  I made the glaze as directed by the recipe that went with the buns themselves, and it called for light corn syrup.  Since then, I've automatically ignored any recipe containing it, because it just makes a sort of chewy, gluey artificial-sweetener-tasting mess rather than a smooth, melts-in-your-mouth glaze.  The next time I made sticky buns, I used the bun recipe with a different glaze, and I think all the rolls were gone in a day.

What I did wrong the first time:
1) Used a glaze containing light corn syrup.  Unless you're making hard candy (and sometimes even then), steer clear of recipes including it.  While I'm not "against" it, in most recipes, it just tastes bad.
2) Didn't use a large enough pan.  Keep in mind that the rolls more than double in size during rising and baking.  You'll need a ~10-12" pan.  I used two 6" cake pans for this batch and had a little room left over in the second one, though I should have filled both.
3) Didn't soften the butter enough to easily spread on the dough for the filling.  It needs to be almost melted.

Here is the recipe for the rolls (from Taste of the South magazine):
Dough:
~3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 package dry active yeast (.25 oz)
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup butter, cubed
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Filling:
1/4 cup butter, very soft
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt

And here is the recipe for the glaze (from Bon Appetit):
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup honey
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp orange zest

The recipe says to combine 1 1/2 cups of flour and yeast and set it aside and then incorporate more flour after adding the other ingredients, but the last two times I accidentally combined all the flour and yeast beforehand, and it worked just fine, as long as I only stirred until everything just came together and still made a sticky, soft dough.  In a medium saucepan, I combined the butter, milk, sour cream, sugar, and salt, cooking and stirring occasionally until the mixture reached 125°F.  I poured it over the flour mixture and added the egg and vanilla.  If you use all the flour at the beginning like I did, there will be a good cup of extra flour left at the bottom once you've stirred to make the dough.

I turned the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and kneaded it until smooth and elastic, about five minutes, adding flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking.  Then I formed it into a ball, placed it in a bowl, sprayed the top with non-stick spray, covered, and let it rise for 1 hour and 15 minutes until it had doubled in size.  You can set it in any warm, draft-free place, but I use the oven's bread-proof setting on 85°F (its lowest).  

Once the dough was almost done rising, I made the glaze, combining all the ingredients and bringing them to a boil over medium heat, then lowering the heat and letting it all cook together for another three minutes.  I poured a thin layer of it into the bottom of each cake pan, then set it aside. 
  

Then I removed the dough from the oven, punched it down, and let it sit while I combined the sugar, cinnamon, orange zest, flour, and salt and softened the butter for the filling.  I rolled out the dough into a ~20" X 12" rectangle (the recipe says 14 X 10, but I couldn't get that to roll up properly).  
  

I spread the butter in a thin layer on the dough and spread the cinnamon mixture on top of that. starting with the long side, I rolled the dough into a log, pinching the seam together.  

I cut off ~1 inch sections and placed the rolls, sides touching, into the pans.  I placed the pans back in the oven to let the rolls rise for another 45 minutes, again until doubled in size.

As you can see, I should probably have spread them evenly

into the two pans to give them a little more room to rise.

Then I baked them at 350°F for 25 minutes until golden brown.  Depending on how hot your oven runs, it could take anywhere from 20-30 minutes.  I prefer to take them out when they're still a little soft. 

I topped both pans with the remaining glaze, and spread toasted pecans on one batch. Although they are best the same day they are made or the next morning, you can store these, covered, at room temperature for two days or refrigerated for 4-5.  You can reheat them in the oven, but I usually just pop one into the microwave for about 20-30 seconds before eating.

DEEMS THIS RECIPE:
Not much easier than pie, but worth it when you have spare time.