Pecan Rolls (Sticky Rolls)
Topped and filled with pecans, and covered in an amazing glaze, these soft and delicious pecan rolls are better than any bakery or store bought you can find!
Now, before you begin, you need to know that this recipe does take some time. But it is so worth it! Don't be scared by the long list of directions, it is meant to help you make no mistakes when baking up these beauties :)
I was searching for pecan rolls on the internet so I could have a recipe to compare this one to, and to my surprise there were hardly any recipes called pecan rolls. It seems that most people refer to these as sticky buns, but growing up and in the bakery I work at, these are pecan rolls. I suppose they can be sticky buns if you remove the pecans, but in this recipe the pecans are the way to go! Whatever you call these, pecan rolls, sticky buns, something else- these taste amazing and deliver such a beautiful presentation, you will be praised for making them with whatever name you give them!
To make these, I looked at a recipe from a family member as well as a few recipes I have seen, and decided to make my own, using the others as rough guidelines. These rolls take a little bit of time to make, but you can spread it out over two days if you want to. You can even freeze half of the batch if you do not need them all; I did this so that I could give one pan to Efrain and his parents, and it worked like a charm! An added bonus is that since you are making this recipe yourself, you can choose whether or not to add things like raisins. I chose not to, but you can definitely do that if you like!
The reason I chose to make pecan rolls is because of my mom. I had wanted to bake something, and gave my mom two choices of what I should make because I could not decide myself. I knew she would go for the pecan rolls, and she did! She loves pecan rolls, but she does not like raisins (why I left them out), and she can be particular about things like the taste of the glaze. She also loves it when there are actually pecans inside the rolls, and not just on top. This recipe is sure to please anyone you share these with! And I do recommend sharing them, or else you are going to have sticky fingers and an empty plate before you even know what happened :)
Pecan Rolls/Sticky Buns
Ingredients:
Dough:
2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water
4-4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup instant nonfat dry milk powder
1 large egg
1 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling:
3 ounces or ¾ stick unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
¾ cup chopped pecan pieces
Glaze:
½ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
¼ cup unsalted butter
Directions:
In a large bowl, let the yeast dissolve in the ¼ cup of warm water. Let it sit until it begins to get bubbly or frothy, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whisk together 2 cups of flour, the salt, sugar, cinnamon, and nonfat dry milk powder.
Add the egg, 1 cup warm water, and vanilla extract to the yeast mixture. Mix together, and then add in half of the flour mixture, stirring to combine. Add in the second half of the flour mixture, and stir to combine.
At this point, your dough will seem incredibly wet and sticky. Add in one cup of flour and mix it into the dough. Once it is combined, add in the fourth cup of flour.
If your dough has come together, you do not need to add more flour. If your dough is still wet and sticky, start adding flour a few tablespoons at a time. Try not to over flour or work your dough, or the pecan rolls will have a tougher texture than you want.
Once the dough is at a mostly smooth state, you can either move it to an oiled bowl or oil the bowl it is currently in. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours. If possible, every half hour lightly deflate and fold over the dough and let it rise against. This lets the dough redistribute the yeast, so it will rise more effectively.
At this point, you can either refrigerate the dough overnight or continue to work with it.
When you are ready to finish the pecan rolls, cut the dough in two pieces.
Let each piece rest for a little bit while you prepare the pans: Grease 2 8 inch square or round pans lightly, fill each pan with ½ cup pecan pieces, and make the glaze.
To make the glaze, melt the butter and corn syrup in a saucepan over medium-low heat, and add the brown sugar. Pour this mixture evenly among the two pans.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
Working with one piece at a time, roll it out into a long rectangle, about 10-12 inches by 18-22 inches.
Spread half of the softened butter over the rolled out dough, and then sprinkle half of the brown sugar-cinnamon mix over the butter. Next, spread half of the pecans over the dough as well.
Roll the dough up, from one long end to the other. Pinch the ends together, and use a knife or a piece of dental floss (recommended!) to cut the rolls. I got 8-9 pecan rolls from each dough piece, but you can easily cut more (about 12-16) and use a larger pan, probably a 9x13 pan instead.
Place the pecan rolls into your pans and place them in the oven for approximately 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.
Take the pecan rolls out of the oven and let cool on a rack for about 5 minutes, then flip the pan over onto a heatproof plate so that the pecans and glaze from the bottom of the pan can go to the top of the pecan rolls,
Serve and enjoy!
*These are best served warm, and should be eaten within 4 days. On the third day, you will need to heat the pecan rolls up in the microwave or oven for best taste.
**This recipe is a Rooks to Cooks original. The recipe and all photos are copyright Rooks to Cooks and may not be used without permission.
Posted on 6/4/14 by Kiley