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I have some news.
No, I am not writing a cookbook (I wish!) and no I am not getting married (only twenty, although my mom was married at eighteen).
Nope, yesterday my mixer broke.
I almost cried. I can’t live without my Kitchen Aid Mixer!
Especially, since I had big plans of dough making all day long.
Yeah, well that dough, did not happen.
What did happen was I called in my dad, who lately has been Mister Fix-it.
Oh, I had high hopes. I mean, he has brought lamps, heaters and chairs back from the dead. He even my re-did a topper for my brother’s truck, complete with a new plexiglass window and a lock!. Surely he could fix my mixer.
You guys, all he gave was more bad new.
Dad: “Well Tieg, I think I can fix it.”
Me: Yes, yes, yes! Literally, I jumped for joy.
Dad: “But I have to order parts and it’s probably going to take a while, so I would just buy a new one and then you will have two.”
Me: What???
See, this may not seem like a huge deal, but I am as cheap as they come and I just bought a crazy expensive new camera… and lens, that I am in the midst of trying to figure out (someone send help!).
And well, other things to go with the camera, and more things for the blog, and just too much for my brain to comprehend.
Ugh.
I kind of hate seeing my money go out the door. Oh, and the responsibilities of being an adult.
Anyway, it is prime time baking season and I have no mixer.
So you guys can totally say good-bye to all the Christmas cookies, cakes and cinnamon rolls.
It’s just not going to happen this year.
Ya Right.
I totally bought this one last night on Amazon. It’ll be here Wednesday. Free two-day shipping, thank God for Amazon. Especially up here where I live. I mean it’s not like I can just run out somewhere up here and go buy a new mixer. We do have a Target, but they won’t carry the big Pro 600.
Now I can make all the sticky buns in the world.
YES!
Although you can actually knead this dough by hand if your do not have mixer, surprisingly it is not that hard and sometimes I like hand kneading the dough. It is kind of relaxing. But I am a little weird.
These buns. They are really sticky and delicious. The dough is super soft and moist due to the mixture of milk, butter and greek yogurt. It is my all time favorite dough. And then the butterscotch. Oh man, the butterscotch is the best addition to sticky buns ever. Especially, if you add some chocolate chunks in there.
Oh yeah, I have so done that. It’s crazy good.
But since I was going for the breakfast theme, I decided to leave the chocolate out. Obviously, you can be super cool and add some. Either way, these sticky buns are the best because not only are they soft and doughy, but they are sweet and sticky and the dough could not be easier to work with. Oh, and the smell… Holy Moly, they smell amazing.
AND there is vanilla salt. Wow, this is so good. I am going to tell you all about it this weekend. It’s super easy to make and I now want to sprinkle it over pretty much everything. It’s vanilla-y salt!
Self control around them is clearly impossible. Be careful.
Giant Vanilla Salted Butterscotch Sticky Buns
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast, I like Red Star
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted, stick
- 1 cup warm milk
- 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
- 2 eggs
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
Filling
- 6 tablespoons butter, very soft
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup pecans, chopped
- 2 tablespoons scotch, or 1 tablespoon vanilla
Butterscotch Sauce
- 1 cup stick unsalted butter, 1/2
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons scotch, or 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Vanilla Salt
- 2 tablespoon flaked sea salt
- 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds removed
Instructions
- Place yeast and sugar into stand mixer with the dough hook attached. Add the warm water and gently stir. Let sit until yeast has doubled and is puffed and foamy on top, about 10 minutes.
- To the bowl add the melted butter, warm milk, greek yogurt and eggs, stir to combine. Add in the flour and knead the dough with the dough hook until the dough is smooth and forms a ball, about 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and oil the boil or use cooking spray. Place the dough back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm area for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- While the dough rises make the butterscotch sauce. Melt the butter in a small sauce pot. Add the brown sugar, heavy cream and salt. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium. Boil for 5-10 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and stir in the scotch and set aside. If the sauce gets too thick add in a splash of cream to thin.
- When the dough is ready and doubled in size spray 2 muffins tins with cooking spray. Flour your workspace and roll the dough with a rolling pin until it’s thin and somewhat rectangular (about 9x24 inches), then brush with melted butter (you may not use all the butter) and generously cover with 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 1 cup light brown sugar. Ok, this is when would be best to add chocolate chips if you choose 🙂 Now drizzle on about 1/4 cup of the butterscotch sauce.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Next roll up the dough. Starting with the end away from you, roll the dough into a line towards you. Slice the rolls into 18 to 24 slices and place them in the prepared muffin cups. I made 18 rolls, but they were BIG and popping out of the pan. Cover and let the rolls rise for about 15-20 minutes.
- Once the oven is hot place the muffin tins on two baking sheets and bake for 30 minutes.
- While the buns are baking add the pecans to a skillet set over medium heat and toast for 5-8 minutes or until toasted. Add two tablespoons scotch (or vanilla) and 1/3 cup of the butterscotch sauce, stir and remove from the heat.
- After 30 minutes grab the buns out of the oven and drizzle the pecans over the buns. Return the pans to the oven and bake another 10-15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let sit 5 minutes.
- Combine the salt and vanilla bean seed in a small bowl. Use your fingers to ingrain the seeds into the salt.
- Use a knife to carefully pop the buns out of the tins, they are going to be very sticky! If desired drizzle with more butterscotch sauce and then lightly sprinkle with vanilla salt. Eat while warm and gooey!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Oh and they are GIANT. You are welcome.
YOU ARE MY HERO!!!
🙂 Thanks Becca!
I’ll take a bowl of salted butterscotch, please! And I suppose a sticky bun to mop up whatever drips off the spoon. These look fantastic!
Thanks Jodye!!
Your poor mixer! Or really, poor you! Well, at least you’re getting a new one 😉 Lucky girl! And these buns look out of this world.
Thanks Ashley!
Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry about your mixer – such a tragedy but glad you have a new one on the way. And these buns – just incredible, I’m drooling!
P.S What camera/lens did you go with? I need to upgrade soon…
Hey Laura!
Thanks so much! I just bit the bullet and went all in and got the Cannon 5D Mark iii. I am using a 50mm 1.2 (thinking of actually downgradig to the 1.4 though), but bought the 25-70mm lens too. Everything was crazy expensive and to be honest I am SO lost and scared. LOL! Trying to figure out the AF points is HARD!! Hoping I will get it soon though!
These sticky buns look amazing! I love how they don’t look too overly-gooey like most sticky buns are.
AND SALT. Haha, awesome bro.
And you should write a cookbook.
I love kneading dough, too. Kitchen Aids look awesome, but I’ve never owned/used one before. I tend to do small batches. Because I have like three people to feed. ha.
Pinning this! Awesome sticky buns. Awesome.
Thanks Abbie! I love kneading dough by hand, but these days I have been doing a ton of dough! Thanks for pinning! 🙂
These look amazing as always Tieghan! I totally understand about the ‘being cheap thing’ I’m so cheap I won’t even buy a stand mixer! (That does have a bit to do with space constraints and college student needs-to-buy-airplane-tickets budget constraints as well). However, you said these could theoretically be mixed by hand, which makes me quite happy :).
Haha! Thanks so much, Rebecca!
I make practically all of my recipes without a mixer, I know you’ll be ok until you get a new one!! Those buns are looking fantastic, love that caramel!
Thank you so much, Anna!
It’s a sad day when the mixer dies for baker. So sad. But so glad you got a new one.
I hear you. There’s so many things for those hard earned dollars! I’ve been wanting to upgrade to a professional KitchenAid for the last year or so but there’s just not enough yet.
Good luck with the new camera and lens. Which one did you pick?!? I’m in the market for a new lens. It’s so hard to choose!
Thanks Melanie!
I got both the 50 mm 1.4 and the Canon EF 24-70mm f/4.0L IS USM Standard Zoom Lens. I am loving the 50mm!
You freaked me out Tieghan! You had me fooled for a minute. So glad you splurged on a new mixer. Can’t wait till you have both mixers going simultaneously. Maybe you should get another oven too. Pretty soon you’ll have a full commercial kitchen going 😉 As always, your sticky buns are the best in the business.
Haha! Thanks so much, Todd! 🙂
Mmmmmmmm! Looks AMAZING! Soooo oooey and gooey!
Thank you, Sophia!
That’s some mixer! Gotta love Amazon prime It’s the BEST. Vanilla salt – brilliant.
LOVE amazon prime!! Thanks Liz!
When life gives you lemons get a beautiful shiny mixer!
Haha! That is one way to look at it! Thanks Linda!
Oh no!! That kind of stuff always seems to happen at the worst of the worst time. I had a similar moment last year when I had bought a coffee table on Etsy (wood cracked horribly within like two days), and then within 24 hours of that, my sofa broke. Oh yes, and then I learned our apartment building would start charging us utilities for the first time. UGH!
These buns look amazing! Can’t wait to hear about the vanilla salt (genius idea!). And congrats on the new mixer 🙂
UGH! Why does it all have to come at once?!? I am also being told I need to upgrade my computer now too. Not enough space!
Thanks so much, Laura!
When it rains it pours. But on the bright side, you get a new mixer! I have the same one, and I love it! These buns look amazing! Can’t wait for the vanilla salt.
Thank you, Jessica!!
oh no!!! that’s such a bummer about your mixer!!! thank GOD for amazon and prime 🙂 i just adore them! haha – these sticky buns look like the perfect post-mixer death treat! haha
I LOVE Amazon! 🙂
Thanks Julie!