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Not much can beat these homemade Extra Sticky Maple Pecan Sticky Buns. Soft and fluffy homemade bread dough, swirled with cinnamon sugar, and baked with a maple pecan “sticky” sauce. These rolls are nothing short of perfect and better than anything you could get from a bakery. Try making these as a weekend morning treat, or serve them up Thanksgiving morning for a special holiday breakfast.
{This post is sponsored by The American Pecan Council.}
With Halloween arriving tomorrow and October now coming to a close, I have my eyes on all the coziest, sweetest recipes for November and the upcoming holiday season. It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is just a few short weeks away. But I have to say, I am so very excited, and already have my menu set.
Over the next couple of weeks I will be rolling out all of my Thanksgiving dinner recipes. But before that happens I’m really excited to share these sticky buns. I feel like Thanksgiving breakfast can so easily be overlooked. But the bottom line is that everyone needs a little something in their stomachs pre-Thanksgiving feast. And this year I am all about these sticky buns.
They’re hands down the best sticky bun I’ve ever made. And while they take a little more time than a bowl of cereal, they are extra special. They are equally perfect on your holiday breakfast/brunch table as they are for a cold weekend in at home.
{pouring sticky sauce over pecans}
If you’ve been reading HBH over the years, it’s pretty obvious that come November, pecans are one of my favorite nuts to incorporate into my recipes. Growing up, my mom would make her chocolate chip pecan pie for holiday dinners, and to this day it’s still one of my favorite pies. American Pecans are also harvested in the fall – making it the perfect time to enjoy your pecans, harvested straight from pecan farmers across the country. And of all the major tree nuts eaten in the U.S., pecans are the only ones indigenous to America – making it the perfect nut to serve on Thanksgiving!
Over the years I’ve developed a lot of recipe using pecans, but I’ve never shared a homemade pecan sticky bun…
All I have to say is that I’m so sorry I didn’t create this recipe earlier. These buns are some of the best ever.
Soft, buttery, super sticky, perfectly sweet, and just a little crunchy from the pecans which are actually nutrient dense! I know I already said this, but nothing beats these buns. Especially when warm, right out of the oven.
So good!
{buns before baking}
Here are the details.
I used a very simple and basic dough recipe, but it’s one that I love. It leaves you with rolls that are moist, soft, and fluffy. It’s also very easy to make and doesn’t require much time. Which is great, since everyone is extra busy this time of year.
The most important aspect of a sticky bun recipe is the sticky sauce. It’s KEY.
Start with your pecans. I’ve teamed up with the American Pecans. When you buy pecans you’ll want to ensure they’re a golden color which indicates that they’re fresh. To maintain their freshness, store your pecans in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To create the perfect pecan sticky bun. Spread the raw pecan halves and pieces in the bottom of a baking dish, then make the maple butter sauce. Pour the sauce over the pecans…smell the goodness.
Now, you’ll want to roll out the dough like you would as if you are making cinnamon rolls. Place the rolls cut side down into the sticky pecan sauce. Nothing too fancy or hard.
At this point, you can let the rolls rise overnight in the fridge. Then simply bake up and enjoy!
These are great to make the night before and then pop in the oven for a super easy breakfast or afternoon snack. Your house will smell incredible as they bake. And trust me, no one will be able to resist grabbing a roll (or two) to enjoy.
Also, these travel very well, so you could even think about gifting them for the holidays season. So fun…and delicious!
Either which way, you need to make these rolls soon. Betting they will soon become a new holiday tradition!
If you make these pecan sticky buns, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Extra Sticky Maple Pecan Sticky Buns
Servings: 12 makes rolls
Calories Per Serving: 1395 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup warm whole milk
- 1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) instant dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 3 ½ - 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Sticky Sauce
- 2 cups roughly chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup whole milk or heavy cream
- 2/3 cup real maple syrup
- 1/4 cup + 1/2 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
- 12 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
Instructions
- 1. To make the dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the milk, yeast, brown sugar, eggs, butter, 3 ½ cups flour, and salt. Using the dough hook, mix until the flour is completely incorporated, about 4-5 minutes. If the dough seems sticky, add the remaining ½ cup of flour.2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour or until doubled in size.3. Meanwhile, to make the sticky sauce. Line a 9x13 inch baking dish with parchment. Spread the pecans in an even layer in the bottom of the baking dish. 4. In a medium sauce pot, combine the milk, maple syrup, brown sugar and 12 tablespoons butter. Cook over medium heat until the butter is melted and the sauce bubbling, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Pour the sauce over the pecans.5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl, mix together the remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar and the cinnamon. 6. Lightly dust a surface with flour. Roll the dough into a rectangle (about 9×24 inches). Spread 4 tablespoons softened butter evenly over the dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over the butter and lightly push the mixture into the butter. Starting with the long edge closest to you, carefully roll the dough into a log, keeping it fairly tight as you go. When you reach the edge, pinch along the edge to seal. Using a sharp knife, cut into 12 rolls. Place rolls in the prepared baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 20-30 minutes or transfer to the fridge to rise overnight.7. Transfer to the oven and bake 20-25 minutes, until golden brown on top. If the rolls are browning too quickly on top, cover with foil halfway through cooking. 8. Let the rolls sit 5 minutes and then carefully invert the rolls onto a serving plate. Serve warm and enjoy!
{This post is sponsored by The American Pecan Council. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Half Baked Harvest cooking!}
Hello!!!
I don’t think I can find real maple syrup since I live in the coast of Mexico. I know it wouldn’t taste the same. But do you think it could be done with artificial maple syrup? Thank you.
Hey Ellie,
Yes, that will work. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Ok, these turned out whooooaaahhhh so good??. They are SO soft & pillowy and the sticky sauce is amazing. I was running out of real maple syrup so I used corn syrup and maple extract as a substitute and it worked great. Just yum. Easy to make, ridiculously delicious. Thanks for a great recipe (one of your many greats?). I posted a pic of the results on Pinterest.
Hey Jenny,
I am thrilled you liked the recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Happy Sunday:) xTieghan
Just like everything else I’ve made from HBH, this recipe was phenomenal and super easy to follow since it was my first time making sticky buns! The one mistake I made was that I saw that the brown sugar was divided, but the directions don’t say to only put 1/4 cup in the sticky stopping. It just says to add the brown sugar. So I added the 1/4 and 1/2 cup which was not a detriment at all, just a little extra sweet!
Hey Kaitlin,
Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I am thrilled that you liked it! I hope you have a great week:) xTieghan
Hello!! I’m excited to make these tomorrow…even thought we are 2+ years later, haha. I had a quick question: how do you define “warm milk”!? I want to ensure to give the yeast love without killing them.
Thank you!
Megan
Hey Megan,
You want to use lukewarm milk, if it is too hot, it will kill the yeast. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Just a recommendation, you might want to make a small change in the directions. The ingredient list for the sticky sauce says 1/4 plus 1/2 cup brown sugar and the directions to say add the brown sugar into the saucepan. A few steps later it says add the remainder 1/2 cup sugar. The first part should say add 1/4 cup brown sugar to the saucepan. It wasn’t very clear and I added it all. Hopefully it comes out okay. I already poured it over the pecans and I don’t have enough pecans to start over.
Hey Cori,
Thanks so much for pointing this out. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy New Year! xTieghan
Made these for Christmas morning. They are East and delicious! My first time working with a yeasted dough but the recipe was clear and easy to follow.
Hey Cate,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am thrilled that it worked out for you. Happy Holidays! xTieghan
I made these today and the bread was perfect but the caramel sauce curdled. I used whole milk and only substituted Karo syrup for the maple. Any thoughts on why that happened?
Otherwise they were delicious!
Hey Gabby,
So sorry you had issues with the caramel, I have not tried this with whole milk and Karo syrup so those could have been the issue. Let me know how I can help! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
If I don’t have a mixer with a dough hook – What tool do you recommend using to mix the flour? Like a spatula or wooden spoon or by hand?
Hey Brianna,
I would do a wooden spoon. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These were well worth the effort and as mentioned, better than from a bakery! Those who I shared them with also commented they were the best they had. Will definitely be trying more of your cinnamon bun/sticky bun recipes!
Please include rise time in cook time. Went to make it for Father’s Day and then found out it had to rise for an hour. This is one of my biggest pet peeves in recipes.
Sorry about that Sabrina! I hope this still turned out well for you! xTieghan
Hi, the recipe has two Measurements for the brown sugar but it doesn’t say which goes into the filling and which goes into the syrup?
Hi Ivonne,
Sorry for the confusion, but the recipe does state 1 tablespoon of brown sugar for the dough and 1/4-1/2 cup for the sticky sauce. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I made these and they tasted so good!!! My only comment would be to separate the ingredients by sauce, dough and inside the rolls. I ended up putting half a cup of sugar into the sauce and had to redo it! Luckily caught on before putting over the pecans!
So good though
That is so amazing to hear! Thank you so much for trying these, Maya!! xTieghan
Just made these this morning. So easy, quick and delicious. Total keeper.
My future daughter in law gave me your website and everything has been amazing. Naan, parker house rolls, falafel, adobo chicken and chick peas in sweet potatoes and adobo chicken and cauliflower. I am a vegetarian and my family eats white meat and so many of your recipes allow me to make the same for them and me.
Thanks so much
Aw that is so amazing! I am so glad you both have been enjoying my recipes, Kate! Thank you! xTieghan
Hi! Could I make these on a Saturday evening and let them sit in the fridge until Monday morning bake?
Hi Jordann,
Yes that it totally fine to do, just be sure to bring them back to room temperature before baking. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi! So if you can freeze the dough, at what point do you do this in the recipe? After you wait for it to rise in the refrigerator?
Hi Sarah,
Yes you can do this after step 2. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan