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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!}
The sticky sauce is AMAZING! These were easy to make and so soft and delicious. I didn’t change anything about the recipe other than measuring the pecans with my heart instead of a measuring cup!
Hey Cora,
Happy Friday! ☃️ So glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! xT
I am a tortoise in the kitchen, so this took me a good while, but I had so much fun and they turned out DELICIOUS! I am still very green when it comes to recipes that involve dough/rolling it out (I aspire to create a rectangle, but I usually get some kind of alien-looking shape during the rolling stage). Either way, these came out amazing. Absolutely fabulous.
Hey Annie,
Happy Sunday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! xT
Can I use a gf one to one flour? Do you have one you recommend?
Hey Lorka,
Yes, that will work for you, I like Bob’s Red Mill gluten free flour. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
Hey Tieghan,
Super excited to try this recipe! I just have a question that I didn’t see answered in any comments –
I’m out of milk, could I use half n half for the dough if I reduce the butter? And it’ll work fine for the sauce right? I saw some comments about curdling so I want to make sure ?
Also, have you ever tried adding other flavours to this recipe? I’ve see alot of recipes that include orange zest and the like so I’m curious.
Thanks for sharing this recipe!!
Hey Sama,
Sure, half and half should work well for you! I’ve never added other flavors, but you could certainly play around with them. Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Probably some of the best sticky buns ever and without the need of a double rise. First batch were good but we keep our house on the cool side and didn’t proof as well as the dough needed to. Second time turned on the oven early to let dough be warm while rising and it did the trick…a much better rise and thus much better dough….a definite go to recipe on a cold, snowy winter day.
Hi Sheena,
Awesome!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was a winner! xTieghan
Made them today. There was a lot of cursing. Dough didn’t rise..turns out old yeast…so after my second go everything worked out…they were so good…surprised at how light and fluffy the dough was. This will definitely be in will make again column!
Hey Diego,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Have the best week! xTieghan
Hi just wondering if these could be frozen before baking
Hi Tricia,
Yes, that will work well for you. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
A nice variation on a recipe I’ve made fresh for my family for many years. I’d like to make this recipe a few days early and serve them hot from the oven on Christmas morning. Is freezing them before or after they’re baked and then reheating to serve best? Can you please suggest how to make that happen? Thanks!
Hi Mary Ann,
I would freeze before baking, so after step 6 pop in the freezer. Remove the night before Christmas to allow them to thaw and come to room temp and then bake as directed. I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
Omg I just made these as a dry run for Christmas brekkie and omg they are delicious!! I might not use all the sauce next time… but I’ll see what everyone else thinks when they taste! Another hit!
Hey Alexandra,
Wonderful! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Tried making this gluten and dairy-free. They turned out okay but I wouldn’t make this recipe again with gluten-free flour, unfortunately. The rolls didn’t turn out nearly fluffy and chewy enough. I’ll definitely be making these again with regular flour and dairy-free milk and butter substitutes to see if that improves the result. What I got from this batch was tasty enough for me to give it another try!
I used coconut milk instead of whole milk and it worked quite well in the sauce and you cannot taste the coconut. I was worried about how watery the sauce was when I placed the roles in it, but it thickened up while baking and cooling after taking it out of the oven.
Finally—thanks to the comments, I realized that the filling ingredients are listed as sauce ingredients. How to use the ingredients is spelled out well in the recipe steps, but this is pretty confusing initially. The recipe would be easier to use if there were a third category for “filling ingredients” with the 1/4c brown sugar, 4 tbsp butter, and cinnamon listed separately under that.
Can you make this recipe in 2 round 9 inch pans? Would you have to alter the baking time or temperature?
Hey Jill,
That should work just fine for you, I would keep the baking time and temperature the same. I hope this recipe turns out amazing for you, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Hey Lauren! Thank you for the feedback. I have adjusted the recipe! xxTieghan
Brown sugar issue in the recipe hit me just like everyone else. The sauce didn’t thicken while baking. Not sure if this was because of the extra sugar or just the recipe? I won’t bake this recipe again.
Hey Katherine, I’m so sorry this recipe didn’t turn out the way you hoped! Thanks so much for letting me know! xTieghan
Do these reheat well? I’m debating making them completely, the night before a trip to have for our group breakfast the next day? I worry about making them to pre oven status and having them rise in a cooler/to fridge and just moving around too much in transport unbaked.
Hey Ali,
I would probably just par-bake them and then finish baking at your destination. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Are you not able to go back in and change the original directions to fix the issue with the brown sugar? I noticed a lot of people are getting confused by this and I had to weed through comments to figure it out. Other than that, fabulous recipe as always!
Hey Stacie,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! Sorry, I’m not sure what the confusion is with the brown sugar:) Have a great weekend! xTieghan
These are ABSOLUTELY amazing buns. This is my go to recipe for dessert when entertaining or potluck. They are very popular with everyone. . I do make extra sticky sauce but that’s only because my Huss and has such a sweet tooth ?. Thank you so much for posting this recipe. I love a lot of your recipes
Hey Shelley,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am delighted that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Let me start by saying that your flavors are always ON POINT!! Your Pinterest page is the inspiration for over 6 of the items in my bakery. This recipe as well as the blueberry lemon and the cinnamon rolls in the loaf Pan, I’m struggling with the texture and would love any help or tips. Mine are excessively bready at times. Do you have a more ooey gooey recipe that you would recommend?
Hey Elsa,
Thanks so much for your kind message! Are you able to share more details on if you are adjusting anything in the recipes and what kind of yeast you are using? This would help me to better answer your question! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan!! Love the recipe, looks incredible! I wanted to know what do you consider better for making the sauce:whole milk or cream?? I have both but don’t know which to use!
Thanks!!
Hey Fran,
The recipe calls for either one, so you will get the same results with both. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan