Caramel Sticky Buns

Happy November 1! We're in November already. How could time have passed so quickly? It seems like summer was just here and now it's already heading into the Christmas season. For this cold autumn day I made these caramel sticky buns: ooey, gooey cinnamon goodness covered with a creamy caramel topping and studded with pecans. My two favorite sweet flavors rolled into one: cinnamon and caramel. Some people are chocaholics, well, I am a caramel-holic who loves it in all its forms, from super-soft to almost toffee-like. I think the secret here is in the vanilla pudding mix that gets added to the dough.

These buns are a true indulgence. Rich and tender on the inside offset by crunchy pecans and sticky, gooey caramel. While they are best fresh from the oven, they take nicely to storage in an airtight container and reheating for 20 seconds in the microwave.

The dough part of the recipe is from Allrecipes.com, the topping is my own addition. Dough recipe was written for a breadmaker, although I made mine using a stand mixer and the standard straight dough procedure. Make sure not to add too much flour when kneading so as to keep the dough soft, not dry.

Caramel Sticky Buns
Makes 24 small rolls | inspired by Allrecipes.com

Dough:
1 (.25 ounce) pkg active dry yeast
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup warm milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 (3.4 ounce) pkg. instant vanilla pudding mix*
1 egg, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups bread flour

Topping:
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3/4 cup chopped pecans

Filling:
1/4 cup butter, very soft
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. In the pan of your bread machine, combine water, melted butter, vanilla pudding, warm milk, egg, 1 tablespoon sugar, salt, bread flour and yeast. Set machine to Dough cycle; press Start.
2. Make filling: Combine cinnamon, brown sugar and white sugar.
3. Make topping: Stir together heavy cream and brown sugar. *Do not substitute any lower fat cream or your caramel will not turn out properly*. Pour topping into a greased 11x15 inch baking pan (lasagne dish). Sprinkle coarsely chopped pecans over the brown sugar mixture.
4. When Dough cycle has finished, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half and roll each half into a large rectangle, as thin as you can get it, approximatly 1/8 inch thick. Spread with 1/2 the softened butter. Sprinkle 1/2 brown sugar mixture over dough. Roll up dough tightly, beginning with long side. Pinch ro seal the seam. Slice into 12 equal slices and place in the prepared pan. Repeat with other half of dough for a total of 24 rolls (3 across, 8 down). Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes. Or, refrigerate overnight and let them finish rising the next morning.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown on top. Carefully but quickly invert onto a cookie sheet(before the topping hardens).

*I have successfully used 1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder instead of the pudding mix.