The Sticky Bun Experience

 Also known as, How I Spent My Easter:

Sticky Bun: aka, giant brick of sweet, rich, caramely decadence.

I made Pecan Sticky Buns, invented from a recipe in April's Bon Apetit magazine.  Problem is, they somehow ended up taking half the day to make!  This was pretty much due to a few "mishaps" that occurred along the way.  In the future, I will also make everything the night before, roll them out, and then will only need to slice and bake them in the morning.



At any rate, these turned out sinfully rich, sweet and delicious.  Since I didn't use yeast in the recipe, they have a more flakey than doughy consistency, but still fine nonetheless. 

This recipe has three parts: the dough, the filling, and the topping/glaze.  Before I go into the making of them, let me explain the "mishaps" that I had. 

1. First of all, gluten-free flour must absorb less water than normal flour. (Maybe? Let's blame it on that?) - I added less milk than called for to my batter at the last step, yet still turned it to a sticky, unrollable mess.  So, I had to keep adding more and more flour....  I was already making a double recipe, so this nearly made my mixer bowl overflow.  (It also prompted some delirious song... "25 gallons of sticky bun dough, 25 gallons of dough.... add some flour, mix it around, 26 gallons of sticky bun dough.....")  After adding about a cup, I gave up, threw it in the fridge, and it ended up fine after chilling.

2. Second major issue-- Bon Apetit recipe calls for 1 cup of the glaze to be poured into the pan before putting the raw buns in, before cooking.  I somehow missed the "1 cup" part, so I dumped the whole pot in.  This led to sticky buns swimming in a pool of caramel sauce.  When I realized my mistake, I tried to pour some out.... this did not end well either. (Actually it was fine- but sticky buns were still baked in WAY more glaze than necessary!) - So that one definitely changed the final product.

The moral of the story is, they're still delicious, even if you mess up a little. (Or "improvise!")

Without further ado....

THE RECIPE:

DOUGH:
1/2 c millet flour
1/2 c brown rice flour
1/2 c tapioca flour
1/2 c potato starch
3/4 c all-purpose GF flour
1.5 tsp guar gum
2 tsp baking powder
5 tbs coconut sugar
1 tsp sea salt                       --> combine dry ingredients, stir to mix

2 large eggs                        --> break into a cup, whisk until smooth
~1/3 c almond milk-- or less!
1/4 c ghee
1/4 c coconut oil  (soft, but not melted)

Place dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. (Dough hook is probably optional, especially since we're not using a yeast dough... but I used one anyway)  Gradually add all eggs, and about 1/4 c almond milk. Add milk slowly until dough is moist enough, but not too wet to roll.  Mix in butter a little bit at a time.  Mix on medium speed for ~5 minutes.  Place in refrigerator to chill (2-3 hrs).

FILLING:
1/4 c ghee
1/4 c coconut oil  (soft, not melted)
1/2 c coconut sugar

ROLL OUT!

3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients using an electric mixer on high speed, beating until light and fluffy, 2-3 mins.  Set aside.

TOPPING/GLAZE

1 3/4 c chopped pecans, toasted     (toast on a cookie sheet in oven, if not pre-toasted: 10-12 mins at 350)
1/4 c coconut oil
1/4 c ghee
3/4 c coconut sugar
1/3 c agave
2/3 c almond milk + 2 tbs soymilk powder + 1/8 tsp guar gum  (= "heavy cream" substitute!)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp finely grated orange zest (optional- I did one batch with, one without-- both great!)

Melt oil/ghee in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Stir in all other ingredients. (Coconut sugar will probably separate out/turn tar-like... this is okay! Proceed!)  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 3-4 minutes.  (MAGIC!) Sauce should be uniform, glossy, and smell (/taste) like caramel. :)

What NOT to do: pour entire pot of glaze into pan.

ASSEMBLY:
Pour ONE CUP :) of glaze into a 8x8 baking pan, and tilt to coat sides. Set aside the rest for later use.  Sprinkle 1/2 c toasted pecans over bottom of baking pan, and let cool.

Roll out dough- I recommend between 2 sheets of waxed paper, or between two silicone rolling sheets.  Either way, flour surface liberally (I used brown rice flour.) Roll into a 12"x16" rectangle, about 1/4" thick, with the long side facing you.  Spread the filling over the rectangle, leaving a 1" plane border on the edge farthest from you (so it doesn't goo-out post-rolling!)

Sprinkle 3/4 c chopped pecans over filling.

Starting with the long edge closest to you, roll up the dough, trying to tighten as you go.  Use a metal knife/spatula to help free it if necessary.  Pinch long seam together when rolled. Pat open ends to make them flat (un-tapered). Arrange log seam-side-down.

Buns swimming in glaze.... yummo!

Use a knife to slice log into 9 pieces (buns)... or more if you want lots of shorter ones! (but then you will need more pans... possibly with more glaze in them....)  Turn buns cut-side up, and pat top to flatten slightly.  To make a bun more round in shape, cup it in floured hands, and gently push and turn it in a circular motion. 

Place buns in prepared pan, evenly spaced, and preferably not touching.

Preheat oven to 350, with a middle rack available. Whisk one egg with 1/2 tsp water in a bowl, and brush tops of buns with egg wash.  Bake for ~50 minutes, "rotating pan halfway through and tenting with foil if browning too quickly" (--yeah right Bon Apetit, I did neither of those two things).  Buns should be golden-brown, and filling (/glaze goo) should be bubbling.

Let cool for 5 minutes, then spoon remaining glaze over them.  Sprinkle on remaining 1/2 pecans, then let cool completely.  --Bon Apetit also says to lightly sprinkle sea salt over them. I forgot to do this, but I think it would be good! --> so let's say sea salt optional.

THE END!

Outta the oven.  Maybe more like Sticky-Bun-Loaf... but delicious all the same.

For me, the experience of making these was equally important as the outcome.

(Sadly, I can barely eat the outcome, as they're just so darn sweet and rich! ..and probably calorie rich too... oh well!)

Oh oh and you know what my favorite part was??? Making the glaze taught me that coconut sugar does indeed caramelize, and if you boil it with almond milk./agave, it WILL melt! (contrary to its low-heat tar-like behavior!) Yay!

Waffle Cookies! (Wookies?)

Waffleization #1: Chocolate Oatmeal Waffle-Cookies!

Look like waffles, taste like cookies. True Waffleization.

Waffleized cookies are cookie batter cooked in a waffle iron.  I whipped up some chocolate-oatmeal batter, and popped it in my belgian waffle maker... instant waffle-cookies! (wookies?)

THE RECIPE:

1 c flour  (1/4 all-purpose GF, 1/4 brown rice, 1/4 c millet, 1/4 c GF oat)
3/4 c GF oats

1/2 tsp baking powder
3/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
3 Tbs cocoa powder
1 Tbs cacao nibs (optional)

1/4 c coconut oil
1/4 c agave
1/4 c coconut sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl, and separately whisk together all wet ingredients in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients, and stir/beat until well combined. (I did it by hand using a wooden spatula/paddle thingy.)  The batter should be cookie-consistency: Holds its form, but still moist/a little sticky.

Fire up the waffle iron! I used a medium-high setting, but still needed to watch them carefully.  It's a balance between cooking them long enough that they're firm enough to be removed in one piece, but also not cooking them too long/too high that the outside burns.  A little bit of dark toastiness is fine, and to be expected. The inside will still be gooier than the outside, which is also fine (and delicious)!

Scoop on blobs of the batter, and flatten them slightly.  I chose not to make them full-waffle sized, but any size should work.  Since I didn't fill the griddle, my "green light" was going off before the waffle-cookies were truly all the way done... so as I said, I had to check them to see when they were really done.

Overall, this worked very well! They taste just like normal cookies, but have the added benefits of being (a) waffle-shaped (thus possibly still passing as breakfast), and (b) TWICE AS BIG as normal cookies (thus allowing you to eat twice as much). :)

SUCCESS! Wookies rock.

"The Waffleizer"

I found a new favorite blog, and just in time for International Waffle Day (or, if you're Swedish, Våffeldagen!), which is March 25th.

Creations of THE WAFFLEIZER: http://www.waffleizer.com/

 It is... "The Waffleizer," and features its author, Dan, experimenting with waffle-izing many every-day foods.  These range from macaroni and cheese, to hamburgers, to crepes, to (my personal favorite) bibimbaffle.  (That's waffle-ized bibimbap, a Korean rice/egg/veggies dish)

I must say, it's pretty inspirational. Waffleizing will begin tomorrow!! Stay tuned, and fire up the iron.

Part 2 - Brownies w/ Irish Creme Frosting

I used the recipe from my Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake, but doubled it and baked it in a 9x13 pan.  And then made Irish Creme Frosting using flavored agave. (What I REALLY wanted to do was incorporate whiskey flavor using my whiskey flavored tea from Scotland.... but then I forgot it at work!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan.

THE RECIPE:

1 c coconut oil
1/2 c ghee (or more coconut oil)
2 c coconut sugar
1/2 c light agave          ---> if oil is solid, heat on stove until melted; whisk together/stir continuously. Let cool slightly.  (the components may remain separate, but that's okay for now)

4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla    ---> after wet ingredients cool slightly, whisk in eggs and vanilla. At this point, stir until all ingredients are mixed.


Combine in a separate bowl:

1 1/3 c flour combination: oat, GF all-purpose, brown rice, millet, tapioca  (basically whatever you have!)

1/2 tsp guar gum

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 c cocoa powder    ---> combine dry ingredients in a bowl, then add them to the wet ingredients. Mix well.

Pour batter into pan, and bake ~30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Let cool.

IRISH CREME FROSTING:

I made this in a very small quantity, since I'm basically out of irish creme agave. Multiply the proportions as necessary:

1/4 c coconut oil  (softened, but not melted)

1/4 c irish creme agave   ---> whisk together until frothy/creamy

1 tbs cocoa (or more/less to taste)

1/8 tsp lemon juice (makes it less sweet)

If you want it thicker, place in fridge for a while.