For the Caramel Glaze

-1 package yeast
-¼ cup lukewarm water
-¾ cup milk
-¼ cup sugar
-1 teaspoon salt
-2 Tablespoons shortening
-1 egg
-2 ½ – 3 cups SUNFLOUR Plain Flour

Scald milk in a saucepan, add shortening, sugar, and salt. Cool to lukewarm. While milk mixture is cooling, soften yeast in lukewarm water. If you are uncertain, cooler is better than hotter. Add 1 cup of SUNFLOUR Plain Flour to the lukewarm milk mixture. Mix thoroughly.

It is okay if the dough has lumps at this point.

Add egg and softened yeast. Beat well. Add enough more SUNFLOUR to make a soft dough. Turn out on lightly floured board or counter and knead until smooth and satiny. You may need to keep putting flour on board to keep dough from sticking. Place ball of dough in lightly greased bowl, rolling ball around to cover it in grease. Cover and put into refrigerator overnight. Ball of dough will last 2-3 days in refrigerator if you like. OR, you may cover bowl and let rise in a warm place (80-85 degrees) until doubled in volume (about 1 ½ hours).

If you do not have a warm place in your home, you can create one by preheating your oven to its lowest possible temperature, then turning off the oven and placing a pan of boiling water on the lowest rack. Place your dough in the oven (remember, you have turned OFF the oven at this point) and let it rise in the oven.

Whether you have put the dough in the refrigerator and pulled it out because you are ready to use it or you have allowed it to rise immediately and are now ready to shape it, punch down the ball of dough. Mold or shape the dough into any desired shape. One popular shape is the cloverleaf roll. Grease your roll pans, then place three balls of dough, each about the size of a large grape, in each cup in your roll pan. Place rolls in a warm place (see above tip for making a warm place) and allow to rise until doubled in size (about 1 hour). Preheat empty oven to 400 degrees and bake for 15 – 20 minutes. This recipe will yield about 15 rolls. You may double recipe to make more.

Once dough has either spent the night in the refrigerator or risen once, it is ready for this recipe. Use the amount of dough that 1 packet of yeast would make.

-1 cup butter (at room temperature)
-½ cup granulated sugar
-½ cup dark brown sugar
-½ teaspoon salt
-½ cup light corn syrup
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-½ cup coarsely chopped pecans

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and salt, and cream together for 2 minutes on high speed. Add the corn syrup and vanilla extract, and continue to cream for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

Coat the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish with the caramel glaze, then sprinkle the pecans evenly over the surface.

For the Caramel Rolls

-½ cup softened butter
-Cinnamon sugar

Punch down ball of dough. Roll or pat it out into a rectangle about 9” x 13”. Spread the dough with the softened butter, being careful to spread out to the edges. Sprinkle the butter generously with cinnamon sugar. Roll up the dough along the long edge, making a pinwheel. Slice the log into 12 equal pieces. Lay the pieces of dough cut-side-up on top of the caramel glaze, evenly spaced throughout the pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rise at room temperature for 75 to 90 minutes, or until the pieces have grown into one another and have nearly doubled in size.

Make-Ahead Note: Instead of the second rise, you can place the shaped buns in the refrigerate for up to 2 days, pulling the pan out of the refrigerator 3 to 4 hours before baking to allow the dough to proof (rise) at room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and adjust the oven rack to the lowest shelf. This is important to make the caramel glaze melt properly.

Bake the sticky buns for 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool the buns in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, and then remove them by flipping them over onto another pan or serving platter. Carefully scoop any run-off glaze back over the buns with a spatula. Wait at least 20 minutes before serving. The sticky buns are best eaten the day of baking but can be stored, covered, at room temperature for up to days.

mmmmm… delicious! Have a wonderful weekend with your family and friends.