Cinnamon sticky buns

Nothing beats Cinnamon sticky buns hot out of the oven filling your home with the smell of sweet things to come! This recipe is the best I ever tried, the dough is soft and flaky and gooey top is divine. 

Tip: If you want to enjoy the sticky buns first thing in the morning prepare the buns to the point of cutting the dough and putting them in the goo in the pan, then cover and place in the fridge overnight. Take the buns straight from the fridge and place in a cold oven. Set the temperature to 180 degrees Celsius and bake for 45 minutes. By the time the oven gets to temperature, the buns will have raised the perfect amount.

Dough

1 ¼ cup milk, body temperature 

7-10 gr instant dry yeast

¼ cup sugar

1 large egg at room temperature

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted

3 ½ cup all-purpose flour

¾ tsp salt

Goo

½ cup unsalted butter

1 cup packed light brown sugar

½ cup maple syrup

Filling & Assembly

⅔ cup packed light brown sugar

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Method:

Dough

For the dough, measure all the ingredients into a bowl and stir with a spoon, or blend in a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment until evenly combined. If mixing by hand, turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes, or if in a mixer, knead for about 3 minutes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, 90 minutes to 2 hours.

Goo

For the goo, add the butter, brown sugar and maple syrup in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until melted and the mixture is bubbling. Pour this into a greased ~23-x-30 cm pan the prepared pan and set aside.

Filling & Assembly

1. For the filling, stir the brown sugar, cinnamon and melted butter together and set aside. 

2. Turn the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle about 0.5 cm width. Brush the entire surface of the dough with the filling mixture. Roll up the dough from the longer side and then cut the roll into 15 pieces. Place these into the prepared pan on top of the goo, evenly spaced, cover with plastic wrap or tea towel and let rise for an hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Uncover the risen sticky buns and bake them for 40-45 minutes, until they are a rich golden brown. Cool the buns for 15 minutes in the pan and invert to serve.

Bon Appetit!

Medovnik

For me some dishes are associated with a memories, so this "Medovnik" cake reminds me of a wonderful time we spent in Prague and even takes me back to the beautiful architecture of old town, smells, tastes ...

Cake Layers Ingredients:
4 Tbsp (1/4 cup) honey
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 large eggs, beaten
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups all-purpose flour

Method:
1. Add 3/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup honey and 2 Tbsp unsalted butter to a medium sauce pan and melt them together over medium/low heat, whisking occasionally until sugar is melted (3-4 mins). Don’t put them over high heat or they may scorch to the bottom.
2. Remove from heat and while it’s still hot (not boiling), add in the beaten eggs in a slow steady stream while whisking vigorously until all of your eggs are incorporated (whisk constantly so you don’t end up with scrambled eggs).
3. Whisk in the baking soda until no lumps remain, then fold in 3 cups flour 1/2 cup at a time with a spatula until the dough reaches a clay consistency and doesn't stick to your hands. Mine took exactly 3 cups flour.
4. Cut the dough into 8 equal pieces roll out the dough when is still warm (cover with cling film to prevent from drying out)
5. Roll each piece out into a thin circle (very thin, straight on the parchment paper you will be baking on). You can sprinkle the top with a little flour to keep the dough from sticking to your rolling pin. Take a ~23cm plate or form to cut a circle, keeping the scraps for later.
6. Bake each layer for 4-5 min. at 180 degrees Celsius.
7. Bake the scraps from which you'll make a crumbs later .

For the cream:
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
2 Tbsp (40 gr) corn flour
250gr dulce de leche (варёная сгущёнка)
1 Tbsp honey
250 gr unsalted butter at room temperature

To make the cream:
In a saucepan, heat the 1 1/2 cups of milk, but don't boil.
In a small bowl, whisk the remaining 1/2 cup of milk with the eggs and corn flour until smooth. Slowly whisk the egg yolk mixture into the warm milk; bring to a simmer over moderate heat, whisking constantly until very thick, 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool. Whisk in the butter and dulce de leche .

To assemble the cake:
Top each cake layer with about 3-4 tbsp of cream and spread it around evenly. Repeat with all the cake layers. As you place the layers on top of each other, some of the frosting will come out of the sides. Spread it out evenly over the sides. Sprinkle the crushed cake layer scraps over the sides and on a top of the cake.

Leave the cake in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or overnight. Enjoy!!!

Tbsp = table spoon
Tsp = tea spoon