Morning Buns

I don’t know if you noticed, but I kinda missed Muffin Monday. I just couldn’t find time to bake muffins, gasp! But even though it is Tuesday we should still celebrate with something sweet and baked in a muffin pan. So happy Tuesday I baked you some super easy morning buns. Over the Thanksgiving holiday I watched an episode of Barefoot Contessa on my flight over to Denver.  In the episode Ina Garten make these incredibly simple sticky buns using store bought puff pastry. I had two thoughts when watching this 1) this is awesome now I can have yummy sticky buns in the morning withouth all the work and time and 2) is this actually going to be good that looked a little too easy. So here it is and it was good. Really good!

I just love that you can wake up just a little earlier than usual, throw these together and enjoy hot and fresh sticky buns in the morning. It doesn’t have to be a production and it is still just as satisfying. Fifteen minutes of prep time and thiry minutes in the oven. You can get dressed while they’re baking and when you’re ready to head out the door they’re ready too.  I threw in some orange zest to brighten the flavors and omitted the usual nuts. More of a morning bun than sticky bun.  Go make some easy morning buns you deserve a mid week treat!

Morning Buns (recipe adapted from Ina Garten’s Easy Sticky Buns)

Ingredients:

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature (you can leave this on the counter the night before)

1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1 package (17.3-ounces/ 2-sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted (you can leave this in the fridge the night before to thaw)

For the filling:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 tablespoon orange zest

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a 12-cup standard muffin tin on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.

In a bowl combine the 12 tablespoons softened butter and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Place 1 rounded tablespoon of the mixture in each of the 12 muffin cups. Distribute the pecans evenly among the 12 muffin cups on top of the butter and sugar mixture.

Lightly flour a wooden board or stone surface. Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry with the folds going left to right. Brush the whole sheet with the melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on the puff pastry, sprinkle each sheet with 1/3 cup of the brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and 1/2 tablespoon of orange zest. Starting with the end nearest you, roll the pastry up snugly like a jelly roll around the filling, finishing the roll with the seam side down. Trim the ends of the roll about 1/2-inch and discard. Slice the roll in 6 equal pieces, each about 1 1/2 inches wide. Place each piece, spiral side up, in 6 of the muffin cups. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry to make 12 sticky buns.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the sticky buns are golden to dark brown on top and firm to the touch. Be careful – they’re hot! Allow to cool for 5 minutes only, invert the buns onto the parchment paper.