Sticky Buns

There are several names that I'd love to take on as an Alias.  Ina.  Giada. Nigella.  I'm not sure what order I'd prefer them in, but it depends on the day.  Today it is Ina.  Yes, Ina as in Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa.  When I watch her show I can't help but think of how many calories will go straight to my ass when I consume the end result of the recipe, but nonetheless, I find myself trying to think of reasons why I should make it.  One Saturday afternoon after a long walk at Town Lake, I caught the ending of Barefoot Contessa goes to London.  When I flipped to the channel, the first image that appeared was a pan of the most caramely, gooey, buttery Sticky Buns I'd ever seen.  Immediately I knew I had to make them. But when?  As luck would have it, we would soon be venturing to Corpus Christi for the Christmas holidays and I couldn't think of a better place to make a tray of sweets then at my in-laws.  I've yet to meet a group of people that enjoy sugar as much as the Thornton's.  I knew this was the perfect recipe for the group.
When the hustle and bustle of the family settled down one afternoon, I found some time to try my hand at Ina's recipe (see below).  Amazingly, it was fun, quick, and painless!  I loved the airy lightness of the puff pastry, and the gooey-ness of the butter and brown sugar.  It was fun to see the rolls take shape as I formed the dough into a log, and cut the individual pieces and placed into the muffin tin. As the rolls bake it creates the most scintillating smell throughout the house, and attracts curious passers by.  When finished, the sticky buns melt in your mouth and are the perfect afternoon snack with a cup of coffee - or are a great grab and go for the morning.  It only took about 15 minutes to put together and the final product looks like you worked your way through a gourmet french recipe!  If you get a chance, try 'em out for yourself.  You'll surprise yourself at the ease and joy of the process.  Here's to your buns (and....calories to your other buns!).


Easy Sticky Buns  
(Ina Garten)

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped in very large pieces
• 1 package (17.3-ounces/ 2-sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted

For the filling:

nocoupons

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a 12-cup standard muffin tin on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the 12 tablespoons 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, and 1/2 cup of the raisins. 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 (ease the filling and pecans out onto the buns with a spoon) and cool completely.