The sticky bun. So elusive. So majestic. So, sticky.
How do you make them? Is there a glaze? Is there a complicated technique? Is it wizardry?
Just a few of the thoughts I had before attempting these beauties. However, I’m elated to report that if you can master my World’s Easiest Cinnamon Rolls (and you totally can), you can master the World’s Easiest Vegan Sticky Buns, too!
It all starts with a simple dough that rises in 1 hour.
To keep things a little on the healthier side, I went with a 2:1 mix of unbleached all purpose and whole wheat pastry flour for slightly-hearty-but-still-decadent roll.
You could also go entirely all-purpose for true bakery style, all whole-wheat pastry for a healthier roll, or some other combination that I haven’t thought of! I suspect part spelt flour would work swimmingly.
So how are these simple? I’m glad you asked.
9 ingredients (pecans being the 9th and optional ingredient)
One true rise = less waiting
Fool-proof methods
No fancy techniques or equipment involved
See? You can totally do this. Believe it.
If you’re wondering how these sticky buns get their ooey-gooey glaze, it’s simple:
From a simple brown sugar, vegan butter mixture that you spread in the bottom of the baking dish.
Then you add pecans and your unbaked rolls and bake until fluffy and golden brown. Wait a few minutes, invert the pan, and voila! You have bakery-worthy sticky buns that will mystify your friends and family as to how you made them. Go you.
So what do these studs taste like? Amazing. They’re
Soft
Tender
Fluffy
Sweet
Perfectly spiced
Sticky
Cinnamon-y
Loaded with pecans
& Better with each bite
I could hardly stand taking photos of these rolls. Look at them! I wanted to inhale the whole batch and forgo photographs altogether. But I managed to hold off 30 minutes for pictures before I delighted in one from the center of the batch.
If you’ve ever eaten a cinnamon roll or sticky bun, you know it’s kind of like unwrapping a treasure. You start from the outside and work your way in until you get to that last, sticky center bite that undoubtably has the most sugar and butter.
Savor that bite, friends. Savor it like it’s never going to happen again. Then repeat! These rolls are simply amazing and so easy to make. DO IT.
If you give these a go, let me know how you liked them! And be sure to snap a photo and tag it @minimalistbaker on Instagram. It makes my day when I see you guys making and enjoying our recipes. Cheers!
The World’s Easiest Sticky Buns
Ingredients
DOUGH
- 1 cup Unsweetened Original Almond Breeze Almond Milk (or other plain, unsweetened dairy-free milk)
- 3 Tbsp vegan butter
- 1 packet rapid-rise (instant) yeast (1 packet yields ~2 ¼ tsp)
- 1 Tbsp cane sugar (ensure organic for vegan-friendly)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 ½ – 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I mixed all-purpose and whole wheat pastry flour 2:1)
FILLING
- 1/4 cup vegan butter (melted)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar OR granulated sugar
- 1/2-1 Tbsp cinnamon
STICKY GLAZE
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup vegan butter
- 1/2 cup pecans (chopped)
Instructions
- In a large saucepan (or in a bowl in the microwave at 30 second increments), heat the almond milk and vegan butter until warm and melted, never reaching boiling. Remove from heat and let cool to 110 degrees (43C), or the temperature of bath water. It should be warm but not too hot or it will kill the yeast.
- Transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle on yeast. Let activate for 10 minutes, then add sugar and the salt and stir (you should see some foaming / bubbling if the yeast is fresh and the water temperature is correct).
- Next add in flour 1/2 cup at a time, stirring as you go. The dough will be sticky. When it is too thick to stir, transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or so until it forms a loose ball, adding more flour as you go and as it will absorb. Rinse your mixing bowl out, coat it with avocado oil or other neutral oil, and add your dough ball back in. Roll around to coat all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
- While dough is rising, prepare sticky glaze by mixing butter and brown sugar and spreading it in an even layer on the bottom of an 8×8-inch baking dish (adjust if altering batch size). Top with pecans and set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a thin rectangle. Brush with melted vegan butter and top with brown sugar (or granulated sugar) and cinnamon.
- Starting at one end, tightly roll up the dough and situate seam side down. Then with a serrated knife or a string of floss, cut the dough into 1.5 – 2 inch sections and position in your 8×8 dish with the glaze layer on the bottom (you should have about 10 rolls as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size). Cover with plastic wrap and set on top of the oven to let it briefly rise again while you preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C).
- Once the oven is hot, bake rolls for 25-30 minutes or until slightly golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes, carefully invert, and then serve immediately.
Notes
*Also adapted from Ina Garten.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
Nutrition (1 of 10 servings)
Abbie McCann says
This recipe is AMAZING! If you have any doubts in your mind then banish them at once, sprint to your kitchen and make a batch of these…preferably a double batch because a single will not last long.
I use oat milk (allergic to real milk), real butter (not allergic) and all white strong bread flour. Didn’t have nuts on hand, lovely without and I’m sure lovely in as well!
Convenience tweaks:
– I grate cold butter into the brown sugar for the glaze in the bottom of the baking dish then mix – helps distribute the butter without getting my hands greasy.
– I grease the inside sides of the pan to prevent those lovely sticky edges from sticking
– I’m a big fan of making these ahead and popping them in the fridge after I’ve made the buns/placed in dish. I simply lift it out of the fridge, wait until oven is heated and cook as normal.
Yes, they have lots of sugar and butter but it is totally worth it for the chance to treat yourself!
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoy this recipe, Abbie. Thank you for the amazing review and for sharing your super helpful convenience tweaks! xo
Kate Fifer says
Would I be able to make this recipe with regular butter and whole milk using the same measurements?
Yes, that would work!
Erin Mcknight says
Very good. I baked mine a bit longer to make it more brown.
Amazing! Thank you for sharing, Erin! xo
Katie says
I made this recipe for Christmas and it was a huge hit. They tasted great and instead of flipping them all in advance we each took one by one out of the pan so there was a “reveal”. I used all regular flour since integrating alternative flours wasn’t important to me.
One future thing that would be helpful is to better describe the needed thickness and space needed for rolling. I have a small kitchen and ended up needing to split the dough and roll the halves separately since I had limited space.
Thanks for sending this out and creating it! So much better than the store bought pre-made rolls I would have bought otherwise!
What a fun way to serve them! Thank you for the helpful feedback and lovely review, Katie! xo
Louise Schneider says
Easy recipe with perfect, delicious results! Thank you.
xoxo!
Chelsea Davis says
Absolutely amazing. My super picky MIL said they were the best sticky buns she’d ever eaten. Score! 😉
Whoop! That sounds like a major win! Thank you for the lovely review, Chelsea! xo
Dina Dawoud says
Make this TODAY!! Oh my goodness! I made these this morning for a Christmas breakfast and they were amazing!!! The dough is so light and fluffy and the sticky pecan topping is the perfect amount of sweetness and crunch. My whole family loved it. Like many recipes here this is one I’ll be coming back to time and time again!!
YAY! We’re so glad the sticky buns were a hit with the whole family. Thank you for sharing, Dina! xo
Emily says
I LOVE this recipe. It is my go to for any brunch type events! I also make this every year for Christmas morning! We love pecans in this house so I put some in the rolls. I also like to put a little bit of cardamom in the cinnamon to add some depth and it’s incredible!!
Ooo love your additions, Emily! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
Karynn Athey says
Can you use coconut oil instead of vegan butter?
Hi Karynn, it won’t provide the same flavor and fluffiness/tenderness. But it should be okay!
G says
Could I sub coconut oil for the vegan butter for any portion of this recipe?
Hi, it won’t provide the same flavor and fluffiness/tenderness. But it should be okay!
BARBARA says
How do you make this recipe to be gluten free? Thank you.
Hi Barbara, you could try the sticky pecan topping with our gluten-free cinnamon rolls recipe. Let us know if you try it!
Julieth says
What flour can I use to make it gluten free and would I still need the yeast? Thanks.
Hi Julieth, gluten-free flours are tricky, so we don’t have a recommendation of just 1 that could be subbed in. We’d suggest using the method for the sticky pecan topping and applying it to our gluten-free cinnamon roll recipe. Hope that helps!
Lesley says
I’ve been looking at this recipe for a while and I’ve decided to make it for a family brunch in a few weeks. I was thinking of adding some raisins, or currants to the filling, soaking them in hot water for a few minutes to be sure they’re nice and plump. What do you think about this addition?
That sounds delicious, Lesley! We’d say just make sure to pat dry really well so they don’t add excess moisture to the dough. Let us know how it goes!
Ingrid says
I doubted myself through the entire darn process of making these and ALL FOR NOTHING. They came out amazing! 😭 Fighting the urge to not eat more than one in one sitting.
We’re so glad they turned out well, Ingrid! Thank you for sharing! xoxo
Elyse says
These sticky buns are SO DELICIOUS! The flavor/texture/everything is amazing! I ended up prepping them the night before, put the pan in the fridge overnight, and let them rise a second time in the morning before baking and they were perfect!
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Elyse! Thanks so much for the lovely review. xo
MJ says
These are delicious! I used a combo of all-purpose flour and oat flour. I also brushed the dough with just a little bit of melted coconut oil instead of the vegan butter. And, I used coconut palm sugar in place of the brown sugar and xylitol in place of the sugar. For the filling, I did a combo of coconut palm sugar and xylitol. EVERYONE loved these! They taste amazing, and the dough is light and fluffy. Perfection!
Amazing! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, MJ!
Shelly says
Can I double the recipe or should I make two separately?
Hi Shelly! You might be able to double the recipe and fit it into a 9×13 dish, but we haven’t tried it. Let us know how it goes!
Lorraine Blumenthal says
Hello,
Can the formed rolls be put in the refrigerator overnight, then allowed to rise in the morning before baking?
That should work, yes!
Shannon says
I wondered if this could be made with Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 gluten free flour blend?
Hi Shannon! We haven’t tried this recipe gluten free so we cannot guarantee results.. we do have a vegan and gluten-free cinnamon roll recipe, though!
Celia says
I LOVE STICKY BUNS! but as a pastry fanatic, the dough was a bit too dense for my liking. If you have time, my only modification is in Step 3 – knead the dough until it’s silky smooth and shiny, an indicator of gluten development. I don’t have a stand mixer, so I did it by hand which took quite a while, but was absolutely worth it.
I’ve tried full-fatty recipes with buns baked in an ocean of caramel-y goo. They tasted delicious but left everyone in a sugar coma. It actually made me miss this recipe! A bit more lean and still gives what you want – sticky, delicious, cinnamony, pillowy buns.
Thanks so much for the review and for sharing your experience, Celia! So glad you enjoy this recipe!