Barefoot Bloggers: Easy Sticky Buns

I made these on Sunday morning and was really looking forward to them. I saw Ina make them on Good Morning America and they looked so simple and delicious. Since I'm not too keen on baking, I loved that you could get an ooey, gooey, nutty sticky bun without going through the hassle of making dough. These were definitely true to their name "easy" sticky buns, however I did have some issues with Ina's oven temp and cooking time.

First of all, I halved this recipe because not only do I barely need sticky buns as they only "stick" to one thing - if you catch my drift - but I definitely don't need 12 of these sweet little monsters hanging around. I did everything Ina said and my end result was slightly overbaked buns. They were much crispier and much more burnt than I would have preferred - and I even took them out at 25 minutes!! So despite these issues, I would make them again because they are easy and the flavor is great. However, next time I will be cooking them either on 400 degrees for 15 minutes or 350 degrees for 20 minutes. If you want to make these, which I strongly suggest because they are mmmm mmmmm good, then take my advice and cut down on the cooking time or the oven temp or both. That way you'll come out with not only ooey, gooey buns, but soft supple ones as well. And who doesn't like a nice soft sink-your-teeth in bun :) Enjoy!!

Easy Sticky Buns
source: Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa

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
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup raisins
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 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 one sheet of puff pastry with the folds going left to right. Brush the whole sheet with half of 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. 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.