These apple sticky rolls or buns are one of my favorite ways to use my discard. The rolls are soft, squishy, and full of sweet, juicy apples. I usually include pecans or other nuts in the filling and sometimes drizzle the buns with icing. Without the icing, the buns are only mildly sweet, and they make a nice addition to a special breakfast or brunch. They also are good for dessert, my husband says. I like them warm with a cup of tea or coffee. The dough contains a little white whole-wheat flour for extra nutrition and a bit more taste and texture, but you can use all-purpose flour, if you prefer. I often use my air fryer to cook the buns (it's been in the mid-to-upper 90s here in northern Virginia lately), but you can, of course, bake the buns in the regular oven. Enjoy!
Sourdough Apple Sticky Rolls or Buns -- Makes 8
1 cup of sourdough starter/discard
1/4 cup of canola oil
1/4 cup of milk
1 large egg
1/3 cup of sugar
1 cup of white whole-wheat or all-purpose flour
In a large bowl mix together well the starter/discard, oil, milk, egg, and sugar. Stir in the flour until completely mixed. Loosely cover the mixture and let it sit for at least an hour (three or four hours is fine). When you're ready, add:
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon of salt
Mix the flour and salt into the other ingredients first with a spoon, then knead the mixture for 3-5 minutes, adding in another 1/4 - 1/2 cup of flour as you knead the dough to prevent the dough from being too sticky to knead. You want the dough to be moist but not sticky. Pat the dough out into a rectangle about 1/2-inch thick (10- x 8-inches or so). Spread the filling (see below for the filling instructions) out over the dough to within about 1/2 - 3/4-inch from the edges. Roll up the dough into a log/cylinder, jelly-roll-style. With a sharp knife, cut the log crosswise into 8 equal pieces. If you want to cook the rolls/buns in the air fryer, cut two small pieces of aluminum foil to fit the bottom of your air fryer basket and an inch or two up the sides. Just place the foil in the cold basket and mold it with your fingers, then lift it out. Spritz the foil well with non-stick cooking spray. Place four dough rounds on each piece of foil and spritz the tops of the dough rounds with non-stick cooking spray. Let the dough rise for an hour or two or until the dough rounds increase in size by about one-third. Place one batch of dough rounds (in their foil) in your air fryer basket and air fry the dough rounds at 320 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until the buns are golden brown. Repeat the process with the remaining dough. If you want to bake the dough in the regular oven, place the dough rounds on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment, spacing the rounds at least an inch apart, and bake the dough rounds at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes until golden. Glaze/ice the buns while they are warm (see below for instructions) or leave them plain.
Filling
2 small apples, peeled, cored, and chopped into smallish pieces (1/4 - 1/2-inches)
2 tablespoons of melted butter
1/3 cup of dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of allspice
1/4 cup of chopped or broken nuts
Mix all the filling ingredients together well and spread the mixture on the dough before rolling up the dough.
Glaze/Icing
3/4 cup of confectioner's sugar
2 - 3 teaspoons of water or milk
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
Mix all the ingredients together well in a cup. Microwave the mixture for about 30 seconds until very hot, then stir everything well until the glaze is smooth. Drizzle the warm glaze on the warm buns. If the glaze hardens up, you can microwave it again in short increments (10 seconds or so).
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