Lemon Sticky Buns

Lemon sticky buns put a bright twist on the gooey cinnamon-roll genre by swapping brown sugar caramel for a tart-sweet lemon-and-corn-syrup glaze pooled in the bottom of the pan. The lemon zest and juice cut through the sweetness in a way that keeps these from ever feeling cloying, and a cinnamon-nutmeg sugar swirl inside provides the familiar warm spice you expect from a sticky bun. Using frozen bread dough is the brilliant shortcut here, all the yeast-rise work is done for you, just thaw, roll, fill, and slice. The pan-bottom glaze is the magic, while the buns bake the lemon-sugar mixture bubbles up around the dough and caramelizes into a glassy citrus glaze that gets inverted onto the plate at the end. The critical timing instruction is right in the directions, loosen and invert immediately after baking, leaving the buns to cool in the pan welds the caramel onto the bottom and you’ll never get them out cleanly.

Pro Tips

• Thaw the frozen dough overnight in the fridge for the best texture, microwave-thawed dough tends to be uneven and tough in spots.
• Invert the pan onto the rack within 60 seconds of pulling it from the oven, the caramel cools and grips fast.
• Place a sheet of foil on the rack to catch the glaze that pools off the buns, otherwise it drips onto your counter.
• Use a sharp serrated knife or unflavored dental floss to cut the rolled log into clean slices, a dull knife squashes the spiral.

Variations

• Replace the lemon with orange or grapefruit zest and juice for a different citrus profile.
• Stir 2 tablespoons of poppy seeds into the sugar swirl filling for a lemon-poppy bun variation.
• Add half a cup of chopped pecans or sliced almonds to the pan-bottom glaze for crunchy nutty sticky buns.