Sweet Potato Sticky Buns

These sticky buns are amazing, easy to make, and can easily be made vegan. The original recipe appears in the Nov. 2011 issue of Vegetarian Times, but I made a few tweaks, as usual. They seem to be best made a day ahead of time and then reheated before serving.


J'adore: Sweet Potato Stick Buns

For the dough:
1 0.25-oz. package active dry yeast
3 cups bread flour, plus more for rolling dough
2 Tbs. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 cup mashed sweet potato*
3 Tbs. vegetable oil, plus a dash for oiling the bowl

For the filling:
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 stick butter or vegan margarine, melted
chopped pecans or walnuts, optional

For the pan:
1 stick butter or vegan margarine, melted
2-3 Tbs. light brown sugar or use leftover filling

For the icing:
8 oz. cream cheese or vegan cream cheese
2-3 tsp. natural maple syrup
a pinch of sea salt/ 1-2 twists of grinder
confectioners' sugar (the recipe says 1 cup; I just dumped some in but probably less than a cup)

1. stir yeast into 1/3 cup warm water until dissolved. Let stand 10 minutes.
2. Combine flour, sugar, and salt in food processor fit with bread hook.
3. Stir sweet potato and oil into 1/3 cup warm water. (I just used a large measuring cup-- easier for pouring.)
4. When 10 minutes is up, stir yeast into sweet potato mixture.
5. Turn food processor on, and pour liquids through the feeding tube in the lid. Allow to run until dough forms a ball.
6. Remove dough from food processor and place into a large, oiled bowl. Cover with a barely damp, light-weight dish cloth, and allow to rise for 2-3 hours or until dough completely fills the bowl. (I warm up my oven as I'm making the dough then turn it off and stick the dough in to rise. If you have another warm spot, that will work too.)
7. Prepare filling by mixing together brown sugar and cinnamon, although you could just as easily just spread the brown sugar on the rolled-out dough and then shake cinnamon on top of that.
8. Grease large glass dish (9x13? I don't know how big any of my dishes are) with melted (vegan) butter, making sure to get all the way up the sides.
9. Sprinkle flour over a clean work surface, and turn dough onto it. Sprinkle a little more flour on top of dough and rub some onto your rolling pin. Roll out dough into a large rectangle.
10. Spread rolled-out dough with melted (vegan) butter (enough to coat evenly, but not enough to make a runny mess when you're rolling and cutting), then sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon mixture. You may also add chopped pecans or walnuts to the filling, but I choose not to since some people don't like nuts.
11. If you want larger buns, start with the back of the dough and start rolling it toward you so that you make one big dough tube. If you prefer to make smaller buns that will feed more people, cut the dough in half horizontally and make two dough logs.
12. Cut dough log into approx. 1" thick pieces. The original recipe says to cut off and discard the ends. Madness, I say! Just turn them so that the cut side is up. Waste not, want not!
13. Pour remaining butter into the bottom of the baking dish. Sprinkle any left over brown sugar/cinnamon mixture into the butter in the dish. If you've used it all already in the rolls, simply make some more. This helps to make the buns more like sticky buns and not so dry around the edges.
14. Place dough slices spiral-side up across the dish. Leave room for them to rise.
15. Stick the dish back in a warm spot, covered again with the barely damp dish towel, and allow to rise again for at least an hour.
16. Bake buns at 375° for 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
17. To make the icing, combine the maple syrup, cream cheese, and sea salt. Add in the confectioners' sugar and mix.
18. Spread the icing over the buns straight out of the oven. Top with chopped pecans or walnuts, if desired.


*I boiled the sweet potatoes until soft and then blended them in the food processor. The first time I tried baking the sweet potatoes and then mashing them, but the buns turned out far superior with the added moisture of the boiled potatoes. Cut up 1 or 2 large sweet potatoes and use the left over mash for dinner or baby food.

Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe is from the February 2009 issue of Vegetarian Times. I haven't modified it because it's dangerous to modify recipes when baking, or at least I think so. These cookies are very moist, chewy, and highly addictive. I must stress that part of what makes them work is using the oat flour, so if you substitute another kind you are doing so at your own risk!


The Heart-Healthiest Chocolate Chip Cookies in the World
Vegetarian times Feb. 2009

2 cups walnuts
3 Tbs. canola oil
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups oat flour (it's important to use this kind of flour. My neighbor tried whole wheat and they didn't turn out as good.)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups vegan chocolate chips (I think I used about 2/3 of a bag. Obviously they don't have to be vegan.)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Parchment paper for cookie trays (I don't know if it's really necessary, but I used it)
2. Blend walnuts in food processor for 30 seconds, or until ground into a fine meal. Add canola oil, and blend 2 to 3 minutes more, or until mixture has the consistency of natural peanut butter, scraping down the sides of food processor occasionally.
3. Whisk together brown sugar and 1/2 cup of water into a sauce pan, and bring to a boil. Pour brown sugar mix into the food processor with the walnut butter and vanilla extract and blend.
4. Add flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon to food processor and mix. Cool 10 minutes.
5. Transfer to mixing bowl and stir in oats first, then chocolate chips.
6. Shape cookie dough into balls and place on baking sheet. Flatten cookies with the bottom of a drinking glass dipped in water. Bake 8-10 minutes, or until cookies begin to brown and tops look dry. Cool three minutes, then transfer to cooling rack. (I thought the glass thing was really weird, but I did it and they turned out great. The less you cook them the chewier and moister they are. The ones that stayed in longer weren't quite as good).