Sticky buns are one of the ultimate comfort foods — warm, gooey, indulgent, and perfect for savoring on a slow weekend morning. These Plum Pecan Sticky Buns are a fun twist on a classic, taking the flavor to the next level. Soft, chewy rolls are coated in a thick maple caramel glaze, with toasted pecans that add just the right crunch.
To be honest, I used to think plums were kind of a boring fruit, but making this recipe completely changed my mind. The spiced plum compote melts into the cinnamon butter swirl and oozes into the caramel glaze, creating a sticky, sweet-tart sauce that’s ridiculously tasty. It’s the perfect marriage of late summer’s ripe plums and the cozy, spiced treats I crave when fall starts to creep in.
Recipe highlights
- Fun flavor twist. A quick compote made with fresh, slightly tart plums brings a fun new flavor to classic sticky buns.
- Texture fest. Tender, yeasted sweet roll dough. Chewy caramel topping. Crunchy toasted pecans. Absolute heaven.
- Make‐ahead-able. Make and bake the same day or let the buns sit in the fridge overnight so you can bake them the next morning.
- No cooking the caramel! This simplified method for the sticky bun caramel topping means you don’t have to cook it first – there’s just no reason for that fuss.
- Impressive and share-worthy. Gorgeous to look at and fun to present to your loved ones at brunch. The kind of treat that gets “oohs” and “ahhs” at the table.
Recipe overview
⏱️ Prep: ~30 min • Bake: ~35 min • Total: ~2 ½ hrs with proofing time
🍴 Yield: Makes 9 sticky buns
💪 Skill level: Intermediate. This is a beginner-friendly yeast dough recipe, but rolling the dough up with the plum compote is a bit tricky and messy. You can do this!
Psst: If you love cinnamon rolls, be sure to check out my Fig & Brie Rolls and Cardamom Rolls with Blood Orange Icing.
How to make plum pecan sticky buns
This is a quick overview on how to make these plum sticky buns. For full recipe details and ingredients, scroll down to the recipe card below.
- Make the plum filling. Cook chopped plums with sugar, spices, and lemon juice until you have a thick compote. Leave chunky or purée if desired. Let cool.
- Make the cinnamon butter filling. Cream butter with sugar and cinnamon.
- Make the sweet roll dough. Mix your dough and let it rise until about doubled.
- Prep the caramel. Toast & chop pecans. Make the caramel glaze by whisking melted butter with brown sugar and maple syrup. Pour that into the bottom of your baking pan and top with the pecans.
- Roll & fill. Roll out the dough, spread with cinnamon butter, spread with plum compote, roll into a log, then slice into buns. Place them atop the caramel in the pan.
- Second rise. Let the buns rise again until puffy and touching.
- Bake. Bake until golden, bubbling, and baked through. Let cool a few minutes,then invert so the sticky caramel and pecans are on top.
Top tips for success
Warm the milk just enough. In the recipe for the sweet roll dough, you’ll add the milk to the melted butter just to warm the milk slightly. Make sure this mixture of butter and milk is 105 – 115° F before you add it to the rest of the ingredients. This is a happy range for yeast.
Get the right dough texture. You want a sticky, moist dough so your final buns are soft and tender. The dough should feel somewhat tacky without sticking to your fingers. If you need to add extra flour to the dough while it’s mixing, add just one tablespoon at a time until the texture is right.
Don’t overfill with plum compote. These are messy buns, there’s no way around it. That plum compote is slippery and can make it a little difficult to roll up the dough log. Use about 1 cup of your plum compote to fill the rolls, spreading it in a thin layer. You may end up with some extra compote – you can always serve this on the side of the rolls or simply use it to spread on toast!
Use the dental floss trick
These rolls are sloppier than average, thanks to the delicious homemade plum filling. I highly recommend you slice the rolls with unflavored dental floss instead of using a knife. First mark the dough log with a knife where you want to cut (for 9 rolls). Slide a long piece of floss under the log, lining it up with your first mark. Pull the ends of the floss up and cross them over the top, then pull tight to slice through the dough cleanly. Repeat for each roll.
No need to cook the caramel. Most recipes for sticky buns require you to cook the caramel topping first. This is totally unnecessary and I prefer the simplicity of simply whisking together melted butter with brown sugar and maple syrup.
Salt, always salt. I add a pinch of salt to the plum compote as well as the caramel topping. A little salt always helps to elevate the flavors and balance the sweetness.
Toast the pecans. Toasting the nuts really brings out the flavor and crunch. Worth it!
Let the dough rise in a warm place. If your house is cold when making your plum sticky buns, place the dough in a warm (turned off) oven or on top of the refrigerator. The warmth will help the dough rise faster.
Bake just right. The best way to know cinnamon rolls or sticky buns are done is to use a digital thermometer. Their internal temperature should be 195 – 200° F.
Don’t fear the flip. I’ll admit, even I get nervous to invert the buns! But it’s really the most exciting part, when you get to reveal the gorgeous caramel-pecan topping. Flip the sticky buns about 5 minutes after they come out of the oven, and move quickly. You can always place a tray or sheet pan on top of the buns first, invert them onto the tray, and then invert them over again onto a serving platter.
Variations & substitutions
For the plums: Replace plums with apricots or other stone fruits or try pear or apple butter instead of plum compote. If you’re into figs, you must try Fig & Brie Cinnamon Rolls.
For the nuts: Use walnuts, sliced almonds, or even a mixture of nuts in place of pecans.
For the yeast: You can use active dry yeast instead of instant. Just allow more time for each dough rise (about 1 – 1 ½ hours or so). Add active dry yeast into the recipe as stated – no need to bloom it first as long as it’s fresh and not expired.
Serving & storing plum sticky buns
Best eaten warm. Sticky buns are most magical the day they’re baked, when they’re still warm from the oven.
Store at room temperature: Store tightly wrapped 2-3 days. To refresh, warm in a low oven for 5-10 minutes.
Refrigerate: You can also refrigerate leftover buns, but they will dry out a bit more and the dough texture will be a bit tougher. Reheat gently in an oven or microwave before serving.
If you make these Plum Pecan Sticky Buns, please leave a star rating and comment below. I’d love to hear what you think or answer any questions. Thank you!
Plum Pecan Sticky Buns
Equipment
- 8×8-inch square baking pan
- Rolling pin
Ingredients
Plum Filling
- 4-5 plums, chopped, (~1 ½ cups)
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Cinnamon Butter
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, soft room temperature
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Sticky Bun Topping
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons real maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup pecans, toasted and chopped
Rolls
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 package instant/rapid rise yeast
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter
- ¾ cup whole milk
- 1 egg, beaten
Instructions
- Make the plum filling. Chop plums and add to a saucepan over medium heat. Add ¼ cup brown sugar, 1 tsp each cinnamon & ginger, a pinch of salt, and 1 tbsp lemon juice.
- Cook, stirring frequently and smashing plums lightly with the back of a spoon, until plums break down and mixture becomes thick, about 10-15 minutes. Pour mixture into a bowl and allow to cool completely before using. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
- Make the cinnamon butter filling. In a small bowl, beat 4 tbsp butter until it's soft and creamy. Add ¼ cup brown sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon; mix well. Set aside.
- Start the cinnamon roll dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together 2 ½ cups flour, ½ tsp salt, 3 tbsp sugar, and package of instant yeast.
- Melt 4 tablespoons butter over low heat. Add ¾ cup whole milk; turn heat off. You want this mixture to be warm but not hot – 105 – 115° F is ideal. If it's too hot, let it cool for a few minutes. If it's too cold, warm it up over low heat until it's ready.
- Add melted butter-milk mixture to the flour mix, stir in. Add 1 egg and mix until combined. Place dough hook on stand mixer and knead dough for 8-10 minutes on medium speed until dough is smooth and elastic. You may need to add just a little more flour if dough looks too sticky. Add one tablespoon at a time and allow mixture to knead for a minute before considering adding more. It should be somewhat sticky but not stick to the sides of the bowl or to your fingers.
- Place dough in a greased bowl, tossing to coat. Let dough sit until roughly doubled in size, about 30-40 minutes (rising time can vary quite a bit).
- While dough is proofing, make the sticky bun caramel topping. Melt 4 tablespoons butter. In a large bowl, whisk together ½ cup brown sugar, 2 tbsp maple syrup, and ¼ tsp salt. Whisk in melted butter.
- Pour sticky bun caramel into a 8×8 inch baking pan. Sprinkle ¾ cup toasted chopped pecans evenly on top, pressing nuts into the caramel slightly. Set aside.
- Roll and shape. When dough has doubled, remove it from the bowl and place on a lightly floured work surface. Roll into a rectangle, roughly 16 by 12 inches and 1/2 inch thick.
- Add cinnamon butter. Carefully spread cinnamon butter mixture on top of dough, being careful not to pull the dough. Leave a one-inch border around all sides.
- Add plum filling. Spread about 1 cup of plum filling evenly on top of cinnamon butter. Don't overfill with this – the plum jam is slippery, and too much of it will make the dough difficult to roll up and slice.
- Roll & slice. Starting with one long side, roll the dough up into a spiral, making sure it's fairly tight. Seal the edge by pinching the two sides together. Place roll seam side down. Slice into 9 even slices using unflavored dental floss. Slicing this with a knife will be tricky, as it may squish the dough too much and cause the plum filling to squeeze out. Some of the plum compote will certainly spill out when you slice it – that's ok. These buns are messy buns.
- Second rise. Place rolls into prepared pan on top of caramel and pecans. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm area to rise until doubled, about 1 – 1 ½ hours. Alternatively, you could refrigerate overnight and pull the rolls out to rise in the morning.
- Bake. While rolls are proofing, preheat the oven to 350° F. Bake rolls until golden brown on top and baked through in the center, about 30-40 minutes. For best results, use a digital thermometer to check their internal temp – it should be between 195 – 200° F.
- Cool & flip. Remove rolls from oven and place on a cooling rack for about 5 minutes, then flip sticky buns onto a cutting board, large serving platter, or parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Allow plum sticky buns to cool at least another 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy warm and fresh!
Did you try this recipe?
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