An irresistible treat for brunch or a special breakfast, this recipe is well worth the time. Although there are many steps, none of them is difficult. Just make sure you take the time to read through the recipe before you begin so you don’t miss any steps.

Ingredients

For dough

  • 1 envelope active dry yeast (about 2-1/4 teaspoons)
  • 1 cup whole milk, warmed plus 1/4 cup cold
  • 1 teaspoon plus 1/4 cup honey
  • 4 large eggs, separated
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 4 cups Breadtopia Gluten Free Bread Flour, divided, plus more for dusting work surface
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened and cut into 1 tablespoons chunks

For filling

  • 3/4 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 tablespoon ground cardamom
  • 1/2 cup honey, divided
  • 1½ sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, divided

Instructions

  • In the bowl on an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whisk yeast, 1 cup warm milk, and 1 teaspoon honey until combined. (Yeast might clump a little, and that’s fine.) Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
  • Add egg whites, 2 cups Breadtopia bread flour, and remaining 1/4 cup honey and beat with paddle on medium-high speed until mixture is very light and thick, about 3 minutes. Remove paddle and scrape mixture with a spatula toward center of bowl. sprinkle with remaining 2 cups Breadtopia bread flour without stirring. Let stand in a warm place, uncovered about 30 minutes.
  • Add salt, orange zest, vanilla extract, 5 egg yolks, and remaining 1/4 cup cold milk.
  • Mix with dough hook hook on low speed until dough forms a shaggy mass. Increase speed to medium and work dough until it is soft and homogenous. It will clear the sides of the bowl but will still be slightly sticky.
  • Reduce mixer speed to medium-low and add butter in one piece at a time, waiting in between additions until butter is fully incorporated in the dough. This part takes a while, so be patient. Dough will be spongy and soft at this stage.
  • Cover and chill between 8-16 hours.
  • Make the filling:
  • In a small saucepan over low heat, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, 1/4 cup honey, and 1 stick butter. Stir constantly until butter is melted and mixture is smooth. Let cool slightly (if mixture cools too much it will be too hard to spread onto dough).
  • Turn out dough onto a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Punch down and divide into two halves. Return one half to bowl, cover and chill while you work.
  • Roll out remaining dough onto floured parchment paper into a rectangle measuring about 16×12 inches.
  • Spread half of warm brown sugar mixture evenly onto dough. Starting with a long edge facing you, roll dough into a tight log using parchment paper to help shape the dough. (If dough gets too sticky to handle at any stage, slide it with the parchment paper onto a baking sheet and chill it 20-30 minutes or until firm, then proceed.) Place log, seam side down onto a baking sheet. Chill until firm, 20-30 minutes.
  • Repeat process with other half of dough and brown sugar mixture. (Warm brown sugar mixture slightly if it has cooled too much to spread.)
  • Prepare two 12-cup muffin pans by buttering cups.
  • Remove chilled logs from refrigerator. Trim ends and cut each log into 12 equal pieces. If you want to make large buns, as pictured here, use 2 jumbo muffin tins (6 cups each) and cut each log into 6 equal pieces. Place each piece in prepared muffin cup and cover loosely with plastic. Let rest at room temperature 30-35 minutes and preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Bake buns in middle of oven, 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
  • Meanwhile, heat remaining 4 Tablespoons butter and remaining 1/4 cup honey in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove pan from heat.
  • Once you remove buns from oven, brush tops with butter mixture. Transfer buns to a cooling rack (if buns cool too much in pan, sugar will harden and buns will stick).