Caramel Apple Sticky Buns (Homemade Baking Spice)

Pillowy soft sweet rolls are filled with fresh apples, a special homemade blend of warm holiday baking spices, and a buttery brown sugar mixture. Caramel cream cheese frosting is then lathered on to finish off these caramel apple sticky buns in ooey gooey sweet style.

These sticky buns are incredibly tender and soft. They are packed with so much Fall flavor and will make your house smell like warm Fall spices and all that is so cozy about the season. In fact, the double cinnamon and unique spice blend used in the filling is a special one I came up with just for these fluffy filled Caramel Apple Rolls.

A secret ingredients makes these the softest cinnamon rolls, and it’s a trick I’ll be using from now on when I want to add extra richness to my Chai Spiced Cinnamon Rolls and Coconut Milk Cinnamon Rolls. More on that later.

Apple picking season is in full swing. Since I made Spiced Apple Pie last year, I wanted to do another apple harvest recipe this year. Tilly gets all the credit for these caramel apple cinnamon rolls. She is the one who told me to make apple cinnamon rolls and put caramel frosting on them. And that little foodie definitely had a great idea!

Birds Custard Flavor Boost

The sweet, brioche like, roll dough for these caramel apple sticky buns is similar to the Swedish Cinnamon Rolls I put up in how elastic, smooth, and wet the dough is. I worked on my bread making game over the Summer and learned some valuable tricks, like the secret ingredient I have coming up a bit later. Another subtle flavor booster I use for these apple cinnamon rolls is Birds Custard.

If you read Marshmallow Filled Chocolate Cupcakes, you know I grew up on English treats. Birds Custard is a cornstarch based custard powder that has a unique flavoring of annatto. Annatto is a natural red food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree. But it also adds a subtle flavor to the famous Bird’s Custard. If you have ever had cinnamon roll dough that has pudding in it, well, then you know how amazing the result is! Tyler Perry’s cinnamon rolls are famous due to their addition of instant pudding. These cinnamon rolls have a bit of the birds custard for flavor and to add a fluffy texture to the buns.

Sweet & Soft Dough

The first step to making these yeasted apple sticky buns is to make the dough. This dough uses active yeast, which will need to proof. So warm milk in a bowl to 110 degrees F. Like I always recommend, use a thermometer to ensure the temperature of the liquid is accurate for best results. Divide the milk in half. Then sprinkle on the yeast onto half of it and add a teaspoon of sugar. Allow it to activate for 15 minutes. For the other half of milk, dissolve in the birds custard and give it a stir.

In the meantime, gather the rest of your ingredients for the cinnamon roll dough. In the bowl of your stand mixer, add the all purpose flour. Then whisk in the salt and sugar. Make a well in the middle.

Once the yeast is proofed, pour that into the dry ingredients. Add the birds custard mixture along with the egg and melted butter. Then give it a mix to bring all of the ingredients together. Next, use the dough attachment of your mixer to knead it for 15 minutes on medium high speed.

This is a very wet dough, but it will eventually come together into an elastic, cohesive, and smooth dough.

Once it is ready, grease up a large bowl with butter or cooking spray. Use a spatula to put the soft cinnamon roll dough into the bowl. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let it rise in a draft free, warm place for 90 minutes.

Caramel Sauce

For the caramel sauce, you can use storebought or use the bourbon salted caramel recipe I have listed at the bottom of this recipe. Note that you can omit the bourbon and sea salt to have plain caramel.

If you want to make your own, keep reading!

While the dough is rising, make your caramel to give it time to cool. This caramel is similar to the caramel I used in Bourbon Apple Crisp. Also, take the precautions on making caramel that I stated in my Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes. In a heavy bottom saucepan set over medium high heat, sprinkle on granulated sugar. Whisk it as it melts. It will begin to turn an amber color as it fully melts. Turn the heat to medium low. Once the sugar is completely dissolved, add the butter. Whisk in carefully. Then once it is fully incorporated, add the heavy cream. Whisk thoroughly. Then remove from the heat and add vanilla extract. Pour into a heatproof jar to cool.

Cinnamon Apple Filling & Holiday Baking Spice Blend

The filling for these Caramel Apple Cinnamon Sticky Buns is specially spiced and studded with real apples. The apples are diced up and coated in a brown sugar and butter paste. The spice for this filling is one I created. It includes both Ceylon and Cassia Cinnmon, Ground Anise, Allspice, Mace, Nutmeg, and Cardamom. If you don’t want to mix the spice blend yourself, a great alternative would be this pre-made baking spice blend.

To make the special baking spice blend, use a small bowl and small whisk. Put the cinnamons and remaining spices into the bowl and whisk it until it is completely combined. Then store it in a jar and use it to add fall flair to waffles, bananas foster galette, and for all of your holiday baking needs! It’s the best holiday spice to take over when your pumpkin spice craze needs a break!

To make the filling, use room temperature butter. Use a medium sized mixing bowl and use a spatula to mix up the butter. Then add brown sugar and mix well. Next, mix in the baking spices and pure vanilla extract. Then peel, core, and dice up some apples. For these caramel apple cinnamon rolls I used Honeycrisp, however, Granny or any other tart apple will do nicely. Fold in the small apple dices.

Butter up a 9 inch baking dish or use a cast iron skillet like I did.

To fill the rolls, lightly flour a surface and a rolling pin. When the dough has risen three times its original size, gently punch it down. Put the soft dough onto the floured surface and roll into a rectangle of 9 x 14 inch rectangle.

Spread the filling evenly over the rectangle. Leave a 1/4 inch border on the far side of the dough for the seams. Then tightly roll up the dough from the 9 inch side. Cut into 9 even rolls.

Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and set them in a draft free area to rise for an additional 30 minutes.

Secret Ingredient Cinnamon Rolls

A couple of my baking buddies taught me this trick to making the softest, most tender cinnamon rolls ever. Pouring heavy cream over the rolls before baking makes them super soft. This method also works with any leaked filling to make the rolls even more gooey and flavorful than ever.

When the rolls are risen are ready to bake, warm the heavy cream. Then pour it over the rolls.

Bake for 26-30minutes, until golden brown. The allow to cool slightly while you work on the Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting.

Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

This frosting is amazing. It has vanilla cream cheese frosting mixed with gooey fresh caramel sauce. It is sticky and gooey and drips all over the spiced apple rolls. You will be licking your fingers and the plate for every last drop. It’s just that good.

To make the frosting place room temperature butter and cream cheese into a mixing bowl. Use a strong spatula to mix the two together until smooth. Then add the powdered sugar and mix. Finish with the caramel and extra boost of vanilla extract. I usually save the leftover caramel as a finishing touch drizzle. But use as much as your taste buds desire right into the frosting.

Then spread them over the caramel apple cinnamon rolls and serve warm. And there you have it, the world’s best Apple sticky buns!

I love hearing from you, so make sure to send pics of these rolls for a chance to be featured on my Instagram stories.

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