pregnancy cravings are real ya’ll.

never before have i had food stick in my mind and loop over and over like i have in the last seven months.

and sometimes, a craving becomes so strong i just have to give in. and in the case of the sticky bun, i gave in HARD. like, i have eaten five buns in twenty-four hours, hard.

now i am not going to lie to you, sticky buns are a labor of love. nothing about making them is particularly challenging, but since this recipe requires time to rise, it is a good one to plan in advance for.

pistachio sticky buns

prep time: 10 minutes

active time: 30 minutes

Inactive time: 3-4 hours

bake time: 35-40 minutes

total time: 5 hours

Ingredients: dough - .25 cup warm water (105-115 degrees). 1 packet (.25 oz) package active dry yeast. .25 cup sugar. .75 cup room temperature whole milk. 4 tbs unsalted butter + 1 tbs for greasing the bowl. 3 egg yolks. 1 tbs orange zest. 1.25 tsp salt. 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting.

filling - .5 cup brown sugar. 1 tbs ground cinnamon. 4 tbs unsalted butter. 2 tbs softened cream cheese.

topping - .5 cup brown sugar. 6 tbs unsalted butter. 2 tbs softened cream cheese. 3 tbs honey. 1.5 cup coarsely chopped pistachios. .5 cup heavy cream.

tools - stand mixer + dough hook. 9 x 13 baking dish. rolling pin. sauce pan.

start by combining the water, 1 tsp sugar and the yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. stir well to agitate the yeast and allow it to sit for five minutes until it foams and bubbles up. if the liquid doesn’t thicken and foam, it was inactive and it will not work. try again with different yeast.

once the yeast is active, add in the milk, 4 tbs butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, orange zest, salt and 3 cups of the flour.

combine on a low speed with a dough hook until the dough begins to come together. about 3-5 minutes.

slowly add the remaining cup of flour till the dough is smooth and slightly sticky. about 2 minutes. remove the dough for a second as you grease the bowl with the remaining tbs of butter. cover the bowl with a towel and set it in a warm place to rise. let the dough rise till it has doubled in size. 1-2 hours.

while your dough is rising, make your filling and your topping. to make the filling, combine the ingredients in a medium bowl. stir well till it makes almost a paste. to make the topping, combine the butter, cream cheese, honey, sugar and pistachios in a sauce pan. melt over medium heat, stir well to combine and set it aside.

when your dough has doubled in size, cover a working surface with some flour and roll the dough out till it is about .25 inch thick.

spread the filling all over the dough.

roll the dough up to make one long roll. slice into 12 equal pieces.

use parchment to cover the baking pan (f you don’t have any, no problem, you can skip this step it just makes more mess). spread the topping mixture onto the parchment and top with the rolls. cover the rolls and allow them to rise until they have puffed up and filled the baking pan, 1-2 hours. now, you can do all this prep in advance and then place the buns in the fridge over night and bake in the morning. or, after the second rise you could go ahead and bake them off. whenever you are ready to bake the buns, preheat the oven to 375 degrees f.

melt the remaining butter and the cream over low heat, just until butter is melted and the liquids have combined. pour the butter & cream mixture over the top of the buns and bake for 35-40 minutes.

until bubbly and golden brown.

to serve, scoop out a bun and flip it over onto a plate. scoop up any ooey gooey topping bits left behind and spoon it on top of the sticky bun. serve warm and enjoy.

xo, a

pistachio sticky buns

prep time: 10 minutes

active time: 30 minutes

Inactive time: 3-4 hours

bake time: 35-40 minutes

total time: 5 hours

Ingredients: dough - .25 cup warm water (105-115 degrees). 1 packet (.25 oz) package active dry yeast. .25 cup sugar. .75 cup room temperature whole milk. 4 tbs unsalted butter + 1 tbs for greasing the bowl. 3 egg yolks. 1 tbs orange zest. 1.25 tsp salt. 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting.

filling - .5 cup brown sugar. 1 tbs ground cinnamon. 4 tbs unsalted butter. 2 tbs softened cream cheese.

topping - .5 cup brown sugar. 6 tbs unsalted butter. 2 tbs softened cream cheese. 3 tbs honey. 1.5 cup coarsely chopped pistachios. .5 cup heavy cream.

tools - stand mixer + dough hook. 9 x 13 baking dish. rolling pin. sauce pan.

start by combining the water, 1 tsp sugar and the yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. stir well to agitate the yeast and allow it to sit for five minutes until it foams and bubbles up. if the liquid doesn’t thicken and foam, it was inactive and it will not work. try again with different yeast. once the yeast is active, add in the milk, 4 tbs butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, orange zest, salt and 3 cups of the flour. combine on a low speed with a dough hook until the dough begins to come together. about 3-5 minutes. slowly add the remaining cup of flour till the dough is smooth and slightly sticky. about 2 minutes. remove the dough for a second as you grease the bowl with the remaining tbs of butter. cover the bowl with a towel and set it in a warm place to rise. let the dough rise till it has doubled in size. 1-2 hours. while your dough is rising, make your filling and your topping. to make the filling, combine the ingredients in a medium bowl. stir well till it makes almost a paste. to make the topping, combine the butter, cream cheese, honey, sugar and pistachios in a sauce pan. melt over medium heat, stir well to combine and set it aside. when your dough has doubled in size, cover a working surface with some flour and roll the dough out till it is about .25 inch thick. spread the filling all over the dough. roll the dough up to make one long roll. slice into 12 equal pieces. use parchment to cover the baking pan (f you don’t have any, no problem, you can skip this step it just makes more mess). spread the topping mixture onto the parchment and top with the rolls. cover the rolls and allow them to rise until they have puffed up and filled the baking pan, 1-2 hours. now, you can do all this prep in advance and then place the buns in the fridge over night and bake in the morning. or, after the second rise you could go ahead and bake them off. whenever you are ready to bake the buns, preheat the oven to 375 degrees f. melt the remaining butter and the cream over low heat, just until butter is melted and the liquids have combined. pour the butter & cream mixture over the top of the buns and bake for 35-40 minutes. until bubbly and golden brown. to serve, scoop out a bun and flip it over onto a plate. scoop up any ooey gooey topping bits left behind and spoon it on top of the sticky bun. serve warm and enjoy.

halloween is just over a week away, and pumpkins are EVERYWHERE. and those bad boys are not just for decoration and pies!

now i’ve gone on and on about how i am not really a pumpkin spice fan, but i am really embracing the flavors this year. while i’m not about to go order a pumpkin spice latte, those pumpkin spice flavors (ginger, cinnamon, allspice & clove) really lend themselves so perfectly to a bounty of savory recipes.

but i’m using them in my favorite pumpkin preparation, soup. the texture of pumpkin can be a bit off-putting when cooked (part of the reason i am not a pumpkin pie fan) but when roasted and puréed in a soup, the flavors come through beautifully without textural issues. this soup is a great warming dish to be enjoyed all autumn long.

pumpkin spice soup

serves: 4-6

prep time: 10 minutes

cooking time: 1 hour

total time: 1 hour 10 minutes

ingredients: 3 lb pumpkin. 1 large brown onion, halved and sliced 1 inch thick. 3 tbs olive oil. 3 cloves garlic, smashed. 10 medium sized sage leaves, roughly chopped + a few extra thinly sliced for garnish. .5 cup blood orange juice (you can use regular orange if you have it). 4 cups chicken stock. .25 cup brown sugar. 1 tbs kosher salt. 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. 1 tsp cinnamon. .5 tsp ginger. .5 tsp ground cloves. .25 tsp all spice. .25 cup crumbled goat cheese for serving. crusty bread for serving. baking sheet. parchment paper. heavy pot. immersion blender, blender or food processor.

start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees f. half your pumpkin and scoop out all the guts and reserve them to make roasted gourd seeds. mix together the brown sugar, half the salt and pepper, the cinnamon, allspice, ginger and clove. line your baking sheet with parchment paper and place your onions and pumpkin halves on the sheet. sprinkle the inside and edges of the pumpkin as well as the onions with your spice mix.

drizzle the pumpkin and onions with the olive oil and mix it all up till the pumpkin and the onions are lightly coated with spice and oil. start with your pumpkin with the skin side down and roast the veggies for about 40 minutes. halfway through, flip your pumpkins so the skin side is facing up. when your pumpkins have roasted, heat your heavy pot over medium heat.

working carefully not to burn your fingers, scoop the pumpkin out of it’s shell or if you can, just peel the roasted shell away.

remove any overly cooked bits of onions and put the pumpkin pulp and onions in your pot.

when you start to hear the veggies sizzle, add in the garlic and sage leaves and stir well to combine. when the garlic becomes fragrant (about 1 minute),

pour in the orange juice and the rest of your salt and pepper.

stir well till the orange juice is absorbed and then pour in your chicken stock. bring the soup to a boil, and turn down the heat till you have a gentle simmer. simmer the liquid for 3-5 minutes and turn off the heat.

working in batches in a food processor or blender, or using your immersion blender, purée the soup till smooth.

serve topped with goat cheese, some sage with crust bread on the side for dipping.

xo, a

pumpkin spice soup

serves: 4-6

prep time: 10 minutes

cooking time: 1 hour

total time: 1 hour 10 minutes

ingredients: 3 lb pumpkin. 1 large brown onion, halved and sliced 1 inch thick. 3 tbs olive oil. 3 cloves garlic, smashed. 10 medium sized sage leaves, roughly chopped + a few extra thinly sliced for garnish. .5 cup blood orange juice (you can use regular orange if you have it). 4 cups chicken stock. .25 cup brown sugar. 1 tbs kosher salt. 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. 1 tsp cinnamon. .5 tsp ginger. .5 tsp ground cloves. .25 tsp all spice. .25 cup crumbled goat cheese for serving. crusty bread for serving. baking sheet. parchment paper. heavy pot. immersion blender, blender or food processor.

start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees f. half your pumpkin and scoop out all the guts and reserve them to make roasted gourd seeds. mix together the brown sugar, half the salt and pepper, the cinnamon, allspice, ginger and clove. line your baking sheet with parchment paper and place your onions and pumpkin halves on the sheet. sprinkle the inside and edges of the pumpkin as well as the onions with your spice mix. drizzle the pumpkin and onions with the olive oil and mix it all up till the pumpkin and the onions are lightly coated with spice and oil. start with your pumpkin with the skin side down and roast the veggies for about 40 minutes. halfway through, flip your pumpkins so the skin side is facing up. when your pumpkins have roasted, heat your heavy pot over medium heat. working carefully not to burn your fingers, scoop the pumpkin out of it’s shell or if you can, just peel the roasted shell away. remove any overly cooked bits of onions and put the pumpkin pulp and onions in your pot. when you start to hear the veggies sizzle, add in the garlic and sage leaves and stir well to combine. when the garlic becomes fragrant (about 1 minute), pour in the orange juice and the rest of your salt and pepper. stir well till the orange juice is absorbed and then pour in your chicken stock. bring the soup to a boil, and turn down the heat till you have a gentle simmer. simmer the liquid for 3-5 minutes and turn off the heat. working in batches in a food processor or blender, or using your immersion blender, purée the soup till smooth. serve topped with goat cheese, some sage with crust bread on the side for dipping.