Quick Chai Spiced Skillet Sticky Buns

One of my absolute favorite things to do each weekend is linger over breakfast. We’ll go out for a morning walk and then come home and brew a big pot of tea. When breakfast is ready we’ll gather around the table with the kids and talk about the highs and lows in the week gone by, and what we’re looking forward to in the one coming up. It’s easy to let nearly an hour pass right by as we sit there, savoring the bites, the sips and the conversation. This past Saturday this Quick Chai Spiced Skillet Sticky Buns Recipe found its way to our table. It was perfect. By using biscuit dough instead of a yeasted dough, these delicious breakfast treats become a quick but indulgent meal worthy of serving on a Saturday morning.

Around here, cinnamon rolls are a special occasion breakfast. Don’t get me wrong, I love each bite every bit as much as the next girl. It’s just that working with any yeasted dough requires more patience than I have on your average Saturday morning. This quick chai spiced skillet sticky buns recipe is the next best thing to my favorite cinnamon roll. The finished product is not only picture-perfect for serving, it’s also imparted with the warm and comforting flavors you’d expect, but maybe not from the source you’d expect.

We start by rolling out flaky buttermilk biscuit dough and spreading it with a thick layer of softened butter. From there, we sprinkle on a sweet filling, just like you would if you were making cinnamon rolls. The biscuit dough is then rolled and cut. And here, my friends, is where things take an unexpected turn.

You see the ooey, gooey glaze left in the bottom of that skillet? That stuff right there is finger-lickin good, in the most literal sense of the phrase. It’s made by combining a chai tea reduction with butter and a hint of brown sugar. The result is rich and warm and sweet. It get all bubbly as it cooks and seeps right into the biscuit dough. When this quick chai spiced skillet sticky buns recipe emerges from the oven, you need to plate the buns to see how beautiful they turned out. You’ll serve them bottom side up to take full advantage of their golden brown deliciousness.

My friends at Adagio Teas were kind enough to provide the tea I used to develop this quick chai spiced skillet sticky bun recipe. I used their Gaucho Mate Chai tea to make the chai reduction for my glaze. Friends, it’s such a yummy twist on classic chai tea. A little smoky and sweet, it was the perfect fit for this recipe. If you’re an aficionado of all things loose leaf, I highly recommend you give it a try.

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QUICK CHAI SPICED SKILLET STICKY BUNS

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

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Ingredients

For the biscuit dough

• 8 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2.5 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the glaze

• 1/4 cup chai tea concentrate
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons corn syrup

For the filling

• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/8 teaspoon allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 4 tablespoons softened butter

Instructions

1. Begin by grating the butter, using a cheese grater. Place grated butter in a bowl and put the bowl in the freezer while you proceed with the recipe.
2. Make the chai tea concentrate by placing 1/2 cup chai tea in a small saucepan. Simmer tea over low heat until the liquid reduces by half. You should be left with 1/4 cup chai tea concentrate. Set aside.
3. Prepare the filling by combining brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, allspice and cloves in a small bowl. Stir well to mix. Set aside. 
4. Preheat the oven to 450º.
5. Add chai concentrate, melted butter, brown sugar and corn syrup to a small bowl. Whisk well to thoroughly combine. Pour mixture into a twelve inch cast iron ( or other ovensafe) skillet. Set skillet aside.
6. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Process in ten one second pulses to combine. Remove the lid and add frozen butter to the bowl of the food processor. Replace the lid. Use the pulse function in twelve one second bursts to cut in the frozen butter. You should be left with a mixture that resembles coarse sand.
7. Remove the lid once again and pour buttermilk over the flour/butter mixture. Replace the lid and process on low speed just until the mixture comes together in a shaggy ball of dough. Remove the dough from the food processor. Turn it onto a lightly floured surface.
8. Being careful not to over handle the dough, gently roll it out into a rectangle that is 1/2 an inch thick.
9. Spread softened butter over the top of the dough. Sprinkle dry filling mixture evenly over the softened butter.
10. Working from the long end, gently roll the dough into a log shape and pinch at the ends to secure.
11. Cut twelve equally-sized slices and arrange them flat side down in prepared skillet.
12. Bake for 25 minutes, or until biscuits are cooked through and golden brown and the glaze is bubbly.
13. Serve immediately. 

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 586Total Fat: 32gSaturated Fat: 20gCholesterol: 83mgSodium: 423mgFiber: 2gSugar: 29gProtein: 7g

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