Happy New Year’s Eve everyone. Day 7 of our giveaway and I am so glad you could join us. Today we will be gifting one lucky participant, Amish Willow, by Samantha Price.

By the age of sixteen young Amish men and women are starting their Rumspringa, or hopping around, running around years. This is time for them to explore the world and discover for themselves the path they want to take as adults. Some do step away from the fold, though it isn’t as common as you may think, and some linger for a good many years in this state. One of the first privileges for them is going to youth gatherings, unsupervised. Ideally elders find this rite of passage a time for all young men and women to find a spouse. This is usually when courting begins. Ordnung rules apply to baptized members, but these youngsters have been raised in the faith and you could imagine their parents, though giving some slack, do still hope their children never wander far.

The Amish have singing’s, which is just as it sounds. They gather at one home and under the watchful eye of a few adults, they sing hymnals, are served cookies and other goodies, and if lucky some strapping young man might escort you home. Other gathering activities include games of volleyball, basketball, and baseball. Here in Wildcat country, you might find it surprising how up on current games scores these youngsters are. Yes, basketball is kind of a big thing in the bluegrass, television or not.

I imagine Rumspringa years for Amish parents are not so different then they are for us. Fearing our children will get tempted into a world so unlike the one we hope to see them in. Most continue the time old tradition of courting, taking baptismal classes, joining the church, and then getting married.

Today I am sharing one of my favorites. If you follow me on Instagram  or Facebook, you would know my neighbors have learned over the years these sweet rolls hold a special place in my writing diet. I can eat a whole pan before finishing my writing quota for the day.  LOL.

 

Amish Sticky buns

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 6 plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• ½ cup warm water
• 5 plus ¼ cups flour
• 4 plus 3 plus 1 tablesppoons of butter, softened
• 1 egg
• ⅔ cup light brown sugar
• ½ plus 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ cup light corn syrup
• ½ cup nuts, chopped (optional)

Instructions

1. In a small saucepan heat the milk. Stir 6 tablespoons of the sugar and the salt into the milk until dissolved. Remove milk from heat and set aside to cool. Sprinkle yeast over the warm water and set it aside. Put 5 cups flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. When the milk is cool, pour it into the center of the flour. Add the yeast mixture, 4 tablespoons of the butter and the egg. Stir with a wooden spoon until a soft dough forms.
2. Sprinkle your counter top or a cookie sheet with the remaining flour. Place the dough on the floured surface and knead until smooth. Oil a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it until it is coated with oil. Cover the bowl with a towel and set aside in a warm place until the dough doubles in size, about 50 minutes.
3. In a small bowl combine 3 tablespoons of the butter, the brown sugar, ½ teaspoon of the cinnamon and corn syrup. Pour the brown sugar mixture into a 13”x9” baking pan. Sprinkle nuts, if using, over the sugar mixture.
4. Combine the 1 teaspoon cinnamon with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Divide the dough in half and roll out each half to make a 12” square. Spread half of the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and sprinkle half the cinnamon-sugar on each square of dough. Roll up each square like a jelly roll and cut into 6 pieces. Place the pieces in the pan, swirl-side up. Cover the pan with a towel and set aside in a warm place to let the buns rise to double in size, about 1 hour.
5. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350º. Bake the buns until they are nicely brown, about 25 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Then turn the pan upside down onto a tray to remove the buns while still hot. Yield: 12

Yesterday’s winner of the Saddle Maker’s Son was  Rachel Plank Robinson. Congrats Rachel.