This week, the 52 on Friday theme is Red. We are so close to finishing this project, just a few weeks away! I can’t wait to see all the finished images together. Next, go check with Gina Oh San Luis Obsipo, CA Photographer to see her images for this week’s theme.

This was such a beautiful, sunny weekend. Loved this family.

Its already been one month since I’ve joined up with the Lazy Susan girls to share recipes and for December, we’re sharing sweet treats for the holidays! I’m sharing a recipe from the cookbook, Sweet! By Mani Niall for some delish Maple Pecan sticky buns. I loved maple syrup and these came out so yummy with the pecan topping. I think we’ll start Christmas morning with these in the Davis house this year!

Ingredients

Sticky Bun Dough

• 1 cup whole milk
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for the bowl
• 1 (1/2 oz) envelope active dry yeast
• 2.5 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt

Filling

• 8 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temp
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup maple sugar
• 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup raisins

1. To make the dough, heat the milk in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat until small bubbles appear around the edge of the pan. Remove from the heat and stir in the maple syrup and butter. Cool until tepid (100-110 F). Sprinkle in the yeast. Let stand 5 minutes, then stir to dissolve the yeast.

2. Stir together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center, add the milk mixture and stir to form and soft, sticky dough. Turn out on a floured work surface and knead, adding additional flour as needed, until the dough is supple and elastic, about 8 minutes.

3. Generously butter a medium-sized bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat the dough. Cover the bowl with a moistened kitchen towel. Let stand in a warm spot until the dough has doubled in volume and a finger pressed 1/2 inch into the dough leaves an impression, about 1 hour.

4. Butter a 9-inch square glass baking dish with 1 tbsp of the butter. Sprinkle the pecans in the bottom of the dish. Pour the maple syrup evenly over the pecans. Stir together the maple sugar and cinnamon, add the 6 tablespoons of butter and mash with a rubber spatula to make a spreadable paste.

5. Punch down the dough. Roll out the dough on an un-floured work surface into a 12×15 inch rectangle. Drop spoonfuls of the maple-butter mixture over the dough, then spread evenly with the spatula, leaving a 1-inch wide border at the bottom. Sprinkle the raisins over the maple butter. Starting at the long end at the top of the rectangle, roll up the dough into a thick cylinder, pinching the seam closed. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough crosswise into nine slices, each about 1 3/4 inches wide. Arrange in the pan, cut side down. Cover the dish with a moist kitchen towel and place in a warm spot. Let stand until the dough has almost doubled, about 45 minutes.

6. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375. Melt the remaining 1 tbspn of butter and brush over the tops of the buns. Baked until the tops are browned and the sauces is bubbling up in the center, 30-35 minutes. Immediately invert and unmold the buns onto a serving platter. Scrape any pecans and syrup clinging to the bottom of the pan onto the buns. Cool for about 20 mins, serve warm.

When I was picking up ingredients at the store, I couldn’t find Maple Sugar, so I substituted with Raw Turbinado sugar and it worked perfectly! When I make these again on Christmas, I’m planning to make them up to the baking step and then refrigerate overnight so I can pop the in the oven on Christmas morning. They made our whole house smell wonderful while they were baking! Next, click over to Shannon Harrison of Jack and Ruby Studios in Temecula, CA to see her Lazy Susan post, I think I hear something about fudge? Yum!

I hope everyone had a wonderful day with family yesterday! We hosted our first Thanksgiving and it was wonderful. I loved sharing yesterday with new friends and just enjoying a cozy day in away from the rain. This Friday, the 52 theme is black. I grabbed these images of the boys snuggling together playing angry birds while waiting for their friends to arrive.

Next, please click through to see what Gina Oh | San Luis Obispo, CA Photographer posted for this week’s theme. Below are a few of my favorite things about today, through the eye of my lensbaby.

Just so no grandmothers get worried, baby and I were drinking sparkling cider.