Stuck on sticky buns

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Sticky buns can be misunderstood. They are certainly not cinnamon rolls, though some may include cinnamon. A true sticky bun is a swirled yeast roll baked on a sugary pecan mixture so that its bottom is coated with nuts and a sticky glaze.

Old-fashioned, they can be hard to find, but we love them. Here are five of our favorites.

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t’s all in the dough

Rich Danish pastry dough makes these refined sticky buns stand out. When the buns are turned over, they show off the golden mixture of pecans, honey, butter and brown sugar that lined the pans in which they were baked. $3.75 each at Zov’s Bistro, 17440 E. 17th St., Tustin. (714) 838-8855.

Crowned with pecans

Lots of pecans crown these buns, but there’s much more to this topping, including butter cream, cinnamon, orange peel and almond paste. Owner Henry Baeza says the bakery has been making them since it opened 53 years ago. $1.25 each at Montrose Home Bakery, 2325 Honolulu Ave., Montrose. (818) 957-3722.

Get ‘em while they last

Nuts line the swirls of dough as well as coat the bottoms of these “nut rolls.” The shop opens at 7:30 a.m., and the rolls sell out quickly. $1.75 each at J & T Bread Bin in the Farmers Market, 6333 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles. (323) 936-0785.

A round bun, a square bun

Round caramel-raisin cinnamon rolls have no nuts, but square sticky buns have a proper pecan topping with rich caramel flavor. Caramel raisin cinnamon roll, $2, square sticky bun, $2.50, at Cinnamon Productions Bakery & Coffee House, 136 Main St., Seal Beach. (562) 596-4108.

Piling it on

They come with or without nuts, but if you want more to your sticky bun, the bakery sells white icing to pour over the tops. Without nuts, $2.65; with nuts, $2.75, white icing 20 cents. Sweet Jill’s, 123 1/2 Main St., Seal Beach, (562) 598-3445, and 5224 E. 2nd St., Long Beach, (562) 438-4945.