Please don’t buy a real bunny at Easter

Reposted from last year.
Make mine chocolate
Please don’t buy a real bunny as a gift at Easter. A bunny will live to about 12 years; this is a real commitment. A bunny needs as much attention as a dog; they have delicate digestive systems that upset easily and not every vet knows how to deal with them (I know of 1 in Toronto) $$$. This is not a decision to be made lightly while you are caught up in the Easter festivities.

This post is dedicated to all the bunnies that end up at the humane society after Easter is over.

Just a few links to demonstrate how ridiculously rampant this idiotic tradition is:
http://www.rabbit.org/easter/2012release.html
http://animalrights.about.com/od/companionanimalspets/a/EasterBunny.htm
http://www.annarbor.com/pets/local-animal-welfare-agencies-urge-people-to-forgo-buying-live-bunnies-for-easter-with-the-make-mine/

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Nancy’s Incredible Buns

Now that I see it in writing, I must say that the name of this post might be misleading…but I like to be cheeky that way, so I didn’t change it. Oops! 😉

Nancy is a friend and a food stylist I have known through work for several years. She is an accomplished chef, restauranteur and recipe developer in addition to food stylist. Her professionalism and her great sense of humour make her an incredibly fun addition to any studio. And she makes great Cinnamon Sticky Buns. I begged and begged for the recipe last year and she relented. It is a doozy, so you best only make them if you plan to be really active or have a house full of people to share them with. They might have a few calories, but we won’t talk about that!

Nancy’s Incredible Cinnamon Sticky Buns

Makes 12 medium muffin sized buns (I did not alter this recipe, other than omitting the raisins because they were too dry)

Ingredients:

1. In a big bowl, combine:

• 1/2 cup 2% milk
• 2 tsp instant or quick rising yeast
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 egg

2. Add to this wet mixture, all at once, using a wooden spoon and mix only until just combined:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg

3. Then add butter, until just combined:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• Turn this dough into a lightly-oiled bowl and cover with a tea towel.
• Let rise for 2 hours.

4. In the meantime, make the following flavour mixture:

• 1/3 cup soft, unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
• Spread 1/2 of this mixture into the bottom of 12 muffin tins, butter the side (or spray with non-stick spray)

5. Roll out dough on a lightly-floured surface into a 10″ x 20″ rectangle. Spread evenly with the remaining cinnamon/butter mixture and sprinkle with:

• 2/3 cup walnut pieces

6. Roll up from the 20″ side and cut into 12 pieces. Place them in the individual muffin tins, cover with a tea towel and let rise for 30 minutes. Bake in a 350ºR oven for 30 minutes, allow to cool slightly and turn out onto parchment paper.

7. Serve warm, and then get on the treadmill for three days!

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