Well-seasoned ground beef, spinach, mushrooms, and cheese are rolled up into pizza dough. These savory sticky buns are served with cream cheese frosting, making them extra yummy!

Beef Sticky Buns

You’ve had sticky buns. But have you had savory sticky buns?

It’s got vegetables like spinach and mushrooms, protein like lean ground beef, and carbs from a pizza dough. That’s exactly what I would want for a meal – all the nutrition, satisfaction, and flavor are combined in one dish. Plus, it’s such a fun recipe to make.

Beef Sticky Buns

The beef was seasoned with fresh herbs, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, and salt. Beef-loving Texans call it a basic country beef breakfast sausage. The mushrooms and spinach are sautéed with diced onion, then mixed into the sausage with cheddar cheese. The filling couldn’t get any better.

The fun part is spreading the filling on prepared pizza dough, rolling it up, and cutting it into even buns. You know how sometimes you make something and before it’s done, you already know that this is going to be good? That’s exactly what I thought when I put these buns into my oven.

Beef Sticky Buns

In addition, the 2-ingredient cream cheese frosting is literally the icing on the cake. It makes these beef sticky buns even more mouthwatering.

Next time, I think I will make a big batch of the filling ahead of time, so whenever I want these buns, I can just roll the filling in pizza dough, cut it up, and bake them. It sounds like a great quick dinner idea for a busy workday, right?

Here’s the recipe. I hope you enjoy these!

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Beef Sticky Buns

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  • Author: Sharon Chen
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Category: Main, Appetizer
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: American
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Description

Well-seasoned ground beef, spinach, mushrooms, and cheese rolled up into a pizza dough, these savory sticky buns are served with a cream cheese frosting, making them extra yummy!

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1 pound lean ground beef (96% lean)
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage or 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 tablespoon Canola oil or cooking spray
  • 1 cup sliced button mushrooms
  • 3/4 cup diced onion
  • 3 cups fresh baby spinach
  • 1/2 cup reduced-fat shredded Cheddar cheese
  • 1 package (13.8 ounces) refrigerated pizza dough

For the cream cheese frosting:

  • 1/4 cup softened cream cheese
  • 1–2 tablespoons milk

Instructions

  1. Combine ground beef, chopped fresh sage or rubbed sage, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and red pepper flakes in large bowl, mixing lightly but thoroughly.
  2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat until hot. Add the beef mixture; cook 8 to 10 minutes, breaking into small crumbles and stirring occasionally. Transfer 2 cups beef mixture to a large bowl and set aside. Reserve the rest for another use.
  3. Add oil in the same skillet, place onion and mushrooms and cook over medium heat; cook 5 to 7 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Add spinach to skillet; stir to wilt spinach.
  4. Add vegetable mixture to the beef; set aside for a few minutes until the mixture cools down a little. Stir in cheese.
  5. Preheat oven to 425°F. Unroll pizza dough on a flat surface; pat or roll dough evenly to 14 x 10-inch rectangle, pinching together any tears, if necessary.
  6. Spread beef and vegetable mixture on dough, leaving 1/2 inch border on short side furthest from you. Starting at closest short end, roll up jelly-roll style, pinching to close. Slice dough into 8 pieces using serrated knife and careful sawing motion; place cut-side-up on greased baking sheet.
  7. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove buns to a cooling rack.
  8. Combine cream cheese and milk in a small bowl, stirring until smooth. Drizzle on top of the beef sticky buns and serve.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Beef Loving Texans.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 1166
  • Sugar: 9g
  • Sodium: 1916mg
  • Fat: 13.6g
  • Saturated Fat: 3.7g
  • Carbohydrates: 182.4g
  • Fiber: 11.9g
  • Protein: 65.3g
  • Cholesterol: 106mg

About the Author

Sharon Chen, StreetSmart Kitchen
Sharon Chen

Sharon Chen is an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach and author of the Complete Sous Vide Cookbook. She believes food not only brings healing but also connection. As the creator of StreetSmart Kitchen, she aims to make meal prep easier than ever and help you find balance, ease, joy, and simplicity in the kitchen as you improve your well-being.