Rich Rum Sticky Buns

ONE DAY BEFORE SERVING: For Dough: Pour the milk into a large bowl. Stir in the yeast and brown sugar and let stand 5 minutes.

Beat in flour, all the softened butter, the eggs, orange zest, cinnamon and the salt until blended. Gradually stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough.

Knead on a a lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place the dough in a buttered large bowl and turn to coat the dough with butter. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in the refrigerator overnight.

For Filling: Process brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon and chopped pecans in a food processor fitted with a steel blade until combined but still coarse and crumbly.

Add the raisins and process very briefly to distribute the raisins evenly through the mixture. Set the filling aside.

For Topping: Mix the brown sugar, honey and melted butter in a small bowl. Stir in the rum and pecan halves. Set the topping aside.

Assembly: Remove the dough from the refrigerator and punch down. Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle, about 1/3-inch thick. Sprinkle the filling evenly over the dough and press it into the dough with a rolling pin.

Starting at one long edge, roll up the dough as tightly as possible like a jelly roll. Lightly butter the sides of a 13- x 9-inch baking pan.

Spread the topping evenly on the bottom. Cut the dough crosswise into 3/4-inch slices and arrange in rows of 3 over the topping, leaving room for the buns to rise. You should be able to fit 12 to 14 slices in the pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the buns 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes. Invert the buns onto large platter and serve immediately.