Our ideal Valentine's Day gift is a tray of warm, syrupy, anise-tinged sticky buns.

Whether you call them anise sticky buns, as they are listed on the new brunch menu at Harry's Pizzeria ($5), or golfeados, the traditional Venezuelan name, these are some of our favorite sweets in town right now.

Chef de cuisine Manuel Sulbarán says his recipe intensifies the flavors he remembers from golfeados back home. "A bakery called Panadería 900 in Caracas sells my favorite ones--the fluffy dough, full of melao [a syrup made with the unrefined cane sugar panela], with the cheese on top!"

Sulbarán's sticky buns are also saturated with a melao glaze. Cheese balances the sweetness: Sulbarán grates Pecorino over the buns, which toasts into crispy strips in the oven. Once they are baked, Sulbarán drapes the sticky buns with fresh mozzarella.

Traditionally, the cheese blanket is a stretchy cheese known as queso de mano. You can find it in Miami at European Corner or Zerpa's Antojos Criollos.

Harry's Pizzeria does not sell the anise sticky buns in bulk, so we snagged the recipe. Our Valentine’s Day--and our weekends--are now going to be a whole lot sweeter.

Harry's Pizzeria, 3918 N. Miami Ave.; 786-275-4963 or harryspizzeria.tumblr.com