Sunday, March 18, 2012

i will never again use store bought hamburger buns

so i love bread..a lot.  when i was a kid my parents used to by loaves of french bread from homeland/albertson's/food pyramid/who knows what it is now, and i would eat one...a whole loaf...by myself...for lunch.  not sure what it is because most breads don't really have a strong flavor but there's something about the smell and texture that just makes me want to eat lots and lots of bread.

anyway, i found this recipe on pinterest and i hate the store bought hamburger buns so i decided to try it out.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water (110° to 115°)
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 to 3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

  • In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add oil and sugar; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the egg, salt and enough flour to form a soft dough.
  • Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes. Do not let rise. Divide into 12 pieces; shape each into a ball. Place 3 in. apart on greased baking sheets.
  • Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Bake at 425° for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 1 dozen.


so i added the full 3 1/2 cups of flour and my dough was still suuuuper sticky, i think i ended up adding another 1/2 cup (at least) but it was still pretty tacky.  i didn't want to add too much and make them tough so i just did the best i could with forming the rolls.  instead of a greased baking sheet, i just used a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  i was actually able to form 15 rolls although a couple are somewhat smaller (i blame the sticky dough).  

also, i have a gas oven which tends to heat pretty unevenly.  i set it to 400 and after 5 minutes, a couple were pretty browned on top.  and by that i mean they were burned black on the bottom (fortunately they didn't actually taste burned).  and of course the majority, while fully cooked on the inside, hadn't had a chance to brown on top.  

the buns ended up being really fluffy and tender, so much so that at first i was worried about how they would hold up against a hamburger patty.  but after i let them cool and cut them in half they seemed like okay.  they have a really simple and sweet flavor-i really like them but i could see some people finding them a bit plain.  i think this is a really good base recipe to modify into some really flavorful rolls.  


this recipe was so simple and easy-i think it actually took me less than 40 minutes!!  i'm definitely not going to be using store bought hamburger buns anymore!!


4 comments:

  1. I make my own now as well and they are so much better than the ones from the store. I started baking our bread because I was tired of eating things that had ingredients I couldn't pronounce! The next step was the hamburger buns and I've even learned to make my own pizza dough. There are no limits on what we can do if we set out mind to it!

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    1. i know-it's so weird comparing the list of ingredients on store bought food to what you make at home!! i like knowing exactly what's going into what i'm eating (and cutting out all the preservatives) plus it tastes better!!

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  2. Bookmarking! I want to start making bread again (i've done it a few time, but it's always multiple rises/a 2 day process) and this seems simple enough!
    -Nicole
    Knit, Nicole, Knit!

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    1. this is the first time i've made 'real' bread (usually i just make dessert breads so i don't mess with yeast) and it was really easy and fast!!

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