Homemade hamburger buns

We've been pinching pennies around here, and on top of that, my husband had to take the second car to work since his has a flat tire. I haven't been to the store for a good week, and I was trying to figure out what I could do with the slim pickins that we had on hand. We had hamburger but no buns. I thought, "eh... I'll just try to make my own." Lo and behold, I went to the trusty King Arthur Flour website and found a hamburger bun recipe. Man, I'm glad I tried them! If some crazy thing happened and hamburger bun and ciabatta roll hooked up, this would be their child. It was soft and hamburger bun-y, but it was also close to the texture of a ciabatta roll. Now that I've got you thinking about different bread products reproducing, I'm going to give you the recipe.

Sesame Seed Hamburger Buns:
source: http://http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/seeded-hamburger-buns-recipe

3/4 c luke warm water
1 large egg
2 T butter or oil
2 T sugar
2 T sesame seeds
1 t yeast
1 t salt
1 t onion powder, optional
2 3/4 c flour

topping:
1 egg white
sesame seeds

Put all of the ingredients into the bread maker. I added them in the order that they were listed, and they turned out fine. Put the mixer on the dough setting and let it run for the full 90 minutes or until the dough is doubled in size.

Take the dough out and divide it into 6 equal portions. Shape into 6 balls and flatten slightly. I put mine on a greased half cookie sheet. Place them somewhere to rise until doubled.

Here are the doubled buns. Nice buns, eh? Just before they are doubled in size, preheat the oven to 375.

Place the buns in the oven and cook for ten minutes. Remove them and brush with the egg white. After you brush the egg white on, sprinkle with sesame seeds right away. If you don't do it quickly, the seeds won't stick.

Return them to the oven for 5-8 minutes.

Take them out and behold the golden buns. I think this is the first time in my life that I could say that I have nice buns. :)

Cut them in half with a serrated knife and serve with a delicious beef patty, cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion, or whatever else tickles your fancy.

One tip I did read on hamburgers... If you put a think layer of mayo on the bottom and top of the bun, it will prevent a lot of the hamburger juices from making the bun soggy. Mayonnaise is a fat, so the fat from the hamburger juices won't be able to saturate the bun as easily. It still will a bit but not as much.

And, if you're thinking, "Callie is a lunatic! Just drive to the _____ store and buy some _____ buns!" Trust me... I would have, but being carless puts on a damper on that and there's something about baking that is soothing to me. And as an added bonus, my husband says that these were the best hamburger buns he's ever eaten. :)