Everyone in this house knows to leave Mom alone when she is doing her grocery list and meal planning for the week. It is one of her least favorite chores. I can not say that I blame her. We tend to be a bit unpredictable with our eating habits, so trying to keep us all happy isn’t easy!
Usually, she sits with her head in her hands, moaning something about hating dinner and asking for suggestions. This week was especially hard as she wasn’t feeling well and had no appetite. I chimed in and said we should make burgers, which she scribbled on her notepad and announced she was done.
Starting usually about one or two O’clock, the entire family starts asking, “What’s for dinner?” I know I could look at her planner, but I always ask instead. She loves it. Well, love might be a strong word. Okay, she can’t stand it. But good thing I asked early today because when she said burgers, immediately she got a look on her face and said, “I forgot hamburger buns.”
I told her not to worry! I would make some.
How Hard Could it be to Make Homemade Hamburger Buns?
After doing a bit of research, I found a very specific recipe that laid everything out with great detail. Since we are not strangers to making bread and dealing with dough in general, I brought out the mixer and started adding the ingredients.
I have to admit that most of the time I get frustrated with the, “at room temperature” in the ingredient list for recipes. Do we really have to be so specific? But I decided to not be lazy and microwaved both the milk and the water so that they were the exact right degrees listed.
The egg got me though. I mean, we didn’t exactly plan to make these buns, so time was a bit short. I decided to crack, whip it, and put it in the microwave for just 10 seconds to take the chill off. Probably not the best experiment. There was just a bit that seemed like it was already cooked, but into the mixer it went anyway.
The recipe did say that this would be sticky. And it was! But that doesn’t scare me.
Until I realized I forgot to wash the bowl and the sticky dough hardened on the the sides. Whoops.
Is it Always About Timing and Temperature with Bread?
The directions say to let this rise for an hour or two, so I thought I had plenty of time to play. I was surprised that within 45 minutes it looked like this! Our house is not necessarily all that warm, or humid right now, so I guess using the exact right temperature of ingredients does make a difference!
Next up, it was time to get messy again. I did grab some flour to help pull this out of the bowl and brushed it on the dough before cutting it into 8 pieces.
This was the fun part! This dough was so light and fluffy. It was super fun to pull into little balls. Mom had to come and help me get the hang of pulling it under to make a smooth top.
After another hour, I whipped up another egg (this time without the microwave) and brushed it on. Don’t they look so perfect?
We were so excited to bring these out of the oven. The kitchen smelled amazing, and I thought I would take a peak after 10 minutes and I am glad I did. They were already brown on the top and ready.
Are They Better than Store Bought?
I am not putting these into the Oops category.
From now on we can forget hamburger buns from the grocery store!
Now if only my sister liked hamburgers.
“Did you get pickles?”
Why You Should Forget to Buy Hamburger Buns
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons Milk, around 115°F
- 1 Cup Warm Water, around 115°F
- 2 ¼ Teaspoons Dry Yeast
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 1 Large Egg, at Room Temperature, Beaten
- 3 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 ½ Teaspoons Salt
- 3 Tablespoons Melted Butter
- 1 Egg for Wash
Instructions
Combine the milk, water, yeast, sugar, and egg in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.
Add the flour to the bowl, and mix until incorporated. Mix in the salt and butter. Knead on medium-low speed for about 10 minutes, or until the dough comes together into a sticky mess.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size. This could take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Line two baking sheets with either a silicone mat or parchment paper.
Divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Using floured hands, gently pull the top of the dough down to the bottom, creating a smooth, round top. Only place 4 buns on each baking sheet, with plenty of room in between them.
Cover with a clean towel and allow to rise again until doubled, approximately 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Brush the tops of the buns lightly with the egg wash.
Bake the buns for about 10-15 minutes, rotating halfway through baking, until the tops are golden brown. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Notes
Adapted from Handle the Heat