Homemade Hamburger Buns

© Donna Cook – All Rights Reserved  

I love my bread machine and can make all types of raised dough recipes in it. Of course I make regular loaves of bread but the "dough" cycle allows all sorts of other yummy recipes. I've adapted my grandmother's raisin bread and a cinnamon roll recipe for the bread machine.

I'll show you how to make quick and easy homemade hamburger buns. They are tastier, fresher, and fluffier than any grocery store package. Give them a try!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup bread flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cup milk warmed
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg 
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

Stats:

• Total time: 4.5 hours
• Prep time: 30-45 minutes
• Cook time: 20 minutes
• Serves: 12

Instructions

1. Combine ingredients in bread machine pan, put yeast in dispenser, and run on dough cycle per manufacturer's instructions.
2. Lightly grease sheet pan with cooking oil or butter.
3. Remove dough ball from bread machine pan and place on lightly floured surface.
4. Flatten dough ball with your hands to release gas bubbles. You can roll the bubbles out with a rolling pin but it's easier for me just to flatten the dough.
5. Cut dough into 12 equal sections using dough scraper or knife
6. If you have a scale, each ball should weigh about 3 ounces plus or minus 0.1 ounces.
7. Place dough ball in egg ring and press to fit. Alternately, flatten dough ball to approximately 3.5 inches.
8. Place shaped dough in previously greased sheet pan. Let rise one hour.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. The buns will be a light brown on top.
10. Cool on cooling rack and serve!

Food Facts - Bread Flour

How is bread flour different from all purpose flour? Bread flour contains more protein than all purpose flour. Some of this protein is gluten. Gluten causes the dough to be elastic and forms a network of the proteins. As the yeast metabolizes the sugar in the dough it releases a waste product, carbon dioxide, as bubbles. These bubbles permeate the dough and are trapped by the protein network, causing the bread to rise. 

Wheat is categorized into hard (spring and winter) and soft wheat. All purpose flour has a protein content of about 8-11% and is a mix of hard and soft wheat. Bread flour has more hard wheat and a higher protein content of 12-14%. 

The “Nutrition Facts” panel on the two bread flours in my pantry list four grams of protein per ¼ cup. The all purpose flour lists three grams of protein per ¼ cup which is 25% less protein. Although they have the same protein content, the generic bread flour and the name brand bread flour I have perform differently for me. The name brand bread flour gives a better texture and consistency than the generic. I don’t know why. Luckily, the price difference is minimal so I just use the name brand.

The wheat flour that I have also lists four grams of protein per ¼ cup. I’ve tried to make wheat bread using half wheat flour, half bread flour and one tablespoon of gluten. It still doesn’t rise properly so I just make white bread now. Wheat gluten has about 23 grams of protein per ¼ cup. 

I did not have any success making bread until I started using bread flour and a bread machine. I don’t know how my grandmother made breads without added gluten, unless she just kneaded the heck out of them.

Step 3 - Dough on floured surface

Step 4 - Flattened Dough



Step 5 - Cutting Dough

Step 5 - Dough cut in 12 sections



Step 6 - 12 dough ball

Step 6 - 3 ounce dough ball

Step 8 - Dough before rising

Step 7 - Pressing dough into egg ring 



Step 9 - Just out of the oven

Step 8 - Dough after rising

Homemade English Muffins and Egg Muffin Sandwiches

© Donna Cook – All Rights Reserved  

I cook from scratch whenever possible. No additives, no preservatives, no complicated list of ingredients that sound more like chemistry lab than a kitchen. I can foods, make bread in my bread machine, and make big batches of soup to freeze.

I looked for an English muffin recipe for a long time. How hard could it be? There was no recipe in "Joy of Cooking", "Betty Crocker", "McCall's" or any other cookbook that I have. I had no luck on the Internet either. Then one day, I was watching "Good Eats" with Alton Brown. Lo and behold, he was making English muffins! I've adapted this recipe from the Food Network Web site.

© Donna Cook – All Rights Reserved  

Homemade English Muffins

These English muffins are big, moist and fluffy. After you've made them, you won't get them at the store or drive-thru again! I'll make a batch and give them as a gift with homemade raspberry jam. The egg muffin sandwiches are a great gift at Christmas for breakfast or brunch.

I like a dusting of cornmeal on both sides of English muffins. Simply don't add it if you don't like it. I've found that substituting 1/4 cup bread flour for 1/4 cup of all purpose flour aids rising.

Ingredients

First bowl

• 2 tablespoons  vegetable shortening (like Crisco)
• 2 cups very hot water
• 1 cup powdered milk
• 2 tablespoons  sugar
• 1 teaspoon of salt (1 of 2)
• 4 cups all purpose flour or 3 3/4 cups all purpose flour and 1/4 cup bread flour
• 1 teaspoon of salt (2 of 2)
• Cornmeal for dusting
• Vegetable oil to coat pan or griddle

Second bowl

• 2 packages active dried yeast
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2/3 cup warm water-100 to 110 degrees

Stats

• Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes
• Prep time: 30 minutes
• Cook time: 1 hour 
• Serves: 12-16

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine 2 cups very hot water and 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening.
2. Stir until shortening has melted.
3. Add 1 cup powdered milk, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt (1 of 2).
4. In a second bowl, combine 2 packages active dried yeast, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 2/3 cup warm water (100-110 degrees).
5. Stir gently until yeast is dissolved.
6. Add 2 cups of flour to ingredients in main bowl.
7. Add yeast mixture to main bowl.
8. Add remaining flour to main bowl and stir to combine evenly.
9. Let rise for 45 minutes in warm area. I don't cover the bowl because the dough sticks to the towel.

Dough after rising before salt

Dough after rising after salt

1. 
   

1. Add 1 teaspoon of salt (2 of 2) and stir until dough has deflated.
2. Brush surface of skillet or griddle with vegetable oil.
3. Place egg rings on surface.
4. Set heat at 300 degrees. This may be higher or lower with your skillet or griddle.
5. Put 1/2 teaspoon of corn meal in egg ring (optional).
6. Put 1/3 cup dougn in each egg ring. Sprinkle with corn meal if desired.
7. Cook on one side until golden brown, 4 1/2 to 5 minutes depending on your appliance.
8. Flip to cook on other side, about four minutes.
9. Remove and place on cooling rack.
10. Refrigerate or freeze to store.

Cornmeal  in egg rings

Mise en place

Ready to flip over

Done!

Homemade Egg Muffin Sandwiches 

Why pay a fast food chain $5 or more for an egg muffin sandwich?

Ingredients

• 1 English muffin
• Butter
• 1 egg
• 1 slice cheese of your choice-Cheddar, American, Velveeta
• 1 slice meat such as Canadian bacon, ham, sausage patty (optional)
• Vegetable oil to coat pan or griddle

Stats

• Total time: 15 minutes
• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 10 min
• Serves: 1

Instructions

1. Preheat skillet or griddle to approximately 300 degrees.
2. Brush surface with vegetable oil.
3. Split and butter inside of English muffin. Place on griddle.
4. Crack egg into egg ring, break yolk if desired.
5. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper.
6. Put meat patty in pan.
7. Cook both muffin, egg and meat patty for about 4 minutes.
8. Flip muffin, egg and meat patty.
9. Cook three to four minutes until egg and meat are done.
10. Assemble sandwich.
11. Enjoy! 

Ready to assemble

Image Credit: Allposters.com