HOMEMADE HAMBURGER BUNS READY IN A BLINK!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY FROM IRELAND! 

My first blog post from a foreign country. My husband, Jerry and I are trying to feel the holiday spirit, but it's been pouring rain all day in Spiddal, Co. Galway with temps in the 50's. So I decided to make homemade hamburger/hotdog buns to cheer me up. The cook-stove has also been burning all morning so the kitchen is very cozy and now smells like freshly baked bread.

40 MINUTE HAMBURGER BUNS

I have made this recipe several times (It's from allrecipes.com) and thought I already blogged it, but couldn't find it. This time I made hotdog rolls, full size hamburger buns and slider buns as at a future time I will make ground lamb sliders with toppings like caramelized onion, Irish goat cheese, etc. Yum!

Hotdogs are not very popular in Ireland.  I found some in a jar,  but they looked nasty. The closest I could find are a hotdog type sausage from a fantastic butcher in Galway. It is a German recipe made right in their shop.

Here is the recipe for the buns...

Ingredients:

Ingredients are so simple!  Yeast is proofed. See how it's puffed.

2 Tbsp. Dry yeast
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. Warm water (110 to   115 degrees--although I never test. Just use your finger. You want the water quite warm, but not so much that you burn your finger.)
1/3 cup vegetable oil (I used grape seed oil.)
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg (I used a duck egg because that's all I had on hand.)
1 tsp. Salt
3 to 3 1/2 cups flour

Preparation:
In a large bowl,  dissolve  yeast in warm water. I like to add about a tsp. of sugar to make sure the yeast is good. This is called "proofing " or "blossoming" the yeast. If it puffs up it is good. If it doesn't, start over with new yeast. It will take only a few minutes to know if it's going to work.
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; gently knead until smooth  and elastic; about 5 minutes. The recipe calls for dividing into 12 pieces for hamburger buns. If you do this your buns will be gigantic! This time I made 4 small hotdog buns; 8 slider buns and 7 regular hamburger buns. If you like big buns, go for it!
Place  3 inches apart on greased baking sheets.

Cover and let rest 15 minutes.  Bake at 425 degrees for 8 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. We tried one right from the oven slathered with butter so know they're ok! With our "hotdogs" we're having homemade Boston Baked Beans, coleslaw and potato salad.

SLAINTE FROM OUR IRISH HOME TO YOURS!

ENJOY YOUR HOLIDAY AND TUNE IN SOON 
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