Okay--so I was in a bind the other day. I desperately needed a nice looking bun. Stop with the snickers. I needed a hamburger bun.  At any rate, I did what any normal person does and I stopped at the grocery store. Since it was so late, however, there weren't any good buns left. What to do?  Well, I made my own of course!

I feel serious eye rolling from the audience. I get it. Why would you make your own buns when you can buy perfectly good ones from the store and/or bakery? For starters,  they are damn good. And, while you may not believe it, they are easy to make with a few simple ingredients.

Homemade Buns

They may not be easier than the ones from the bakery...but they are so good!

Ingredients

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 envelope yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 3 1/2 - 4 cups flour
• 1 egg, room temperature, slightly beaten
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg yolk, slightly beaten
• poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or caraway seeds for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Whisk together the water, yeast, sugar, and 1/2 cup of the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer. Allow to sit for 15 minutes. Add the egg, butter, salt, and an additional 3 cups of the flour. Use the kneading attachment to knead the dough for 5 minutes, or until it starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl but is still a bit tacky to the touch. Add additional flour, tablespoon at a time, if the dough is too sticky.
2. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, turning once to coat. Cover loosely with a damp towel and allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft free spot until doubled, about 90 minutes to 2 hours.
3. Gently deflate the dough. Cut into 12 pieces (18 for slider size) and form into hamburger and/or hot dog shapes. Place on baking sheets lined with a silpat or parchment paper, cover loosely, and allow to rise until puffy, about an hour. In the mean time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
4. Beat the egg yolk with 2 teaspoons of water. Lightly brush each bun with the yolk and sprinkle with desired toppings. Bake for 17-20 minutes or until golden brown. Move to a wire rack to cool completely.

The dough should just start to pull away, and feel just a bit tacky to the touch.

Once risen, the dough will be satiny and soft.

Sprinkle liberally with seeds of your choice....

I especially like a little caraway seed and sea salt.

Fill with whatever you desire....Pulled Pork with Poblano Ranch Dressing? Yes!

Even a simple hot dog will seem special with a homemade bun.

What do you put on your buns?

It's Improv time! This month our ingredients are Corn and Butter-- fitting for July, no?  A big thanks to Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker for hosting this fun monthly challenge, where we get creative with two different ingredients each month.

I know what you're all thinking....where's the muffin? Am I right? I've gotten a little carried away with muffins lately, but I thought better of it this time. Not that corn and butter wouldn't make an awesome muffin, but I thought I'd better widen my horizons. To be honest, when I'm not thinking about muffins, I'm thinking about pizza. My favorite pizzas have a crispy crust and plenty of cheese and veggies. Sometimes there's sauce, but most often I just use a garlicky olive oil. Wouldn't pizza be a perfect vehicle for corn and butter? I knew you'd agree! Take a look at what kind of pizza I made....

Buttery Crusted Sweet Corn and Tomato Pizza

A buttery, flaky crust topped with roasted sweet corn and fresh tomatoes--the perfect summer pizza!

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
• 2/3 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 2 cups shredded Provolone cheese
• 2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 2 cups roasted, fresh sweet corn kernels
• Freshly ground salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven (and pizza stone) to 500 degrees F.
2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry knife or two forks, until the flour resembles a coarse meal. Stir the yeast into the warm water. Add the water to the flour mixture and stir until it comes together into a ball. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and gently knead until you have a smooth dough. Divide it in half, cover loosely, and allow to rest for about 30 minutes.
3. Sprinkle some cornmeal or Semolina flour onto a pizza peel (or use the back of a baking pan). Using your hands or a rolling pin, shape one of the dough halves into a 10" circle. Prick the dough with a fork, slide it onto the heated pizza stone, and bake for 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Brush the partially baked dough with 1-2 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, a teaspoon oregano, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, and 1/4 cup shredded basil. Top with about a cup of shredded cheese, or enough Provolone cheese slices to cover the crust, leaving a 1/2 inch border. Top the cheese with sliced tomatoes and 1 cup of corn kernels. Return the pizza to the oven and continue to bake for an additional 5-8 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with freshly ground salt and pepper. Repeat with the second half of dough.

Yield: 2 10" Pizzas
Prep Time: 00 hrs. 30 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 13 mins.
Total time: 43 mins.
Tags: pizza, tomatoes, corn, dough, flaky, buttery

This is a lot like making a pie crust, except I always use chilled water for that. This crust turns out nice and crisp...and flaky!

The silpat makes a nice spot for kneading your dough.

Semolina flour is a good change from cornmeal...not quite as gritty.

I happen to like my corn grilled, so I saved several cobs when I grilled on Sunday.

Just use a sharp knife to get the kernels off of the cob.

You can see from the side how flaky the crust is. As a bonus, it stayed crispy, even after a night in the fridge.

This makes for a good lunch and/or appetizer, no?

I wasn't so sure I would like the crust like this, thinking it would be too much  like a pie crust., but it turned out to be one of the better pizza crusts I've made. As a bonus, there really isn't any rise time. Buttery, flaky crust with ripe tomatoes and corn? Oh yes...this I will make again. It's a new family favorite! :)

Check out all of the other delicious Corn and Butter entries.....

Butterscotch Banana Bread

I've said it before--I've never been a huge fan of regular banana bread. I'm not sure why. Perhaps,I've tried it once too many times when it has been dry and tasteless. The recipe I've used for years has chocolate chips in it, and I like it, but it's not my first choice when I think of things to make with bananas. 

The other day I was faced, once again, with overripe bananas. My husband wanted banana bread. Sigh. I do aim to please, however, so the question was not "should I make banana bread?" , but rather "how can I make this batch of banana bread tastier?".  It turns out it that it really wasn't that hard.

Butterscotch Banana Bread
Printable Recipe

3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

4 very ripe bananas, slightly mashed

1 cup sour cream

2 eggs

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup butterscotch chips

1 cup walnuts, lightly toasted and chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. F; butter and flour two 9 X 5 X 3 loaf pans.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; set aside.

Fit a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Beat the bananas, sour cream, eggs, butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until well blended, about 2 minutes. Spoon the flour mixture into the banana mixture and beat on low speed until just blended. Stir in the butterscotch chips and walnuts.

Divide the batter evenly between the two loaf pans. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

So why did this recipe turn out better than my other tries with banana bread? Well, first, I did use more bananas--there are four large ones in there. The sour cream certainly adds moisture, and the toasted walnuts give it some good flavor. I also switched out the granulated sugar for brown sugar and added the butterscotch chips. I'm thinking it's the whole package...I just liked it.

Unfortunately, my husband was diagnosed with diabetes before he could take the first bite of this banana bread, so I will be doing some tweaking for my next batch. I'll be reducing the sugar a tad and swapping the full fat sour cream for the light variety. I may even sneak some whole wheat flour in there. Don't worry. I'll let you know how that all turns out, but in the mean time, it is all about portion control at our house.

One loaf was sliced and brought to work....

....and the other was sliced, wrapped, and frozen.

One slice, with a bit of peanut butter, has about 25 carbs. Not a bad snack.

So, while we face some new dietary challenges at our house, it's wise to keep in mind that all good things can be enjoyed in moderation. In the mean time, the next batch of cupcakes will all be going to go to my daughter and her friends. :)

Pretzel Buns

Have you discovered Pinterest? Oh boy---is it addicting or what? I keep pinning pictures of great looking food to my boards. Besides my own stuff, though, I hadn't made any of the things that I fully intended to. Until today. Today, I made the Pretzel Rolls.

I've been eyeing these little devils for weeks, all the while buying pretzel buns at Trader Joe's. Want to see how I made them? Here you go:

Pretzel Rolls (adapted from [Une Bonne Vie])

Printable Recipe

1 3/4 cups milk, warmed to 110 degrees F. (bathwater warm)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

3-3 1/2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

Coarse salt for sprinkling

Water Bath

7-8 cups water

1 tablespoon salt

4 tablespoons baking soda

Place the warmed milk in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the olive oil and the yeast. Let this mixture stand for about 5 minutes or until it starts to foam (this way you know the yeast is working). Add three cups of the flour and the salt.

Attach the dough hook and knead the dough for about 5 minutes, adding additional flour, if needed. The dough should nearly clean the sides of the bowl, but still be a little tacky. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Knead lightly, by hand, for about a minute until the dough is smooth and elastic.

When measuring the flour, lightly spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife. If you have to add flour, add it a tablespoon at a time.

Place the dough in a well oiled bowl and turn it over so that both sides are oiled. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and let the dough rise in a draft-free area until it's doubled, about 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.; Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Punch the dough down and plop it on a floured surface ( I prefer my Silpat), then divide it into 8 pieces. Form each piece of dough into a ball, slightly flattened. Place the dough balls on the lined baking pan, cover and allow to rise for an additional 20 minutes.

While the buns are rising, prepare the water bath. In a large pot, combine the water, salt, and baking soda; bring to a rolling boil. Gently drop the dough buns into the boiling water, two at a time, and let them "poach" for about 30 seconds on each side. Remove them with a slotted spoon and place them back on the lined baking pan. Using a serrated knife, cut 2-3 lines across each bun and sprinkle with course salt. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the buns are a deep brown. Transfer to a rack to cool.

I found the dough balls to be a little sticky when I was putting them into the boiling water, so I dipped my fingers in a little flour first. The water does foam up, so make sure your pot is large enough. A crinkly appearance is normal--this disappears during baking.

As you can see, I was a little stingy with the salt--I usually scrape salt off of my pretzels, but I found that I did like a little on these.

If you aren't going to use all of these right away, go ahead and pop some in the freezer. They thaw quickly and stay fresh much longer if frozen.

I may never buy another hamburger bun again.

Homemade Tomato Sauce

One of my earliest memories is of my mother putting tomatoes through a food mill. Of course, I had no idea what she was doing with them. The outcome was always tomato soup with little meatballs. Oddly, I hated tomato soup when I was a child. I also hated "noodles". Surprised? What kid hates noodles, right? I blame the nuns. One force-fed lunch and it took most of my life to come to terms with any kind of noodle. To this day, I prefer the term pasta....a word which didn't exist in that Catholic school so many years ago. Which brings me to today and a bowl full of tomatoes that were quickly going south.

The tomatoes started out green. Several weeks ago, my friend/coworker, Brenda, brought in a huge bag of them that she was about to throw away. She thought maybe I would make good use of them. I toyed with the idea of fried green tomatoes. I googled and found a recipe for green tomato cake. I thought maybe a green tomato chutney might be nice. But, with all of my procrastination, the tomatoes finally turned red, and were one step away from becoming rotten. I had to work fast and I had to work with what I had on hand. The decision was made: Tomato Sauce.

Tomato Sauce 
Printable Recipe

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped carrots

2 cloves crushed garlic

10-12 ripe small to medium tomatoes, peeled and cut into wedges *

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

2 bay leaves

¼ cup chopped fresh basil

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup red wine

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Place the oil and butter in a large pot over medium/high heat. When the butter is melted, reduce heat to medium and add the onions, carrots and garlic. Sauté the vegetables until soft, about 5 minutes.

Oops, I forgot to peel my tomatoes. It's ok, though. I used a food mill when the sauce was cooked.

Add the tomatoes, seasoning, bay leaves, basil, and salt. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium/low. Simmer uncovered for about an hour, stirring occasionally. Add the wine and the tomato paste. Adjust the seasonings, if needed. Continue to simmer uncovered until desired thickness is reached, about an hour.

I was doing everything backwards. Where are the onions? The carrots?

 Let the sauce cool for a few minutes. Discard the bay leaves and process the sauce through a food mill or a blender.

* If fresh tomatoes aren't available, use (2) 28 oz cans of whole plum tomatoes.

A quick swipe through the food mill will get rid of the skin and seeds and smooth out the sauce. I was an idiot and did it twice. I started with the tomatoes and did it again at the end. Once is plenty.

There they are!

Not sure what to do with the rest of the tomato paste? Plop it down on non-stick foil by the tablespoon, freeze, then wrap each one up in plastic wrap and put them in a freezer bag. 

 Brenda also brought me some homemade noodles. Perfect for homemade sauce, don't you think?

Now, wasn't that easy? I bet you'll never go back to jarred sauce again.

This is just a basic sauce recipe. Feel free to add whatever spices you like--maybe some red pepper flakes? Or some other fresh herbs? If the tomatoes are a little sour, add a pinch or two of sugar. Don't forget, this would make a great pizza sauce, too.

As for me, I made quite the mess of my kitchen today. No time left for dessert. Luckily, the husband stopped at See's and brought me back a Pecan Pie Truffle.

Cinnamon Rolls

I've posted Cinnamon Rolls before--Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls. And Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls. I've done Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding and I've contemplated PB&J Cinnamon Rolls, Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls and even Avocado Cinnamon Rolls. Well, maybe not Avocado Cinnamon Rolls. The point is, I've thought of several different versions of Cinnamon Rolls, but I have yet to show you my basic, everyday, out of this world, Cinnamon Roll recipe.

Now, if you have navigated to this page in the hopes of finding a lo-cal version of Cinnamon Roll, you are wasting your time. I use butter. Copious amounts of butter. And I don't skimp on the sugar, either. Seriously, we are talking about Cinnamon Rolls. It is a once in a while treat, not the mainstay of anyone's diet. So let us begin.

Cinnamon Rolls

Printable Recipe

• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 (.25 ounce) package instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg, room temperature, slightly beaten
• 3 1/4 to 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup pecans (optional)

 Heat the milk, 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Let cool until temperature is about 110 degrees F (like bathwater warm).

I almost always heat it too much at first. Be sure to let it cool down so you don't kill the yeast. The butter will finish melting, trust me.

In a large mixing bowl, combine milk mixture with yeast, egg, and 2 cups of the flour and the salt; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. (Alternately, just use the dough hook on your mixer and let the mixer knead the dough for about five minutes)

The egg, butter, and sugar will give you a nice rich dough...the perfect vehicle for even more butter.

Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a clean damp towel. Allow dough to rise until double, about 1 hour. In the meantime, in a small bowl, mix together the softened butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.

Roll out the dough into a 12X9 inch rectangle (I like to do this on my Silpat). Spread the dough with the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Sprinkle with pecans if desired. Roll up the dough and pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal sized pieces and place into a greased 9X13 inch pan. Cover and let rise until doubled.

Add some pecans, if you like. Or some raisins or chopped apple. This batch is going to be plain.

Be sure to use a sharp knife when cutting...you don't want all of the filling to squish out.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven and frost while warm.

You are not required to frost these, but I think it adds a little je ne sais quoi.

I personally like my Cinnamon Rolls frosted with a nice Orange Cream Cheese Frosting, but a simple drizzle of glaze will suffice. If you're interested, here's my recipe...I just used it on my Red Velvet Brownies. :)

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Printable Recipe

4 oz cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

2 teaspoons freshly grated orange peel

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

2 cups powdered sugar

Beat the cream cheese and the butter in a medium bowl. Add the orange peel, vanilla, and the orange juice, blending until smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar and beat to desired consistency.

Soft, warm, gooey, cinnamon-y and good.

 I find that these rolls will last for a day or two before getting stale. While it is rare that there will be any left, keep in mind that they will make a superb Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding. 

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