Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns
By Laura on Apr 21, 2008 in Eating Healthy, Recipes
In the past few years as our family is working to learn more about eating healthier…I’ve tried to come up with a healthy, homemade whole wheat hamburger bun.
I think I have finally figured out how to make a good bun.
(I must say…blogging about my buns feels a little….strange. But, just in case you’ve had trouble with your buns…I thought this was worth sharing.) 
Many burger bun attempts failed…as usually they were too bready…or too heavy. (And we all know that NOBODY wants their buns to be too heavy…)
So last week…I tried again and tweaked one of my other recipes and turned out a great batch of buns! Here’s how I did it:
Homemade Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns
5 cups (+) whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 pkgs yeast
2 T. honey
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup milk
2 T. butter
2 t. sea salt
In a large mixing bowl, stir together 3 cups of whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups warm water. Set aside to let rest for 30 minutes. In the meantime, mix together 1/4 cup water, yeast and honey. Allow this to sit for at least 10 minutes to activate the yeast.
Melt butter, milk and salt in a small saucepan on the stove. Do not allow the mixture to get above 120 degrees.
Pour yeast mixture and milk mixture into flour mixture. Add remaining two cups of flour (more if needed).
Knead for about 10 minutes until dough begins to look “shiny”. Put dough back into the bowl, cover and let rise for at least an hour…or until it has doubled.
Pull dough onto a clean countertop and knead for a couple of minutes to get any air bubbles out. Roll dough on a lightly floured surface until about 1/2 inch thick.
Cut circles from the dough with a large drinking glass or wide mouth jar. Place circles on in a well buttered baking dish about an inch apart.
Allow to rise for about 30 minutes. Bake for 20-25 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Makes about 18 buns.
Now….I really hope you like these as much as we do!!
But really…do be careful when you share this recipe and talk with others about them. Because…
“Don’t you just LOVE Laura’s buns?!” might just not sound quite right… 
You’ll find more great kitchen tips at Tammy’s Kitchen!
[tags]whole wheat hamburger buns, homemade, healthy recipes[/tags]
Laura-
It might sound worse to say “Laura has the best buns ever!” I can’t wait to try these.
Toni
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The Happy Housewife | Apr 22, 2008 | Reply
Do you have one for whole wheat bread?
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BarbaraLee Malikowski | Apr 22, 2008 | Reply
Do you think you could just go ahead and soak the flour, and continue on with the recipe?
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candace | Apr 22, 2008 | Reply
Do you freeze the extras? I’d love to make buns, but I don’t think the two of us could tackle 18 at a time!
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Lenetta | Apr 22, 2008 | Reply
Your recipes look great, thanks!
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The Thrifty Blogger | Apr 23, 2008 | Reply
Yah! I have not had much success on buns yet…going to give yours a try! Have you used the same for hot dog buns at all?
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lindsay edmonds | Apr 24, 2008 | Reply
Thank you, thank you for posting this! I made these tonight just exactly like you posted. They are absolutely perfect in every way. We used them for our black bean burgers and I’ll be using this recipe monthly, guaranteed.
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Anne | Jan 10, 2009 | Reply
These buns were absolutely fabulous. A hit with my husband and family! Thanks a bunch.
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Judith | Feb 28, 2009 | Reply
Great recipe! I just made them and they’re great. Thanks for sharing.
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Jenny | Mar 15, 2009 | Reply
How much yeast is in one package.
By the way, can you soak the flour over night in the warm water and then go on with the hamburger bun recipe?
Your sight is really inspiring to me.
My husband and I are trying to avoid processed foods.
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Cheresa | Mar 18, 2009 | Reply
Oh wow your buns look perfect
but mine turned out to be hockey pucks! Yikes I dont know what I did… I am new to baking maybe I over worked the dough???
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Bree | Mar 25, 2009 | Reply
Can you make these in a bread machine? Just the dough. How would I do it? Thank you.
Pat
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Pat Luko | Mar 25, 2009 | Reply
Yes, please, can I make these in my bread machine–because mine would turn out like the previous reader’s hockey pucks if I go by past experiences.
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Jen | Mar 29, 2009 | Reply
I made these tonight and we all loved the flavor, but they were a bit on the crumbly side. could it be that I added too much flour or over baked? I can’t think of anything else. I followed your recipe to the T, the only difference is I used whole wheat pastry flour. Any thoughts would be appriciated.
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Elizabeth | Apr 8, 2009 | Reply
HI Laura, Can I soak the flour overnight? Or does it need to be made without soaking the grains? Thanks So much!!! I love your site. My husband and I are missionaries and we try to eat as healthy as possible. You really help me out with your wonderful recipes. Thanks so much. Lori
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Lori | Apr 20, 2009 | Reply
too bad she never came back to answer and/or thank.
I’m going to try the recipe though
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Sophie | Jun 23, 2009 | Reply
Sophie…sorry about that. I usually answer questions by email. BUT, that doesn’t help those of you who want to know the same answers. Here…I’ll answer these questions now:
*I don’t usually soak these, but I don’t know why you couldn’t exchange the water with buttermilk and soak them first! I really SHOULD be doing that!
*Yes, I absolutely freeze the extras.
*I’ve never tried them for hot dog buns. I’m sure they would work…we just don’t eat very many hotdogs.
*One package of yeast equals 2 1/4 teaspoons.
*I’m sorry I don’t have a bread machine…so I don’t know anything about one. SURELY you could use one though? Aren’t those things magic or something?
*If you use pastry flour..that won’t work as well for these. Pastry flour is best for use with cookies and muffins….not yeast breads. For yeast breads, I use hard white wheat ground into flour. Pastry flour is made from SOFT wheat.
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Laura | Jun 26, 2009 | Reply