Bison Burgers w/Homemade Buns

Is anyone else having visions of Kevin Costner crawling around in the dirt with his jacket stuffed into the back of his shirt?  Tatonka!  Tatonka!  Ok, maybe that's just me.  I do love that movie.

Did you know that bison is lower in fat and higher in protein than beef?  I learned that recently from my buddy in the meat department at Earth Fare.  It's also widely sold in stores now so you don't have to join a band of Sioux and kill your own buffalo.  I knew that already.

I don't know the name of the meat guy, but he is always so helpful.  He's made several recommendations and, so far, he's batting a thousand.  The bison has a slightly different flavor than beef, but it's tasty.  Season it just like you would ground beef.  Cooking the burgers is exactly the same, too.

The buns you see here are homemade and, like any freshly baked bread, they are super yummy!  The recipe is below.

Here's what you'll need:

1 1/3 cups of water

2 1/2 tablespoons of butter

2 2/3 tablespoons of sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons of salt

4 cups of bread flour

2 1/2 teaspoons of bread machine yeast

1 egg, beaten

Sesame seeds, optional

When the dough is ready, divide it in half.  Then divide the halves in half.  Keeping doing that until you have 16 pieces.  Roll the pieces into balls and flatten them completely.  Place them on a cookie sheet with 1/2 to 1 inch of space in between the buns.  Cover them with a damp kitchen towel and let them rise for about half an hour in a warm place.  Brush the tops lightly with the beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds if you want.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.  The buns will be light brown on top when they are done.  Cool them on a wire rack.  Wait until they are completely cooled to split them.  I recommend a bread knife or some other heavy, serrated knife.  You also need a steady hand.  I don't have one of those.  I recommend my friend Emmy.  She's a first rate bun splitter.