A hearty, savory treat with soup, salad, or on its own. These buns disappeared from our kitchen as quickly as warm chocolate chip cookies!
Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Mix, then knead together all of the ingredients except the ham and cheese, making a dough that's smooth and resilient.
Knead in the ham and cheese.
Gather the dough into a ball and place it in a greased bowl. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 1 hour, or until it's noticeably puffy.
Gently deflate the dough and divide it into 7 pieces. Shape each piece into a ball.
Place the dough balls in a lightly greased 1 ½-quart baker or 9" round cake pan.
Cover the pan and allow the dough to rise until puffy, 30 minutes to 1 hour. Near the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 325°F.
Bake the buns for 35 to 40 minutes, tenting after 20 minutes to prevent over-browning. Remove them from the oven, turn them out of the pan, cool completely, and serve.
Yield: 7 buns.
