I found the recipe on line and I've seen it posted all over the place since. It's pretty popular - probably because the recipe is that good!
Here's the recipe:
Light Brioche Burger Buns
Recipe from the New York Times via Comme Ca restaurant in Los Angeles
Makes 8 4 to 5-inch burger buns
1 cup warm water
3 tablespoons warm milk
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 large eggs
3 cups bread flour
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Black and white sesame seeds and/or poppy seeds (optional)
DIRECTIONS:1. In a glass measuring cup, combine one cup warm water, the milk, yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, about five minutes. Meanwhile, beat one egg.
2. In a large bowl, whisk flours with salt. Add butter and rub into
flour between your fingers, making crumbs. Using a dough scraper, stir
in yeast mixture and beaten egg until a dough forms. Scrape dough onto
clean, well-floured counter and knead, scooping dough up, slapping it on
counter and turning it, until smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. (You
may also use a stand mixer for this, eliminating the need for a bench
scraper – but bread from hand always tastes and feels better than bread
from machine) You want the dough to remain slightly tacky, as the more
flour you add, the tougher they will be when baked.
3. Shape dough into a ball and return it to bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 to 2 hours.
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using dough scraper,
divide dough into 8 equal parts. Gently roll each into a ball and
arrange two to three inches apart on baking sheet. Cover loosely with a
piece of plastic wrap lightly coated in nonstick spray and let buns rise
in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours.
5. Set a large shallow pan of water on oven floor. Preheat oven to
400 degrees with rack in center. Beat remaining egg with 1 tablespoon
water and brush some on top of buns. Sprinkle with sesame seeds ( I used
both sesame and poppy seeds), if using. Bake, turning sheet halfway
through baking, until tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer
to a rack to cool completely.
You can see the steam in this picture from the water pan in the oven. It actually scared the beegezus out of my wife and kids because the steam filled the kitchen and they thought I caught the oven on fire...... Silly kids! I only do that in my smoker!
The buns came out golden brown and were light and fluffy with just a hint of sweetness.
A perfect compliment to just about any type of burger, sandwich, or even on it's own!
Here's another money shot of these beauties put into action for a burger challenge at one of our competitions.
Thanks Sean for the killer pictures! Please visit his blog at
http://www.meatmeblog.blogspot.com/
Please note that the recipe is borrowed from another blog but I've made these buns with this recipe multiple times and the pictures taken are from my kitchen - with the exception of the MEAT ME Pictures.