Potato Buns

Snowy days like today are a good day to bake. I pulled out the bread machine and put together our favorite potato buns. I love my bread machine--since it does all the work--although I do miss kneading the dough! The nice thing about using the bread machine is that I don't have multiple bowls, etc., to wash and I don't have flour everywhere like I do when I make dough by hand!

Here's a photo of a batch of buns fresh out of the oven and the recipe:
1 2/3 c. hot (110-115 degrees) water
1 pkg. bread machine yeast (I use Hodgson Mill Fast Rise)
2 tbsp. sugar
Combine these three ingredients in pan of bread machine and let set for 10 minutes. Your yeast should be nice and bubbly. 
Then add:
4 c. bread flour
4 tbsp. instant potato flakes 
1 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
Close the lid on the bread machine--set for dough cycle and let the machine do the work. When the cycle has finished--approximately 90 minutes later on my machine--dump dough into greased bowl--spray your fingers with non-stick spray and shape into 18-24 buns. Place buns on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise 15-20 minutes. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes. Remove to waxed paper covered surface to cool and brush tops with butter. Enjoy!!
Note about the instant potatoes: I get the 4 serving size (96 cents at W-Mart) packages of potatoes to use for this recipe. The garlic and herb, and three-cheese flavors make excellent buns. This batch is made with the "buttery" flavor. You can get two batches of buns out of each package.