U is for Unused Hot Dog Buns

 

A real perk of my job is that I get fed every day for free. I seldom eat the breakfast, as I have a nice bowl of oatmeal every morning (actually, a Solo cup of oatmeal, because I eat it in the car on the way to work), and they serve eggs a lot, which I detest, but I'm all in for lunch.

We have a lot of chicken. Usually it's grilled or baked, and most of the time it's pretty tasty (occasionally, I accuse the food service people of feeding us buzzard meat, but fortunately, those meals are few and far between). The kids prefer breaded chicken, but they'll eat pretty much anything as long as they have some ketchup. 

We have hot dogs twice a month. Since over half of the kids in the school are under 4 years old, their hot dogs are cut up (choking hazard, you know), and we only give them half of a bun as a serving. As a result there are always a LOT of leftover hot dog buns.These extra hot dog buns languish in a plastic bin on the center island of the school kitchen, never to be eaten, unless I come along and turn them into....

Breadsticks! I know it sounds crazy, but I can turn day old (or week old or even two week old) hot dog buns into delicious, garlicky breadsticks, and now you can, too! 

Easy Peasy Breadsticks

1 package of hot dog buns (day old, preferably)

2 sticks of butter or margarine

1 tsp. garlic powder

Preheat oven to 225°.

Melt butter or margarine in a pie plate or other shallow dish. Stir in garlic powder.

Cut each hot dog bun lengthwise and separate sections, giving you 4 sticks per bun. Quickly dip the cut sides in the butter, then lay on a large cookie sheet.

Stale hot dog buns

Cut each bun in half length wise and separate
into four pieces

Melt butter and stir in garlic powder,
then quickly dip cut sides of bread
into the butter and place on baking sheet

Bake for 1-2 hours. Breadsticks should be golden brown and dry to the touch when done. Very dry buns will only take an hour; fresh buns will take two hours. Makes 32 breadsticks.

Bake 'em

Done! Sorry, no artsy photo on a plate. I'm tired.

Note: you will need two cookie sheets for this recipe. Get creative with them; I usually add dried parsley or dried Italian seasoning to the butter. They can also be sprinkled with sesame seeds or grated parmesan cheese before baking.

You have to make these. They prevent waste (although not waist, because trust me, you can't stop eating them once you start). And no one will ever believe you made them from stale hot dog buns!