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This will seem too obvious to New Englanders but for those not privileged
to have been raised in the land of littleneck clams and lobsters, I have a
tip on an easy way to make hot dog buns (based on New England style buns,
obviously).
 
Make your most flexible bread recipe -- by that I mean bread that holds up
best without crumbling. Doesn't matter if it's in your bread machine or the
oven; however you usually do it. Slice the loaves down their length in
equal thirds. Now slice these into slabs almost two inches thick. On the
long but narrow (cut) side slice almost but not quite through, leaving
about 3/4" uncut. For the ultimate in sinful pleasures, butter both sides
of this homemade bun and grill as you would a grilled-cheese sandwich
(empty though) before slipping the hot dog and fixings into the center cut.
 
For years, living in places alien from that of my Massachusetts youth, I
rued my inability to grill hot dog buns to give them that satisfying
crisply cooked outside. Now the celiac diet has returned to me one of the
pleasures of my childhood. (There is joy in NoMudville today. <g>)
 
Linda Blanchard
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Midland, TX, USA