I got the idea to make these because I made delicious baked ricotta for breakfast and wanted to put it on an english muffin, but I was feeling too lazy awesome to go to the store and buy them. So I hunted a little on the internet and smushed together a couple different recipes. A few hours later, out of the oven popped something absolutely wonderful.
To start, I was shocked at how much these english muffins look like the ones you buy in the store. I was expecting them to be the wrong shape or the wrong color, because who makes english muffins, really, besides factories? No one that I know (except me, now).
First, we’ll have a look-see:
Looks delicious, eh? And here’s another pose:
The air pockets in the center weren’t quite as big as what I was hoping for, but they taste amazing and make for a delicious breakfast and I MADE THESE BEAUTIFUL BABIES MYSELF. All in all, a smashing success for a first attempt, and I must get this recipe into your hands, posthaste.
They’re a little time-consuming to make, particularly at the end when the dough goes on the griddle. But there’s lots of down time while you’re waiting for them to cook, so you will have time to clean up the kitchen, write some emails or just sit and relax before they are done.
Homemade english muffins recipe
Recipe adapted from here and here
- 1 cup milk
- 1-1/2 teaspoons dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons butter (at room temperature)
- 1 egg (at room temperature)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- cornmeal
Warm the milk on the stovetop or in the microwave until it is lukewarm (not hot), then stir in the yeast and sugar. After about five minutes, the yeast will start to bubble. Combine the yeast mixture in the bowl of a mixture the butter, egg, salt and flour, and mix with the dough hook on low until the ingredients come together in a loose dough, about 3 minutes. Switch to high and mix for another 7-8 minutes. This is a very wet dough, and is much looser than standard bread dough. It should be tacky to the touch, but not sticky.
Let the dough rise in a warm oven for about an hour, until it doubles in size. Transfer to the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour, which will make the dough easier to handle.
Fill a rimmed baking sheet with 1/4″ of cornmeal and set aside.Dump the dough onto a floured countertop, and roll into a log. Break off dough and form into round rolls, being careful to handle the dough as little as possible. Shape into 8-10 round rolls (each one will be about the size of a golf ball). Next place each roll on the cornmeal-filled pan, pressing down lightly to flatten. Flip each biscuit to coat with cornmeal on the opposite side. Keep about an inch of space between each one to allow space to rise. Allow the rolls to rise in place for an additional 20 minutes. At this point, you can put the rolls in the fridge covered with plastic wrap for up to three days, or finish immediately.
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees, and heat a cast iron skillet to medium-low. Brush off the excess corn meal from the rolls, and place them in the skillet, leaving space between each one. Griddle-bake the muffins for about 20 minutes, turning carefully once every 4-5 minutes. Gradually, the skin will get firm, the biscuits will puff up, and finally the top and bottom will turn golden brown. Pop the english muffins in the oven for 10 minutes to finish.
To serve, perforate all the way around the muffins with a fork then carefully tear open. Serve with butter, peanut butter, jam, baked ricotta, or my personal favorite, make your own breakfast sandwich with sausage, egg and cheddar.
