Mar 12, 2010

English Muffins



Who knew that homemade english muffins were so easy to make!  Not really any more difficult than any other yeast bread recipe.  My husband and I both really enjoyed these - I made a ham/egg/cheese sandwich with mine and he likes just butter on his.  Any way you cut it - these will surely brighten up your morning routine.  Enjoy!

Ingredients
  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  • 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 1 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
  • 1 Tbsp. butter (at room temperature)
  • 3/4 – 1 cup milk (at room temperature)
  • cornmeal for sprinkling
Directions
1. In the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together the flour, sugar, salt and yeast.  Mix in the butter and 3/4 cup of the milk.  Add the remaining milk if the dough is too dry.
2. Switch to the dough hook and knead over med-low for about 6 -8 minutes. 
3. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and roll to coat.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for about an hour or until doubles in size.
4. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and shape into balls.  Lay parchment paper on a baking sheet and spray or lightly coat with oil and sprinkle with cornmeal.  Move the dough balls to the baking sheet evenly spaced apart (giving them room to rise more). Cover the pan loosely with plastic wrap and allow them to rise for another hour.
5. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F and heat up a skillet on medium heat on the stovetop.  
6. Brush the skillet with oil and gently transfer the dough balls to the skillet three at a time.  Allow them to cook on the skillet for 5-8 minutes, until the bottoms are nicely browned.  Carefully flip and cook the other side for about 5-8 minutes more. They should flatten as they cook.
7. When the muffins look as if they are about to burn, remove them from the skillet with a spatula and transfer quickly to a baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 5-8 minutes. Do not wait until all of the muffins have been cooked on the skillet before moving them to the oven – as the first batch is baking, move the second batch of muffins to the skillet.
8. Transfer the baked muffins to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing or serving.
Source: Peter Reinhart - The Bread Bakers Apprentice

4 comments:

  1. I love this recipe. Great job!

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  2. I just finished enjoying a english muffin for breakfast! I just might have to try this recipe!

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  3. The texture of the muffins look amazing. And that breakfast you made is worth waking up for!

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  4. I just made these tonight and they came out incredible! thanks for sharing the recipe!

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