Nooks and Crannies

Hello everyone!

I’m trying out a new recipe today – English muffins. Turns out you can’t get them in Ireland. So strange since we’re so much closer to England. I came across some similar muffins this weekend at Mark’s and Spencer’s, but they were called All Butter Muffins. They weren’t terribly unhealthy, but they didn’t have the nice nooks and crannies that an English muffin should have.

So, here we go!

I’m going to use this recipe, because it’s the only one I could find in my bookmarks that didn’t use a started, and I draw the line at complications like starters.

English Muffins

2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp instant yeast
1 Tbsp shortening or butter (at room temperature)
3/4 – 1 cup milk (at room temperature)
cornmeal for sprinkling

In a large bowl, 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.

Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes (Emily note: There’s no way I’m kneading for 10 minutes. We’ll give 3 minutes a try and see how we do!). Place in a lightly oiled bowl and roll to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for about an hour.

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.

Heat the oven to 350 F and heat up a skillet on medium heat on the stovetop. Brush the skillet with oil and gently transfer the dough balls to the skillet a few 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.

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.

Transfer the baked muffins to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing or serving.

If the first batch turns out like it should, I’m going to make a few extra batches to put in the freezer. I may even try adding a little whole wheat to a batch or two. Yum!

{Original recipe from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice. Image and recipe from here}