English Muffins
Since their introduction in the 1880s, English Muffins have been a breakfast favorite in many homes here in the United States. I grew up with them in our household and so did my children. Originally, I was under the impression that they would be difficult to make and avoided trying to make them on my own. Now that I'm regularly making our own bread, rolls, bagels and sweet breads, I decided I wanted to add English muffins to our options of homemade foods and was surprised how easy they were to make and wondered why I waited so long to do this. With the rising price of groceries and the need to check ingredients, having options I can make myself gives us the ability to have a varied recipe box of bread items and increases our level of self-reliance. This recipe is easy, uses standard ingredients found in most kitchens and doesn't require using an oven, making it a great option in hot weather months when you don't want to heat up the kitchen.
Equipment
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 mixing spoon or fork
- 1 set measuring cups and spoons
- 1 8-12 inch skillet
- 1 spatula
- 1 tray for rising muffins
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1¼ cup warm water
- 3 tsp sugar or honey
- 1¼ tsp active yeast
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3½ cups flour *all purpose
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ cup cornmeal
Instructions
- Mix warm water, sugar and yeast in bowl and set aside for about 10 minutes to proof (allows yeast to feed on the sugars and form a frothy mixture with the water)
- Melt butter and set aside
- After yeast is proofed, mix in flour, melted butter and salt. Once fully incorporated, move to lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes. Dough should not be sticky. If it's sticky add additional dustings of flour until it forms a smooth ball.
- Lightly oil inside of mixing bowl and place dough ball into bowl, cover and let rise for about an hour in a warm place.
- Remove dough from bowl and separate into 10 equal portions. Form each portion into a ball.
- Sprinkle corn meal onto a flat surface, place balls one at a time onto the cornmeal, flatten until about ¾ of an inch thick, flip over in cornmeal to cover other side and place each on a pan covered with parchment paper. Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 15 minutes.
- Heat lightly oiled skillet over low-medium heat and place muffins onto pan with a little space between each one. Cook for approximately 9 minutes until golden brown on the bottom; flip over and cook for approximately 5 minutes more until other side is golden brown. You may have to do multiple batches to finish all the muffins.
- Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container. Will last about 5-7 days.
Video
Notes
The muffins can also be frozen for later use. You can add dried fruit such as raisins or cranberries to the muffins to create a delicious breakfast option.