English Muffins

Soft, chewy and so much better than store-bought, these English Muffins are easy enough for even the most amateur baker, using simple pantry ingredients and cooked on a skillet or griddle.

If you love easy bread recipes don’t miss my Artisan No Knead Bread, or basic homemade white bread or wheat bread.

I’m here to tell you that if you’ve never made English Muffins from scratch, today is the day! Not only are they incredibly easy to make– basic ingredients mixed in one bowl, no kneading the dough required, and you don’t even need an oven–but they’re so much fresher and tastier than store-bought ones. Make a big batch and store them in the freezer for months, to have some on hand all the time!

They’re wonderful served toasted and slathered with homemade jam, in a delicious Breakfast Sandwich, or get extra fancy and make Eggs Benedict.

How to make English Muffins:

• Make Dough: Add yeast, milk, honey, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour to a mixing bowl and mix well. Add remaining flour and stir everything until very well combined, to form a soft, sticky dough.
• Rest: Cover bowl and set aside to rest for 20 minutes.

• Shape English Muffins: Line two sheet pans with parchment paper and sprinkle cornmeal between the two. Use a greased ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop batter into equal portioned “blobs” onto the pan. Press and shape each batter blob into a flat, round disk, around 3 inches in diameter, then flip to the other side, to coat both flat sides lightly in cornmeal.

• Rise: Space the dough discs at least an inch apart along both baking sheets to give them room to rise. Cover the pans with a light kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1 ½ hours.
• Cook on a hot griddle or skillet for 7-10 minutes on each side, until cooked through.
• To spit open, poke the tines of a fork all around the outside center of each muffin, then split apart.

Storing and Freezing Instructions:

Store English muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 day, or for best results, place in a freezer-safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months. Rewarm in the microwave for a few seconds, than add to toaster and cook until toasted.

Where did English Muffins Originate? English Muffins originated in the United States and were made popular by an English emigrant –Samuel Bath Thomas– who called them “English” muffins to distinguish them from other sweet, cake-like American muffins. They’re not a traditional “muffin” at all, but a type of bread that’s split open (like a biscuit) and served toasted, with butter or jam.

Why is there cornmeal on English Muffins? The dough for English Muffins is sticky, so cornmeal around the outsides helps make them easier to shape and handle.

How to Serve English Muffin: Split them open and serve them toasted, with butter, jam, marmalade, or peanut butter. Use them to make Eggs Benedict, or in a breakfast sandwich with egg, bacon, ham, or Canadian bacon.

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Recipe

4.34 from 6 votes

English Muffins

Soft, chewy and so much better than store-bought, these English Muffins are EASY to make and are cooked on a skillet or griddle.

Print Pin Rate

Author Lauren Allen

Course bread, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 15

Calories 157

Cost 2

Prep 30 mins

Cook 20 mins

Rise time 1 hr 30 mins

Total 2 hrs 20 mins

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Equipment

• Griddle optional
• Instant-read digital thermometer. optional

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast* (1 packet)
• ▢ 1 3/4 cups warm buttermilk* , or regular milk
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons honey
• ▢ 1 egg , lightly beaten
• ▢ 3 Tablespoons butter , melted
• ▢ 3/4 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1/3 cup cornmeal , for coating on the outside of the muffins

Instructions

 

• Add yeast, milk, honey, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour to a mixing bowl and mix well. Add remaining flour and stir everything until very well combined, to form a soft, sticky dough. Cover bowl and rest for 20 minutes.
  
• Line two sheet pans with parchment paper and sprinkle cornmeal between the two. Grease a ¼ cup measuring cup with non-stick cooking spray and scoop batter into equal portioned “blobs” onto the cornmeal on the sheet pans.
  
• Press and shape each batter blob into a flat, round disk, around 3 inches in diameter, then flip to the other side, to coat both flat sides lightly in cornmeal.
  
• Space the dough discs at least an inch apart along both baking sheets to give them room to rise.
• Cover the pans with a light kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1 ½ hours.
• Heat a griddle to about 325 degrees (or a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium/medium low heat). Use a spatula to gently pick up the English muffin disks and place them on the hot pan. Cook for 7-10 minutes. They will puff up, and the bottom will get golden. Flip to the other side (they will deflate a little) and cook for another 7-12 minutes, until golden on the bottom and when you touch the sides and gently press, it no longer feels doughy. (Or until the center of a muffin registers about 200°F on an instant-read thermometer). You can always take one off and gently test it. Cook longer if still doughy.
• Remove English muffins to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before splitting open and eating.
• To spit open, poke the tines of a fork all around the outside center of each muffin, then split apart.
• Serve them open-faced, toasted, with butter, jam, marmalade, or peanut butter. Use them to make Eggs Benedict, or in a breakfast sandwich.

Notes

Storing and Freezing Instructions: Store English muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 day, or for best results, place in a freezer-safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat for a few seconds in the microwave, then spit open and add to toaster. 

Yeast: Active dry yeast may be substituted, but needs to be “proofed” first. Mix the yeast with ½ cup warm buttermilk and a little drizzle of the honey. Stir and allow to rest for 5 minutes. It should foam on the top. Then continue with the rest of the recipe, using the remaining buttermilk and honey.

Buttermilk: Here’s an easy buttermilk substitute if you don’t have some on hand. I like the tanginess that buttermilk adds, but regular milk may also be used. You want it just lightly warm, not hot.

Whole Wheat English Muffins: You can substitute half whole wheat flour in this recipe. If you use all whole wheat flour they will be a little more dense. 

Nutrition

Calories: 157kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 5gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 171mgPotassium: 91mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 132IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 39mgIron: 1mg

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