English Muffins

One of my favorite vehicles for jam eating these days is english muffins. The store bought ones, they’re fine. But when I realized just how incredibly easy it is to make them from scratch, and just how tasty the homemade version is, I pretty much exclusively make my own these days. The recipe I use is from Bravetart, and it’s a dream. This no knead recipe means that while there’s a significant amount of downtime involved while the dough rises, there’s very little work standing between you and a fresh batch of english muffins. 

As the recipe recommends, I like to start the dough in the morning, shape them in the evening, and griddle them up the next day for breakfast. I find they’re best split (pro tip: split them with a fork to create extra nooks and crannies!), toasted up, and slathered with butter and plenty of jam (Apples and Cranberry is my go-to for these). 

No-Knead English Muffins

From Bravetart

Makes 12 English Muffins

• 2 ¼ cups bread flour
• 1 ⅓ whole wheat flour
• 2 Tbsps sugar
• 2 tsp kosher salt (use half as much if iodized)
• 1 ¼ tsp active dry yeast
• 2 cups milk (any percentage)
• 4 Tbsp melted unsalted butter
• ½ cup stone-ground cornmeal, polenta, or grits
• 2 Tbsp butter, bacon fat, or neutral oil

Make the Dough:

Sift flours into a large bowl, then stir in the sugar, salt and yeast with a flexible spatula, followed by the milk and melted butter. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until spongy and roughly tripled in volume, about 10-12 hours. 

Shape and Second Rise:

Without stirring the spongy dough, dollop twelve ⅓ cup portions onto a cornmeal covered baking sheet. Pinch with damp fingers to tidy their shapes, then sprinkle with cornmeal, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 10 to 24 hours. 

Finish the Muffins:

Set the dough out at room temperature a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Brush the hot griddle with butter (or bacon fat or neutral oil). Transfer the puffy dough portions to the hot pan, gently stretching the dough to widen each muffin to 3 ½ inches. Cook until the muffins are golden brown on the bottom, about 8 minutes. Dab the tops with a little more butter (bacon fat, neutral oil - whatever you’re using here), flip with a spatula and griddle as before. Repeat with the remaining dough portions. Cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes to set the crumb, then split, toast, and serve. Store extra muffins in an airtight container for up to 1 week at room temp or up to 1 month in the fridge.