English Muffins

Let me start out by saying that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with store bought English muffins. I highly recommend the Bay’s brand and use them 99% of the time. That said, it’s my birthday today, and I’m making Eggs Benedict. So I went all in and made the English Muffins too. It’s cold and snowy and I’m home looking for reasons to heat up the oven. But don’t let the enormity of the project keep you from making Eggs Benedict. And bear in mind, the English Muffins were really easy. If you break up the different elements of Eggs Benedict into different stages or even prep them on different days, it’s really not that big of a deal. And homemade Eggs Benedict is an impressive, worth the effort, very special brunch from someone you love. Today, that person is me.

12- 14 muffins
4 cups flour
2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
1 egg
1 ¼ cups milk
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup tepid water
1 teaspoon salt

This recipe comes from the old time life books series “The Good Cook.” It’s my go to for classic items. I love this series; it break things down, includes the science, explains the why. I highly recommend the books and they’re fun to track down in old book shops and ebay.

Warm milk and butter to tepid (I used a quart bowl in the microwave). Whisk in the egg. In a small bowl, stir the yeast into the water. Mix salt and flour in a large mixing bowl and make a large well. Add the yeast, then the egg milk mixture. Knead thoroughly. A mixer with a dough hook is really handy here. The dough should be soft but not sticky (see photo of dough sticking to my hand- that’s too sticky).   I had to add about ¼ cup more flour. Place back in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let rise until the dough has doubled (60-90 minutes).  Roll out the dough so it’s uniformly ½ inch thick. Using a large biscuit cutter (2 ½ inch diameter), stamp out rounds. Knead the trimmings back into a large ball and repeat until all the dough is used. Lightly grease a griddle and heat to low. Place the muffins on the griddle. They should cook slowly, ideally 5-7 minutes on each side. When they are starting to brown on the first side, flip. The muffins will rise and swell. When they’re cooked through, pull them apart.  Toast the insides. I did this under the broiler, once all the other components were ready. Or, as Jane Grigson says, “Toast the muffins by the fire, then pull them apart and put a big knob of butter in the middle; muffins are never cut, always pulled apart.” Sounds good to me, at least for the leftovers that aren’t saddled with ham and poached eggs and Hollandaise Sauce.