Homemade English Muffins

I am a pretty good baker, but for whatever reason, it never dawned on me to try and make my own Homemade English Muffins. My husband and I are doing our part by staying home, in our effort to keep the dreaded Coronavirus at bay. Like the rest of the country, we are eating what we have on hand and trying not to go to the store, lest we expose ourselves to possible illness. 

Homemade English Muffins are soft and chewy, lots of crevices to hold melted butter or jam! Yum!

I decided to make English Muffins after the one package I had in the freezer “disappeared” during a long breakfast. Rather than risk a run to the store, I decided to tackle an English Muffin recipe I had and the thing that surprised me the most was how simple it was.

I am not sure why I assumed it would be a difficult process, but it was as easy as making a simple loaf of bread like my Dutch Oven No Knead Bread or even my blog favorite recipe for The Best Hamburger Buns . The muffins had the hallmark cornmeal on the top and bottom and lots of holes and crevices to hold delicious toppings after toasting.

Homemade English Muffins are made from basic pantry items. They are mixed together and then cooked in an iron skillet to get nice and toasty! They are delicious!

This is a recipe I made in my stand mixer. You can mix this by hand using a wooden spoon, if you do not have a stand mixer. All of the ingredients this recipe calls for, are considered staple pantry items. When you have flour, yeast, salt and sugar, you have yourself the makings for wonderful baked goods.

To make Homemade English Muffins, you will place the flour and salt in the mixing bowl and give it a little stir. Combine slightly warmed milk and yeast together, (make sure milk is not hotter than 120 degrees). Add the sugar to the milk mixture. Stir this together until the yeast is dissolved, then set aside for a few minutes before pouring into the mixing bowl with the flour. With the dough hook on, you will mix this for about 2-3 minutes.

After mixing the the dough for several minutes, it should be smooth and slightly tacky or sticky. Remove the dough ball and place it in a greased bowl, making sure to turn the dough to coat both sides and cover with plastic wrap for 2-3 hours. 

 After 2-3 hours, or when the dough has at least doubled, you will remove the dough and place it onto a lightly floured work surface. Cut the dough into even pieces and shape it into a ball. Sprinkle cornmeal onto a baking sheet and then place the dough balls onto the cornmeal. Flatten the dough with your fingertips or palm of your hand, then sprinkle more cornmeal on top. Cover this and let rise for an hour. 

Homemade English Muffins are cooked on a skillet or griddle over medium-low heat. You can add a generous portion of butter to your skillet or cook them dry, either method is fine. If you like them with a buttery flavor, go for the butter! You will cook them approximately 5-6 minutes on each side and you will notice they get golden brown. If you have concern that the middle is not fully cooked, you can put the muffins on a baking sheet, in a preheated 350 degree oven, for for 5-6 minutes, to be sure they are cooked all the way through.

Allow the muffins to cool for approximately 1 hour. Then you will use a fork to pull them apart from the middle or around the waist of the muffin. This helps to keep the nooks and crannies in place. From here you can put them in the toaster to get crunchy and hot. Top these Homemade English Muffins with butter or jam and enjoy!

Homemade English Muffins make a wonderful treat!! I would really love to hear how they turned out for you in the comments below. Thanks a bunch. Enjoy!!