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Feb 9, 2016

Sourdough English Muffins on the Griddle

Sourdough English Muffins

I love English muffins. They are so good toasted and buttered or spread with jam.

Some of my favorite ways to eat English muffins are as part of a breakfast sandwich, as a base for a quick mini pizza, and for an open faced tuna melt. The tuna melt especially brings back memories of my sister and me hanging out together with our new babies and spending the day together (and maybe watching Days of Our Lives or All My Children while our babies were napping). Creating those tuna melts was about as "fancy" as we could get while juggling babies on our hips. The tuna melts were especially good with potato chips and dill pickles....


... and this is my new favorite English muffin recipe. Yes, I know. The last time I made English muffins, I told you I had found the perfect recipe. I still love that recipe, but it requires owning English muffin rings, a specialty item that not everyone, except "certain bread geeks who shall remain nameless," own.

Sourdough English Muffins

Amazingly, the dough is not particularly liquid, yet it produces light and airy muffins that can be fork split. On the first day, they are so soft and light, you could even use them as dinner rolls.

You actually roll this dough with a rolling pin and cut the muffins out with a three inch cookie cutter. The muffins rise like crazy on the griddle, so much so that I topped the rising muffins with parchment and sheet pans for about two minutes to keep them from getting too tall while cooking on the first side (see the third photo down on this post). This step is not necessary.

Sourdough English Muffins

These English muffins contain sourdough, which makes them particularly flavorful. You can use either a fed or unfed sourdough starter, as long as it is 100% hydration. This recipe is perfect for using up the extra sourdough you normally have to throw away when feeding your starter.

These muffins are so amazingly light! Split them with a fork, toast them up, and pat yourself on the back for making some of the best English muffins you have ever tasted.

Sourdough English Muffins

If you don't have a sourdough starter or English muffin rings, but still want to try making English muffins give this recipe from a prior post a try. It's almost as good as this one.

After the recipe, check out the huge list of links to what all of the other #BreadBakers have created for this month's theme, griddle breads. The talent represented in this list is amazing.

Sourdough English Muffins

Yield: 32 muffins, adapted from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients


7/8 ounces sugar
16 ounces warm water (110 to 115 degrees F)
1 tablespoon instant yeast
8 1/2 ounces sourdough starter, fed or unfed, 100% hydration
1 pound, 13 3/4 ounces unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 ounces nonfat dry milk (I used King Arthur Flour's Special Dry)
2 ounces room temperature butter
1 tablespoon salt
cornmeal or semolina flour for dusting

Instructions

  1. Combine all of the ingredients, except the cornmeal/semolina, into the bowl of a stand mixer, mixing on second speed until the dough comes together, about seven minutes. It should be smooth. 
  2. Turn the dough out into an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled, one to two hours. 
  3. Turn the dough out onto your work surface, and divide it in two. Cover the second piece with plastic wrap, and roll the first half out to 1/2 inch thick. Cover and let relax for a few minutes. Re-roll the dough out to about 1/2 inch thick. 
  4. Sprinkle sheet pans with cornmeal or semolina flour. 
  5. Using an oiled three inch round cookie cutter, cut the dough into rounds. Place the rounds onto the sheet pans, and sprinkle the tops with the cornmeal/semolina. Cover with plastic wrap.
  6. Continue to work with the dough, rewrapping the scraps to make more rounds. Repeat with the other half of the dough. 
  7. Let the muffins rise for about 45 to 60 minutes. 
  8. Preheat a griddle or ungreased frying pan to 350 degrees F. 
  9. Transfer the muffins, in shifts, to the hot griddle or frying pan and cook approximately 15 minutes per side, until the interior reaches about 185 degrees F. Cool on a wire rack.
These muffins will stay fresh about 3 or 4 days kept in an airtight container. Individually wrap extras and place in a freezer bag to keep longer. 

Griddle Breads
BreadBakers
 #BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send Stacy an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.

Would you like to comment?

  1. Never hurts to have a couple of favorite English muffin recipes in one's repertoire, Karen! These look absolutely perfect, but, then again, so do the others!

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    1. Thanks Stacy. It's a quest for the perfect muffin!

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  2. I love English muffins with some jam, but have not made them as yet as most recipes require muffin rings. I love your recipe Karen. It gives me a chance to use my sourdough starter(going crazy with it:))and I don't need any fancy rings.

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    1. Even though I have the rings, I loved not having to use them with this recipe.

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  3. Absolute perfection! I know I will love this one because of the sourdough! Beautiful texture and color. Thanks for joining in this month, Karen.

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  4. I am so intrigued by these, they look picture perfect!! These are a must make for sure!!

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  5. Oh wow Karen..such happy looking Muffins. Your pictures sure have been wishing to reach out for one (or more maybe ;) )

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  6. I just love English muffins too, and it is my goal to bake sourdough breads this year! Your English muffins came out beautifully!

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    1. I'm looking forward to your sourdough breads!

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  7. Beautiful looking muffins! Sourdough must add a great taste kick!

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    1. It's pretty mild, but still very flavorful.

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  8. Oooh, these look great! I am going to start my sourdough again, saving this recipe for later :-)

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    1. I am totally hooked on baking with sourdough!

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  9. Karen , I first thought was to make english muffins for this month , as I don't have the ring mould I has to change my mind. It was in the do list...... So many english muffin recipes in your blog........

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    1. I hope I've inspired you to give them a try!

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  10. I am very impressed with how lovely and perfect your English Muffins are and a little jealous as well. I have never even thought to try making them.

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    1. Ha ha Wendy! I hope you'll give them a try, just for the adventure.

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  11. Lovely looking English muffins Karen! The sourdough really improves the taste and texture of the bread. I had made these a couple of months ago and was pleased at how easy it was to make simple bread without the oven!! Lovely pictures! Thanks for sharing!!

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  12. I had these at a social event in London late last year, and although sourdough and me are not exactly friends,I loved these with a hint of marmalade / strawberry preserve .. ur post brought back those memories... yum looking English muffins, Karen :)

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  13. These look so incredibly delicious. I loved toasted english muffins with a little butter!!!!

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  14. Karen, I am SO excited to try this. Ihave been wanting to make homemade English muffins for a long time. Pinning.

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  15. You never stop amazing me with all of these beautiful and delicious breads you make. I'll bring the coffee and sweet butter! :)

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  16. Wow, sourdough English muffins look so perfect -- soft and delicious. Bookmarked to try real soon.

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  17. Would like to have these muffins with Egg Benedict.

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  18. I am totally going to make these because I will love watching them rise like crazy on the griddle! Magic! Plus, they are gorgeous, Karen! Even before I read, I had to just scroll through all the pictures. I'll take mine with tuna and pickles, too!

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    1. Right Jenni? Doesn't that sound good! Thanks so much for the sweet comments.

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  19. I look forward to giving these a try. I've made English Muffins before, but it has been a while. And I think everything is better with sourdough in it!

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  20. Awesome muffins. The pictures are really awesome too. Bookmarked!! Making them soon.

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  21. Those look delicious. I've never tried to make English Muffins but I think I should give it a try.

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  22. Could these be any more perfect!! Going to have to try and make some on my own, I bet they're SO good when they're warm and fresh!

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    1. They are Whitney. My husband ate one as a dinner roll!

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  23. I have got to make these! I have wanted to make homemade English muffins for decades. Lazy me! These are inspiring me to get busy! Yum!!

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  24. Every time I see these I know I have to try them, I always loved English Muffins, and Karen yours look perfect!

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  25. Is it possible to make these without instant yeast? Just using a starter?

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    1. You probably could, but they'll probably take longer. It's worth a try!

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