English Muffins

I’ve used this delicious recipe for about 29 years. They are very good… much better than any store-bought English Muffins I’ve ever had.

Step: 1

Warm the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Mix in the sugar, stirring until dissolved. Let cool until lukewarm. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

Step: 2

In a large bowl, combine the milk, yeast mixture, shortening and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Add salt and rest of flour, or enough to make a soft dough. Knead. Place in greased bowl, cover, and let rise.

Step: 3

Punch down. Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut rounds with biscuit cutter, drinking glass, or empty tuna can. Sprinkle waxed paper with cornmeal and set the rounds on this to rise. Dust tops of muffins with cornmeal also. Cover and let rise 1/2 hour.

Step: 4

Heat greased griddle. Cook muffins on griddle about 10 minutes on each side on medium heat. Keep baked muffins in a warm oven until all have been cooked. Allow to cool and place in plastic bags for storage. To use, split and toast. Great with orange butter, or cream cheese and jam.

Per Serving: 190 calories; protein 4.9g; carbohydrates 34g; fat 3.5g; cholesterol 1.1mg; sodium 136.2mg.

The quality of the flour could make a real deal to your bread. Different brands do vary. Extra-strong or Canadian flours, which are naturally higher in gluten, may give you a best rise than standard dough flours – especially if you’re making wholemeal bread , which not always rise as well as clear bread.

To made this in a breadmaker , add all the menus to your breadmaker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

A bread first rising can be done in the fridge 24 hours . This slows down the time it takes to rise to double its size, giving it a deeper flavour. It’s also a great limit , as you can work it night before , then finish it off the next day.