I first saw this recipe for yeasted English muffins a year and a half ago (!!!) and did the conversions for sourdough and wrote up the recipe… then promptly forgot about them. I have thought about it every now and then since then, but it was never at a convenient time. How stupid was that! They are so easy!

Perfectly chewy interior, crisp exterior, rich flavour – these sourdough English muffins will certainly be making a regular appearance for weekend breakfasts from now on!

But if you don’t sourdough, head over to Sarah’s lovely blog for the yeasted version.

Makes 16 muffins
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Rising time: 2 – 3 hours
Cooking time: 50 minutes

Ingredients

470g (3 3/4 cups, spooned and scraped) all-purpose (plain) flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
150g (3/5 cup) 100% hydration starter
180ml (3/4 cup) lukewarm water
160g (2/3 cup) Greek yogurt
semolina for sprinkling
sunflower oil

Directions

Whisk together the flour, salt and sugar. Whisk together the starter, water and yogurt, add to the flour and mix to a soft dough. Knead by hand for 10 minutes or with a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook for 5 – 6 minutes, adding a little more flour if it is too sticky. Let dough rest for 5 minutes.

Liberally sprinkle a baking sheet with semolina and set aside.

On a lightly oiled surface, roll dough out to a thickness of about 1.5cm (1/2″). Cut out as many circles as you can with an oiled 8cm (3″) round cutter (you can use the oiled rim of a glass or cup, if you don’t have a cookie cutter of the right size), re-knead and roll the remaining dough and cut as many more circles as you can, as often as necessary to use all the dough up. You should end up with about 16 muffins.

Transfer the muffins to the baking sheet, ensuring that they are lightly coated with semolina on both sides and that they have room to grow. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for about three hours, until puffed to about 50% bigger in size.

Heat a large skillet or frying pan on high and brush with oil. Add 4 muffins and reduce heat to medium – you don’t want to crowd the pan because they will puff up a lot. Cook for 6 minutes on each side, until deep golden brown. When done, transfer to a plate or dish lined with a clean tea towel.

Continue cooking the remaining muffins in batches.

Eat immediately or allow to cool completely before storing.

The muffins will keep in an airtight container for a couple of days, or several months frozen. To freeze, wrap tightly in foil. Thaw, still wrapped, at room temperature.