Served warm with butter and honey, crumpets are a classic English breakfast or teatime treat.
On a visit to England a couple of years ago, I spent a good part of a day in Nottingham going from store to store in a disappointingly fruitless search for egg/pancake/crumpet rings, such was my desire to try my hand at these scrumptious yeasted pancakes. After so many years living in a country where we couldn’t just grab a bag at the supermarket, we ate dozens of them on that vacation, and we didn’t want to have to wait until our next visit. In the end, I ordered them online once I got home… then they sat in a cupboard for two years, unused. Until now!
This recipe was adapted from A Taste of Madness where Cathleen blogs about cooking and baking her way through life in Canada.
Makes about 20
Preparation: 10 minutes
Resting: 1 – 2 hours
Cooking: about 30 minutes, in batches
Ingredients
375ml (1 1/2 cups) lukewarm milk
450g (1lb OR 3 3/5 cups, spooned and scraped) all-purpose flour
5g (1 1/2 tsp) instant yeast
2 tsp granulated sugar
375ml (1 1/2 cups) warm water
1 tsp fine salt
1 tsp baking powder
Directions
Whisk together the flour, yeast and sugar.
Stir in the milk.
Add half the water and beat it into the batter, slowly adding the remaining water until the batter is smooth and thick. You can use a wooden spoon to combine the water then whisk until smooth, or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment to combine the water then switch to the whisk attachment to get the batter smooth.
Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 1 – 2 hours, until doubled in volume and bubbly.
Whisk the salt and baking powder into the batter.
Heat a teaspoon of neutral oil (e.g. sunflower or canola) in a large, non-stick skillet on medium-low.
With a large spoon or an ice cream scoop, scoop the batter into egg/pancake rings, then remove the rings and flip the crumpets when bubbles are covering the surface and it has mostly set on top, about 3 minutes. Cook the tops for about 2 minutes, until golden.
Transfer to a wire rack or plate lined with paper towel.
Serve warm.
Note: They will keep for a couple of days in an airtight container in the fridge. Just pop them in the toaster to warm up before serving.
pizzarossa 
These do look stunning! I have GOT to give these a try!
Thanks, Karen! They are soooo good, you’ll love them!
oh yes – crumpets are such a wonderful, comforting bite at any time of the day….lashings of butter is most definitely the order of the day (naughty, but essential!)
Definitely worth the calories! 🙂
I have never tried crumpets before. This looks like a fun recipe to try. Looks delicious!! Great pick this month.
thanks Traci! You’ll love them! 🙂
Crumpets are in my opinion the cutest little bread in the world! Those little holes begging for some melted butter… or anything we’d like… yours turned out perfect!
Thanks, Sally! 🙂
I’m so pleased you finally managed to make a batch of crumpets with your crumpet rings! I also have a recipe on my site, being a Brit that’s no surprise, and I love to make my own crumpets when I have time, as I cannot get them in SW France where I live now! Those look AMAZING and what a FAB pick for this month! Karen
Thanks Karen! There seem to be so many expats living in this part of the world among SRC! 🙂
Your crumpets look wonderful. I need to try making some very soon.
You really do! They are a delight 🙂
Are crumpets the same things as English muffins? Either way it certainly looks like something I’d enjoy!
English muffins are more bread-like and crumpets are a kind of yeasted pancake, so quite different. They are great, definitely recommended! 🙂
What a fun history to choose your recipe! They look delicious!
Thanks Emily! 🙂
Yum! My kids and I have made these before and they are so, so much better than the store bought ones. Yours look delicious!
http://makingmemorieswithyourkids.com
Thanks Erin! I’m certain they will be a regular weekend feature for us in future! 🙂
I’m SO happy you did this post! I’m always on a hunt for good crumpets and they’re so hard to come by in the States! I’m looking forward to trying this out.
Sarah, your blog name is absolutely perfect! LOL! I hope this recipe is worthy! 😀
I have always always wanted to make crumpets. These look pretty easy and I cannot wait to try these!
They are a lot easier than I ever imagined, Nicole! Have fun!